Guitar strings come in a range of materials, thicknesses, and textures, each of which are best suited to a particular sound or style of music. Understanding different string properties will help you determine which strings are the right choice for how you want to sound and how you want your guitar to feel when you play it.

General Properties

First and foremost, different guitars require different types of strings. For example, the strings you’d put on your standard acoustic guitar shouldn’t be used on an electric guitar and vice versa (even though they’ll fit).

Material

With the exception of nylon strings, pretty much all common guitar strings are made from a steel core where the thicker strings are wrapped in an alloy wire. This alloy typically contains some blend of copper mixed with tin, zinc, or nickel. Different blends of metal result in different sound and feel. Acoustic guitar strings usually have a higher copper content, while electric guitar strings more often contain a nickel-plated wrap.

Winding: Roundwound vs Flatwound

Roundwound strings are by far the most common variety of guitar string. The wire wrap is continuously coiled around the core, resulting in a ridged texture across the length of the string. This style of wrapping results in a brighter tone with a more pronounced articulation. Virtually all steel acoustic guitar strings are roundwound. Roundwounds are the default for electric guitars, too.

Flatwound strings are wrapped with a thin metal ribbon, resulting in a smooth texture across the length of the string. Flatwounds produce a warmer, mellower tone and feel softer on the fingers compared to roundwound strings. They’re more often used for jazz and a less aggressive play style.

On acoustic guitars, the 3 or 4 lowest strings are commonly wound. On electric guitars, usually only the 3 lowest strings are wound. The higher strings are left unwound, leaving just the exposed core.

Gauge

Gauge refers to the thickness of a guitar string. Strings of a higher gauge are thicker and able to handle more tension, while thinner strings are easier to fret and bend. Acoustic guitars commonly use a set of 11- or 12-gauge strings, whereas electric guitars usually use a set of 10-gauge strings. The higher string gauge on acoustic guitars also helps to resonate the guitar’s body. It’s possible to put lighter strings on acoustic guitars or heavier strings on electric guitars to change their sound and feel.

Acoustic Guitar Strings

There are two main types of acoustic guitars: Classical guitars, which use nylon strings, and acoustic guitars that use steel strings. The term “acoustic guitar” generally refers to the steel string variety, whereas “classical guitar” specifically refers to guitars with nylon strings.

Nylon Strings

Nylon strings have a much softer feel and a warmer, rounder tone compared to steel strings. They don’t project the same way that steel strings do, but considering they’re used in almost exclusively low-volume music, that’s not necessarily a drawback.

Steel Strings

Roundwound steel strings are the typical choice for acoustic guitars. On modern acoustic guitars, strings are most often wrapped in a material known as phosphor bronze. This copper alloy contains anywhere between 0.5% and 11% tin, and a very small amount of phosphorus - less than 0.5%. Strings wrapped in phosphor bronze produce a balanced and rich tone with a long, clear sustain. Phosphor bronze is also a durable material, allowing for lots of playing time before needing to change strings. Strings wrapped with phosphor bronze have been the standard since the 1970s.

Before phosphor bronze strings hit the market, strings were wrapped in an alloy known as 80/20 bronze, which is technically a misnomer. In actuality, the material was brass since the alloy was composed of copper (roughly 80%) and zinc (roughly 20% - bronze is a blend copper and tin). Compared to phosphor bronze strings, 80/20 bronze strings have a brighter tone. However, they are very susceptible to corrosion and lose their tone quickly as a result. This lack of durability contributed to the rise in popularity of phosphor bronze strings.

Electric Guitar Strings

One of the biggest differences between strings for acoustic guitars and strings for electric guitars is that strings for electric guitars need to be more magnetized in order to work better with pickups. As a result, electric guitar strings are usually wrapped in a different material compared to acoustic guitar strings.

Nickel-Plated Steel

The most common wrapping on electric guitar strings is nickel-plated steel, often just referred to as “nickel wound” (not to be confused with pure nickel strings). This wrapping usually contains approximately 92% steel and 8% nickel. These strings have a nice bright sound, project well, and are suitable for a wide range of styles. Chances are, if you ever picked up an electric guitar, it’s fitted with nickel-plated strings.

Pure Nickel

For a darker tone and stiffer feel, there are strings wrapped in pure nickel. As the name implies, this wrapping contains only nickel - no steel mixed in, aside from the string’s core. Pure nickel strings are most often found on vintage guitars to create warmer, darker tones more common from decades past.

Stainless Steel

Lastly, there are strings wrapped in stainless steel. Stainless steel strings have the brightest tone and greatest durability compared to nickel-wrapped strings. They are more resistant to corrosion, but have a noticeably different feel that may take some getting used to. They also run the risk of wearing down frets faster because of their toughness.

Considering Gauge

As briefly mentioned earlier, gauge refers to the thickness of a string. As you become more proficient on guitar, you’ll develop preferences as to how you want your instrument to feel.

Generally, acoustic guitars have 11- or 12-gauge strings. For a stiffer feel, it’s not unusual to use 13-gauge strings. Strings of a higher gauge are placed under more tension when they’re tuned up, making it harder to press down on frets, but easier to really dig into the strings when strumming or plucking.

Electric guitars usually come equipped with 10-gauge strings. These lower-gauge strings make it easier to set the string action low (the space between the strings and the fretboard), which makes it easier to play faster and to bend notes. For guitarists that want even more ease when cruising the fretboard, 9-gauge strings allow for even less pressure to get notes out. However, these lighter strings have less projection and sustain, and are more susceptible to breaking if played too hard.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the type and gauge of strings guitarists use comes down to personal preference. As you develop your skills and get to play on different setups, you’ll begin to form preferences of your own. To really figure out what feels best to you, you could purchase a few packs of strings of different brands, construction types, and gauges. What feels most comfortable to another guitar player may not be the right fit for you and vice versa.

Developing your skills on the guitar takes a lot of practice, time, and patience. If taking the journey alone seems intimidating, consider signing up for our group guitar class, the Guitarist’s Roadmap. This class is designed for beginner guitarist’s near Boston that have zero prior experience with playing an instrument. You’ll learn alongside like-minded individuals that are eager to acquire the fundamentals of the guitar while becoming integrated with a growing community of musicians. Click the button below to learn more.

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Guitar String Anatomy