Music
Guitar
Four chords and a surprising number of songs open up
The first fortnight your fingertips hurt and chord changes stall, and that is the only real gate; past it a large body of songs opens. Learn four chords before attempting fingerstyle. Steel-string, classical and electric are three different paths, and a cheap steel-string is the safest first buy.
First stepBuy an inexpensive acoustic or classical guitar, tune it with an app, learn four chords, and get through one song switching slowly between them.
Barriers
Cost to start
$50–300
Going deep → $2k–10k
Alone or with people
On your own
Effort
Sitting
Without a teacher?
Self-taught
One session takes
Under 30 min
Where
At home
Why people take it up
Related guides
Try a hobby before you buy the gearStarting costs $50–300Skills
BuildsReading music and basic theorySense of rhythm