Guitar & Instrument Tuner

This tuner listens through your microphone and shows the note you are playing, its exact frequency, and how far it is from the target in cents (hundredths of a semitone). A needle swings left when you are flat and right when you are sharp, and a strobe band underneath drifts the same way and stands still when the string is spot on.

It needs your microphone to hear your instrument, and it says so before asking. Your browser shows its own permission prompt only after you press Start tuner. The sound is analysed on your device as it arrives: nothing is recorded or uploaded, and the microphone switches off when you press Stop or close the page.

Pick your instrument and tuning, from guitar in standard, Drop D, DADGAD and other open tunings, to 4- and 5-string bass, ukulele, violin, viola, cello, double bass, mandolin and banjo, or use chromatic mode for any note. The string guide lights up the string you are nearest to, so you always know which peg to turn. Orchestras and early-music players can move the reference A anywhere from 415 to 466 Hz, and a reference tone lets you tune by ear with no microphone at all.

1. Choose your instrument under “Instrument and tuning” (Guitar standard is already selected).
2. Press “Start tuner” and allow the microphone when your browser asks.
3. Play one string and let it ring. The nearest string lights up and the needle shows how far off it is.
4. Turn the peg until the needle sits in the green zone, the strobe stops and the message says “In tune”.
5. Tap a string to lock onto it, or use “Play tone” under “Reference tone” to tune by ear.

• Accurate pitch detection (the McLeod method), steady to within a cent as a plucked string fades.
• Note name with octave, frequency to 0.1 Hz, cents from the target, a needle dial and a moving strobe band.
• 23 presets: guitar (standard, Drop D, half and whole step down, Drop C, DADGAD, open G, D and E, 7-string), bass (4, 5-string, Drop D), ukulele (high G, low G, baritone), violin, viola, cello, double bass, mandolin and banjo (open G, double C).
• Chromatic mode for any note, from the lowest piano A up through the top of a violin.
• A string guide that highlights the nearest string and turns green when it is in tune; tap a string to lock onto it.
• Reference pitch adjustable from 415 to 466 Hz, with one-tap 415, 432, 440, 442 and 443.
• A noise gate with a live level bar, so a fan or traffic does not move the needle.
• In-tune zone of ±2, ±3 or ±5 cents.
• Reference tones in a rich string-like or pure sine sound, which work without a microphone.

• Tune up to the note rather than down to it: if you are sharp, go a little below and come back up, so the string holds its pitch.
• Pluck firmly once and let the note ring. The first moment of a pluck is slightly sharp; the reading settles a moment later.
• In a noisy room, raise the “Ignore sounds quieter than” slider until the needle stays still while you are not playing.
• On a phone, hold the instrument close to the microphone at the bottom edge.
• New strings stretch for a day or two, so tune again after a few minutes of playing.