Best guitars for jazz 2024: smooth swinging options for jazz cats

A pair of Gretsch hollowbody electric guitars leaning against a wall
(Image credit: Future)

Jazz has come a long way from its roots in 19th-century New Orleans, where enslaved people of African and Caribbean origin blended their own traditional music. Today, it's one of the most diverse and influential genres, filling everything from smoky bars to world-famous clubs and theaters. If jazz is your bag, and you’re deep in the world of complex chord voicings, polyrhythms, wild improv, and ending every song on a major 13, then you’ll want to check out the best guitars for jazz.

Jazz has many different sub-genres, and as such the guitar styles within it vary. Sometimes the guitar acts as a backing, providing texture for others, other times it’s the lead instrument, and often it can be used to create complex, improvisational solos that drive the entire performance. With this in mind, the best guitar for jazz will depend entirely on what you need from it.

You can trust Guitar World Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing guitar products so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

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