How to Play Ukulele: The Complete Guide for Beginners

So you bought a new ukulele and you’re ready to start playing. Congrats! Hopefully by now, you’ve found a teacher, and maybe even had your first few lessons. To help you get off to a solid start, ukulele teacher Willy M. has created this ultimate ukulele guide for beginners…

This beginners’ guide has everything you need to get up and running with your ukulele! In this article, you’ll learn how to tune your ukulele, how to play ukulele chords, basic strumming patterns, and how to play ukulele songs. Ready to get started? Grab your uke and let’s go!

How to Tune a Ukulele

The first thing you need to know is that since your ukulele is a stringed instrument, it will go in and out of tune, even when you’re not using it. Your ukulele is made of wood, and the strings are made of nylon. These materials swell and contract due to humidity, altitude, air pressure, little kids cranking on the tuning pegs, etc. So when you decide to play the ukulele, the first thing you need to learn is how to tune it.

There are several ways to tune a ukulele, but over the years, one tuning method has become more popular than the rest. This method is generally called standard tuning or C6 tuning (G on the fourth string from the bottom, C on the third, E on the second, and A on the first string). Use the knobs on the head of your ukulele to tighten or loosen your strings. Tightening a string will result in a higher note, while a looser string will make a lower sound.

C6 tuning basically means a C chord with the 6th note of the scale (A) added to it. So you would tune it G – C – E and A. The G, C, and E make up the C chord. The A, E, and C make up the A minor chord. If you play the first three strings, you’re playing a C chord, and if you play the last three strings, you’re playing an A minor chord. It’s a great tuning to play a lot of songs using what I’ve referred to in other articles as the “Oldies Progression”.

How to Tune a Ukulele With a Tuner

A tuner can let you know when you’re tuned to the correct note. Some have microphones or vibration detectors to help you, while others play the note for you so you can match it by ear. You can find ukulele tuners and ukulele tuning apps online. You can also find ukulele tuners at music stores.

How to Tune a Ukulele to Itself

Don’t worry if you don’t have a tuner, you can just use your ukulele itself. Listen to your G string and keep adjusting it until it sounds right. Once your G string is where you want it, hold it down on the 5th fret to hear the C an octave above the note where your C string should be. Once your C string is tuned an octave below that note, hold your C string down on the 4th fret and tune your E string to that note. Then, hold your E string down on the fifth fret and tune your A string.

Keep in mind that sometimes it’s easier to play certain songs if you just change your tuning, and this is one of the reasons why there are multiple ways to tune a ukulele. Open C tuning (G – C – E – G) is similar to C6 tuning. Some people prefer this tuning because then they just have to barre across frets to make chords. We will talk about barre chords in the next section.

How to Play Ukulele Chords

So now that you you’ve got your ukulele in tune, the next thing you need to learn is how to play some of the essential chords. Chords are pretty easy to play in C6 tuning. Most songs in the key of C will use the chords C, F, G, and sometimes Am (shorthand for A minor) and Dm.

Occasionally, you might find a Bb or an Em chord thrown in as well. There are literally thousands of songs that you can play with just C, F, and G, and a thousand more that you can play with C, F, G, and Am. Check out the 50 Greatest Love Songs for the Ukulele for some examples.

In the tuning section we covered how to play C and Am, if you want to play F, all you have to do is put your finger across all of the strings on the fifth fret, and push them down. We refer to this as a “barre,” or playing a “barre chord.” If you play the first three strings, you’re playing an F chord. If you play the last three strings, you’re playing a Dm chord.

Now that you’ve barred across the fifth fret, move on up to the seventh fret. Now the first three strings are the G chord, and the last three strings are the Em chord.

Of course, there are other ways to play chords. For example, you can finger the chords by looking up chord fingerings. I have found, however, that the method I described is the quickest and easiest way for beginners to learn how to play ukulele chords. In three simple positions (Open, Fifth fret, and Seventh fret), you have six chords that you can play!

More: 3 Tips and Tricks to Learn Ukulele Chords

How to Play Ukulele Songs

So you know a few chords, and your ukulele is tuned, now what? It’s time to learn how to play ukulele songs! There are lots of songs that you can play that sound great on the ukulele, but the main thing is that you play the type of music that resonates with you. These don’t have to be the most meaningful tunes. They can be as simple as “Frog went a-courtin” or maybe “your song” that you sing to your special someone. The point is, with practice and the right tools, you can learn to play whatever you want on the ukulele.

Now here’s a tip: go to ultimateGuitar.com and type in a song you want to learn. Several versions of the song will pop up, and you can pick the one you want. I typically go for the one with the most stars, but you can pick whichever version you want. You can access the song, the ukulele chords, and the lyrics.

