How To Tune A Ukulele – 6 Ways From Easier To More Difficult

When you buy new or replacement strings, you need to tune your ukulele repeatedly until the strings are stabilized. But you’re probably wondering: how to tune a ukulele in the right way. Well, today, I’m going to make it easy for you.

There are different ways to tune, some easier, others harder. I will list them, in my opinion, from more accessible to more challenging.

How To Tune A Ukulele – Here Are My 6 Ways

1: Digital Tuner

The easiest way to tune your ukulele is to use a digital tuner. I believe the best are the ones that stick to the headstock of the ukulele – known as clip-on.

Some of these are specific to ukuleles, but any of them will do the job – if you already have one, there is no need to buy another.

Tune for a soprano ukulele: The first string should be tuned down to G. Now pick the sting with the tuner clipped onto the headstock. It will likely show an arrow moving either left or right – tighten or loosen the tuners to center the note. Some tuners have a green light that will flash when the right note is reached. Follow the same steps for the C, E, and A strings.

• My subjective precision rating: is 5/5

2. AP Tuner

The AP Tuner software is a tuner that works from the sounds captured by your computer’s microphone. It works the same way as a standard tuner but could be more accurate.

• Price: $ 0.00 ($ 10.00 if you have to buy a microphone for your computer
• My subjective precision rating: is 4/5

3. Using a tuning fork or video.

Pitch pipes are available for ukuleles, though they’re sometimes easy to come across. This method can be difficult for beginners, as you have to judge when the notes are identical. You can find them more easily on the internet. Working in the same way as a tuning fork, there are YouTube videos that give you the right notes as a reference to tune in. You can compare tuning string by string if you have a friend with a tuned ukulele.

Price: I am still determining how much pitch pipes cost worldwide.
My subjective precision rating: depending on our hearing, it can vary from 0 -5/5.

4. With the help of a guitar

Assuming you have a perfectly tuned guitar available, you can use it as the basis for tuning your ukulele. This sometimes proves a little difficult for beginners. The following notes are identical on the guitar and ukulele – the string count is from the bottom (the closest to the floor) to the top (closest to your face):

• 3rd fret on the 1st guitar string = on string 4 unfretted on the ukulele
• 5th fret on the 3rd guitar string = on string 3 unfretted on the ukulele
• On string one, unfretted on the guitar = on string two, unfretted on the ukulele
• 5th fret on the 1st guitar string = 1st string on the ukulele

The above is based on a guitar with standard tuning I.,e. EADGBE with a high G. If your ukulele is tuned in low G, you should play the 5th fret of the 4th guitar string and compare it to the 4th ukulele string.

My subjective precision rating: depending on our hearing and how well the guitar is tuned, it can vary from 0 -5/5.
Price: $ 0.00 (unless you have to buy a guitar)

5. With the help of a piano

As with the above two methods, a piano can be used, with the distinct advantage that these are tuned with guaranteed certainty because pianists usually pay people to fine-tune their pianos correctly.

My subjective precision rating: depending on our hearing and how well the piano is tuned, it can vary from 0 -5/5.
Price: $ 0.00 (unless you have to buy a piano )

• Read Also: Best Ukulele Tuner And How To Tune A Ukulele

6. The most challenging method is to compare one string to another

This method is awful and very difficult, due mainly to needing references. You can use the call tone on your phone as a reference – depending on the region and operator, or a fork tuning fork. Once you have one string tuned, use whichever method you will have to compare it with the others following the formula below.

• String 4 unfretted (G) = 3rd fret of the 2nd string
• String 3 unfretted (C) = nothing, as this is the lowest note on the instrument. You can get a C note on the 3rd fret of the 1st string, but it won’t be identical because it’s on a different octave
• String 2 unfretted (E) = 4th fret of the 3rd string
• String 1 unfretted (A) = 5th fret of the 2nd string

My subjective precision rating is: is -1000/5. I wouldn’t say I like this tuning method.

Price: Your soul and your happiness. Never, ever tune this way – buy a digital tuner.

I just wanted to let you know that ukuleles are tuned in high in most cases. Therefore the G string will be higher than C.
Warning 2: If your ukulele has friction tuners, it’s a good idea to grab a screwdriver and tighten it. Otherwise, the string will loosen.

Are you ready to use one of this post’s six ways to tune a ukulele? Would you know how to tune a ukulele after reading my post? If so, I recommend you do it yourself now.

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