Best electric guitars under £500 (UK)
The PRS SE CE 24 Standard Satin is the one to buy if you can stretch to around £449, with the widest range of sounds here. For less, the Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster is a proper step up at around £311.
Published 29 Oct 2026 · Last updated 14 Nov 2026
Quick picks
- PRS SE CE 24 Standard Satin EDIT'S PICK · Players who want one upgrade guitar that covers everything from clean pop to rock · around £449
- Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster BEST VALUE · Players who want a simple, punchy guitar that covers everything from jazz to classic rock · around £311
- Squier Classic Vibe '60s Jazzmaster · Players who want a distinctive offset guitar with versatile switching and an expressive vibrato · around £359
- Epiphone SG Special P-90 · Rock and blues players who want the gritty P-90 sound in a classic double-cutaway shape · from £369
- Epiphone Les Paul Standard 60s BEST PREMIUM · Players who want a full Les Paul, with a carved maple top and humbuckers, for classic and hard rock · around £485
No. 1 · EDIT'S PICK
PRS SE CE 24 Standard Satin
around £449 (price checked 14 Nov 2026)
PRS's most affordable guitar, with a mahogany body, a maple neck, a rosewood fingerboard, 24 frets, a 25-inch scale and two PRS 85/15 "S" humbuckers that split for single-coil sounds. It has a PRS tremolo, and guitarguitar lists it with a gig bag.
Why we picked it
Both Guitar World and MusicRadar name it the best electric guitar under £500 overall. Guitarist's Dave Burrluck, writing for Guitar World, said he couldn't fault it, and both outlets praise the build quality and the range of sounds from the coil-split humbuckers. MusicRadar's reviewer found the neck feels different from Fender and Gibson necks but comfortable, and Guitar World notes the PRS styling won't be for everyone.
Best for: Players who want one upgrade guitar that covers everything from clean pop to rock
Skip it if: You want a classic Fender or Gibson shape and feel, or a glossy finish.
| Body | Mahogany |
|---|---|
| Neck | Maple, rosewood fingerboard, 24 frets |
| Scale | 25 inch |
| Pickups | Two PRS 85/15 S humbuckers with coil split |
| Bridge | PRS tremolo |
Retailer links coming soon.
No. 2 · BEST VALUE
Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster
around £311 (price checked 14 Nov 2026)
A vintage-style Telecaster with a pine body, a maple neck and fingerboard, two Fender-designed Alnico single-coil pickups and a three-saddle string-through-body bridge. There's no tremolo.
Why we picked it
MusicRadar names it the best Telecaster under £500. Its reviewer, Ed Mitchell, says the pine body sounds lively and the hotter pickups cut through a band mix, with a range that runs from jazz to classic rock. MusicRadar also rates the neck highly. The main caution is that it may be too traditional for some players.
Best for: Players who want a simple, punchy guitar that covers everything from jazz to classic rock
Skip it if: You want humbucker sounds for heavy rock, or a more modern feel.
| Body | Pine |
|---|---|
| Neck | Maple, maple fingerboard |
| Scale | 25.5 inch (648 mm) |
| Pickups | Two Fender-designed Alnico single coils |
| Bridge | Three-saddle, string-through-body |
Retailer links coming soon.
No. 3
Squier Classic Vibe '60s Jazzmaster
around £359 (price checked 14 Nov 2026)
An offset-body guitar with a poplar body, a maple neck, an Indian laurel fingerboard and two Fender-designed Alnico single-coil pickups. Like the original, it has separate lead and rhythm circuits with roller controls, and a floating bridge with a vibrato tailpiece.
Why we picked it
Guitar World picks it as the best offset guitar in its budget guide, praising the value, the versatile switching and the expressive vibrato. Its caveat is that the vibrato can be finicky and may need a change of string gauge to work well, so it's worth paying for a setup.
Best for: Players who want a distinctive offset guitar with versatile switching and an expressive vibrato
Skip it if: You lean hard on the vibrato arm and want it to stay in tune without fuss.
| Body | Poplar |
|---|---|
| Neck | Maple, Indian laurel fingerboard |
| Scale | 25.5 inch (648 mm) |
| Pickups | Two Fender-designed Alnico single coils |
| Bridge | Floating bridge, vibrato tailpiece |
Retailer links coming soon.
No. 4
Epiphone SG Special P-90
from £369 (price checked 14 Nov 2026)
A double-cutaway SG with a mahogany body and set mahogany neck, a 24.75-inch scale, two P-90 PRO soapbar pickups and a wraparound bridge.
Why we picked it
MusicRadar names it the best P-90 guitar under £500, saying it gets close to the vibe and sound of Gibson's American-made original for about a third of the price, and praising the pickups and finishes. The catch is the usual SG neck dive, where the headstock drops when you let go.
