2020 held so many guitar reviews that we had to split our end of the year roundup into two separate articles! This will show all our rankings for guitars $1000 USD and under, with the following article to rank all guitars over $1000. If you need a reminder, here is how we review guitars, and here is a important note on how to differentiate between the ever crowding guitar market.
Some other reminders:
- Each review was hands on, which means the guitar arrived at my house, in my hands, plugged into my rig each time
- I get paid exactly zero dollars to do these reviews, so no financial bias on my end
- Sometimes I am fortunate enough to get to keep a guitar, but 95% of the time these guitars all go back to their original manufacturers
- All the guitars reviewed here are new, and currently available
- And lastly, to go read the individual review just click on the highlighted name of each guitar in the table!
Superlatives
Best Overall: Schecter Ultra III – Buy Here – Read Full Review
Best Mod Project Platform: Squier Paranormal Super-Sonic – Buy Here – Read Full Review
Most Versatile: Sterling by Music Man St. Vincent – Buy Here – Read Full Review
Best Guitar For The Price: Glarry GTL Semi-Hollow – Buy Here – Read Full Review
The Top 10:
#5 Goldfinch Guitars The Painted Lady 2020
#6 Fender Player Series Lead III
#7 Fender Player Series Mustang 90
#10 Gretsch G5622T Electromatic
| Model | Rating | Cost | Find Your Own |
| Schecter Ultra III | 9.4 | $699.00 | Sweetwater |
| Fano Omnis Series MG6 | 8.9 | $849.00 | Sadly discontinued |
| Epiphone Les Paul Modern | 8.8 | $649.00 | Sweetwater |
| CMG Guitars Mark | 8.6 | $799.00 | cmgguitars.com |
| Goldfinch Guitars The Painted Lady 2020 | 8.6 | $399.00 | No Longer Made |
| Fender Player Series Lead III | 8.5 | $599.99 | Sweetwater |
| Fender Player Series Mustang 90 | 8.4 | $599.99 | Sweetwater |
| Howl Guitars Sirena 3 | 8.4 | $879.00 | Sadly a dormant brand |
| D’Angelico Premier Mini DC | 8.4 | $799.99 | Sweetwater |
| Gretsch G5622T Electromatic | 8.3 | $799.99 | Sweetwater |
| Sterling by Music Man St. Vincent | 8.0 | $599.99 | Sweetwater |
| Fano Omnis JM6 | 8.0 | $849.00 | Sadly Discontinued |
| Kramer The ’84 | 8.0 | $799.00 | Sweetwater |
| Guild Starfire I SC | 7.8 | $599.00 | Sweetwater |
| Squier Paranormal Super-Sonic | 7.6 | $349.99 | Sweetwater |
| Squier Classic Vibe Jazzmaster | 7.5 | $399.99 | Sweetwater |
| Vintage V65 ICON | 7.1 | $349.00 | Reverb.com |
| Vintage V120 ICON | 6.9 | $329.00 | Reverb.com |
| Stadium NY Strat | 6.6 | $225.99 | Pelicanbeachmusic.com |
| Grote GT-150 | 6.5 | $149.00 | Amazon.com |
| Harley Benton TE-90QM HH | 6.3 | $171.00 | Reverb.com |
| Glarry GTL Semi-Hollow | 5.4 | $119.99 | Glarrymusic.com |
As expected, the spread is far more linear than the premium guitars ($1000+) which indicates you get what you pay for in this sub-$1k category. However, you may notice a huge cluster in the $400-800 category, which for about 2 years now seems like the best spot to get value for your money.
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