You will also see a plus and minus button that allows you to transpose your song into any key you want to play. In your case, you want it in the key of C, so keep clicking on the plus or minus button until you see the C, F, G chords, and maybe some of the minor chords you’ve learned. If there are some chords you don’t know, you can skip them until you learn the rest of the song. It will all fall into place in time!

If you’re looking for some more easy songs to play, here are some great ukulele songs for beginners!

• Top 10 Essential Easy Ukulele Songs for Beginners
• 5 Easy Ukulele Songs
• 5 Easy Pirate Songs to Play on the Ukulele

How to Play Ukulele and Sing at the Same Time

Now that you have a basic understanding of ukulele chords, you’re probably wondering: “how do I sing and play ukulele at the same time?” For me, I started out as a little kid banging on the piano and singing, until eventually these became actual notes, and it all started to make sense.

Believe it or not, I actually recommend this approach. Start by just strumming along to the rhythm. To make things easier, break the song into bite-sized chunks. Hold down the first chord and sing while strumming the main pattern of the song. Don’t worry if you mess up, just sing and play your little heart out!

Once you can do this, try to add the second most popular chord in the song. Practice changing from the first chord to the second chord. Practice this change until you feel comfortable, and then try singing along.

The next progression is to add the third chord and practice the chord changes. Remember, practice the chord changes before you try to sing along.

When you take a step back from singing and playing, take a closer look at what you’re doing. Can you still sing that part and change your strumming? Give it a try. Can you keep the rhythm while you change chords and still sing the part? If not, go over it again and again until you can.

Eventually, after going over the difficult parts and singing to yourself, you will find that you can sing the song almost without thinking about it, and you can focus more on what you’re doing with the ukulele.

More: How to Sing and Play Ukulele at the Same Time in 4 Steps

Ukulele Strumming Basics

Once you get used to singing and strumming, you my want to try some different strumming methods and patterns. Most people strum a ukulele with their index finger, while other people like to use their thumb and index finger to create a pick. If you use this method, strum down with the nail of your index finger, and up with the nail of your thumb.

Now that you understand the concept, try some of these basic strumming patterns. You can also try creating some of your own. Use a simple up-down strum, then maybe an up-up strum, followed by a down-down strum, and then mix it up.

See if you can strum faster rhythms than the actual song, while still being in time. See if you can strum slower rhythms than the actual recording of the song, and still be in time. This will help you develop your rhythm, and will teach you that there are hundreds of ways that you can strum a ukulele.

Try strumming the top strings without strumming the bottom, and then reverse this and strum the bottom three strings without strumming the top. Anything you can think of will help you get more proficient at strumming, and then you can try picking.

Ukulele Picking

When I talk about picking a ukulele, I don’t mean picking one out at the store. Although, if you need some info on that, we have a great guide here!

In this section, let’s focus on picking your ukulele strings while playing. The first way to pick a ukulele is with your fingers. Here are some methods you can try:

Fingerpicking Patterns

The Forward Roll

• Place your fingers lightly over the strings.
• Your thumb will control the G and C strings and can alternately pick either the G string or the C string (in any combination you desire).
• Use your index finger to control the E string, and your middle finger for the A string.
• Use the pattern: thumb – index- middle.

Reverse or Backwards Roll

This is basically the forward roll in reverse! Follow the pattern: middle – index – thumb (3-2-1, a backwards triplet).

Forward-Reverse Roll Version 1

This is a forward roll followed by a reverse roll. Use this pattern: thumb – index – middle – middle – thumb.

Forward-Reverse Roll Version 2

Follow this pattern: thumb – index – middle – index – thumb. (1-2-3-2-1).

You can find more information on these fingerpicking patterns here.

Using a Pick

The second way to pick the ukulele is to actually use a pick. Some people prefer the flatpick, or guitar pick. Using a guitar pick is fairly simple; hold it in your hand loosely and strum along the strings. You can strum all the strings, or just strum a couple. Or you can make up a picking pattern by plucking the strings in some type of coherent pattern. Perhaps something like 1, 3, 2 4, or 2, 4, 1, 3, or whatever works for you.

The third way to pick a ukulele is with a felt pick. This is the traditional Hawaiian method. I have never actually used a felt pick on the ukulele, but I would imagine it’s similar to using a flat pick, but produces a more natural tone.

How to Play Ukulele for Beginners

So there you have it. All of the fundamentals you need to get started playing the ukulele. But don’t forget the most important thing: a great ukulele teacher.

In addition to this how to play ukulele guide, make sure to check out some other articles and resources (from myself and other expert ukulele instructors) that will help you become the best ukulele player you can be!

Photo by Debby