Best for: Rock and blues players who want the gritty P-90 sound in a classic double-cutaway shape
Skip it if: You find a guitar that tips towards the headstock annoying when standing.
| Body | Mahogany |
|---|---|
| Neck | Mahogany, set neck, 22 frets |
| Scale | 24.75 inch (628 mm) |
| Pickups | Two P-90 PRO soapbar single coils |
| Bridge | Wraparound |
Retailer links coming soon.
No. 5 · BEST PREMIUM
Epiphone Les Paul Standard 60s
around £485 (price checked 14 Nov 2026)
Epiphone's take on Gibson's 1960s Les Paul Standard, with a mahogany body and maple top, a set mahogany neck with a slim '60s C profile, Epiphone ProBucker 2 and 3 humbuckers, a LockTone Tune-O-Matic bridge and Grover tuners.
Why we picked it
MusicRadar points to the Les Paul Standard as the step up from its budget Les Paul pick, the Tribute, and this is the slimmer-necked '60s version. It has the classic Les Paul layout of two volume and two tone controls, a set neck and Grover tuners. It's at the very top of this budget, and prices vary by finish.
Best for: Players who want a full Les Paul, with a carved maple top and humbuckers, for classic and hard rock
Skip it if: You want lots of different sounds from one instrument, or your budget stops well short of £500.
| Body | Mahogany with maple top |
|---|---|
| Neck | Mahogany, set neck, SlimTaper '60s C |
| Scale | 24.75 inch (629 mm) |
| Pickups | Epiphone ProBucker 2 (neck) and ProBucker 3 (bridge) |
| Bridge | LockTone Tune-O-Matic, stopbar tailpiece |
Retailer links coming soon.
How we chose
We started with the under-£500 guides from Guitar World and MusicRadar, both updated in January 2026, plus guitarguitar’s 2026 roundup. That gave us around a dozen candidates, which we cut to guitars on sale new in the UK today at roughly £300 to £500, the range most players look at when they’ve outgrown a starter guitar.
At this level, a new guitar should feel and sound clearly better than the one you learned on. So we weighed playability, build quality and pickups most heavily, then made sure each pick gives you a different sound and feel rather than five versions of the same guitar.
That’s why the shortlist covers the main families: a versatile PRS, a Telecaster, an offset Jazzmaster, an SG with P-90s and a Les Paul. We left out guitars we couldn’t confirm are in stock in the UK now, and models already covered in our beginner guide that sit below this budget.
This guide is based on manufacturer specs, retailer listings and expert reviews, listed below. We haven’t played these guitars ourselves. Prices are typical UK prices on the date shown beside each pick, and they move around Black Friday and Christmas.
Sources
- Guitar World: Best electric guitars under $500 2026
- MusicRadar: Best electric guitars under $500/£500 2026
- guitarguitar: Best Electric Guitars 2026
- guitarguitar: PRS SE CE24 Standard Satin Charcoal (2026)
- Andertons: PRS SE CE24 Standard Satin, Vintage Cherry
- Thomann UK: Squier CV 50s Tele MN BB
- Thomann UK: Squier CV 60s Jazzmaster LRL OWT
- Thomann UK: Epiphone SG Special P-90 Sparkling Burgundy
- Thomann UK: Epiphone SG Special P-90 Cherry Red
- Gibson: Epiphone SG Special P-90, Sparkling Burgundy
- Thomann UK: Epiphone Les Paul Standard 60s Ebony
- Thomann UK: Epiphone Les Paul Standard 60s Bourbon Burst
- Gibson: Epiphone Les Paul Standard 60s, Ebony
FAQs
Is a £300 to £500 guitar a real upgrade on a starter guitar?
Usually, yes. guitarguitar's 2026 guide notes that the under-£500 bracket includes guitars that go well beyond beginner instruments, and Guitar World and MusicRadar both name the PRS their best guitar in this budget. Guitar World calls the PRS SE CE 24 Standard Satin a guitar for any player who needs lots of sounds, not just learners.
Single coils, P-90s or humbuckers?
It depends on the music you play. MusicRadar praises the Telecaster's single coils for cutting through a mix, and the SG Special's P-90s for their character, though Guitar World notes P-90s can get noisy with heavy gain. The Les Paul's humbuckers suit classic and hard rock, and Guitar World says the PRS's coil-split humbuckers cover both Les Paul and Strat-style sounds.
Do these guitars come with a gig bag?
The PRS is listed with a gig bag at guitarguitar. For the others it depends on the retailer and finish, so check the listing before you buy.
Should I budget for a setup?
It's worth it, especially for guitars with a vibrato. Guitar World says the Jazzmaster's vibrato can be finicky and may need a different string gauge, and a shop setup is the simplest fix.
Last updated 14 Nov 2026.