This list consists of all acoustic guitars, that come directly out of the factory set up with a low action height, which is more comfortable for most guitar players especially beginning players. All information in this article comes directly from each guitar manufacturers website. Up-To-Date as of 5/6/18.
All guitars in this article will have action heights less than 3/32 on the bass end.
(3/32 is considered to be medium action height for acoustic guitars.)
Here’s our Specs for the article:
- Has an action height lower than 3/32 on the bass end.
- Source is credible (came from manufacturer by representative, company website, manual, or other verified source)
- Only including well-established quality guitar brands in this article
At the end of this article, I’ll also provide a list of high-action guitar models to avoid.
Let’s Get Started.
Here are the top 7 Low String Height (Low Action) Acoustic Guitars you can currently buy
Ibanez Avm10
Not a guitar brand known for much except for metal, I really wasn’t expecting to put any Ibanez guitars on my list, but as it turns out they have a really really low action without buzz, I found in their manual that they have their acoustics at 2.3/32. I’ve seen electrics with higher actions than this. Not only is this great for a beginner who wants to be able to play for awhile without their hands feeling like they’re going to cramp, but this guitar is has a surprising warm tone to it, and I’d say pretty affordable.
I’ll include a couple other Ibanez acoustics in this list, however most didn’t make it.
Listen to that warm tone.
Specs:
- Grand Concert
- Sitka Spruce Top
- Mahogany Back and Sides
- Gloss Body Finish
- Rosewood Fingerboard
- Mahogany neck wood
- Grover Chrome open gear tuners with Butterbean Knobs
- Rosewood Bridge
- X bracing
Ibanez AE245JR
Back to back Ibanez guitars, this instrument is no joke. The tone is dark and like the other Ibanez acoustics has a very low action. The tone on this guitar is absolutely incredible. I was completely blown away. Only Issue? I’m not sure, I thought for sure that this guitar would be in the thousands. Turns out it’s much, much, much cheaper.
Specs:
- All mahogany top back sides and neck
- Chrome die cast tuners
- Ibanez T-bar undersaddle pickup
- Ovangkol neck and bridge
- X bracing
Washburn WlD10S
This is my personal guitar, I find the tone of this acoustic to be perfect and when I was hunting for a guitar that was easy to play when I had lost some hand strength (couldn’t play for awhile due to injury) this is the guitar I chose. This Washburns tone is a little hard to describe, I’d say it’s heavy but not dark. The action is low-medium, so it is slightly higher than the Ibanez models. I absolutely love this guitar.
Specs:
- Solid Sitka Spruce Top
- Mahogany Back and Sides
- X bracing
Taylor 114E
This guitar is the highest price on our list, and is actually another version of Taylors most popular guitar the 114ce. The only difference? There is a cutaway in 114ce (That for some reason costs 200$ more)
The actions are low on the these and in fact, Taylor describes many of them as “exceptionally low” in their own words, they’re really just trying to make it easier for beginning players, thanks Taylor.
The downfall? These are just plain to me (yes I understand this is extremely picky), and the tone is just to bright for my personal taste. Of course, if you like a nice bright tone on your acoustic….then this is definitely the model for you.
Take a listen, decide for yourself.(skip to 3:47)
Specs
- Solid Sitka Spruce Top
- Rosewood Back and Sides
Taylor Academy Dreadnought
If you’re looking for an inexpensive guitar that is the absolute easiest on your fingers. This is the one.
This guitar was specifically made by Taylor so that it would be as easy as possible for beginners, or people with more sensitive hands to play. They made the action super low, and they have light string gauges on the guitar as well among other things they’ve done to enhance this guitars ease of play.
Watch the Legend Marty Schwartz rant and rave. Can’t really blame him, this guitar is really perfect for a beginning player.
Specs:
- Sapele back and sides
- Solid Sitka Spruce top
Ibanez AEG24
Man, this guitar is something else. Extremely affordable, and very low action like the other Ibanez guitars, this Ibanez has a tone all to it’s own. Almost sounds like a fender acoustic. All at the same time however, this particular guitar has tons and tons of electric characteristics. This dude does a great job reviewing it.
Specs:
- Thin Body and neck for easy play
- Rosewood fretboard and bridge
- Mahogany neck back and sides
- Maple Top
- Fishman Sonicore pickup
Washburn WD20SCE
I’m obviously a huge fan of Washburns, since I own one. So I had to put one more down on the list, the Wasburn WD20sce is a beautiful sounding and looking guitar, with low action of course. This particular guitar has a sort of country twang to it.
- Sitka Spruce Top
- Rosewood sides and back
- Rosewood fingerboard and bridge
- Fishman isys+ tuner/preamp system
Why aren’t there more Low Action Guitars?
Unfortunately, guitar manufacturers know that most people like their guitar actions medium, those that don’t it’s just simply easier for them to make their actions higher.
Guitar brands that may be ok, and brands to avoid if you’re looking for lower action:
Ovation –
This brand usually sets theirs at 3/32, which is medium but with some light gauge strings I’ve found these to play just as easily as a very low action guitar like an Ibanez.
If you are just starting out however, I would suggest that you try one of these out in a store. Or if you play a lot of electric guitar even I would recommend the same. Most guitars out there have a similar feel even though guitars can be so different, however this manufacturer has a few styles of guitar that I’ve found to be kind of awkward to play. Many people I play with feel the same. These are absolutely incredible sounding guitars and are worth looking into it.
Fender-
Fender has a medium action on their guitars, but I’ve found just like with the Ovation that playing them with a lighter gauge string works just as well as if you had the action set lower.
Takamine-
I haven’t played a Takamine in quite some time considering it was the first guitar I ever really fell in love with. If you look on forums on the internet people say this guitar has medium-low action to medium action and it just depends on the model, after looking all over their website and through a manual however I just simply couldn’t find anything with exact measurements so I didn’t include it in this review, however I bet they do have low to medium action (Why would people on the internet lie about that?)
Anyways, this is another one I’d definitely go to a shop or if I’m buying it online I’d send a personal message to ask about the model.
I’ll update this article once I figure out for sure how their set up configuration is.
Gibson & Epiphone-
You know, I wasn’t to surprised to say this, but if you’re looking for a low action guitar right from the manufacturer……
These two should definitely be avoided.
Gibsons set theirs at medium high, and Epiphone is definitely high with theirs being 7/32 on the bass end.
That’ll make anyones fingers hurt after awhile Epiphone, lol.
Conclusion:
More guitar manufacturers need to start adding this information to their specs when you purchase a guitar, it’s an important part of playing to have a set up that you’re comfortable with and the action height places a huge role in making your hands feel comfortable when you play. It amazes how many of these guitar manufacturers didn’t have this information available on their websites, and for those that did……thank you.
I worked pretty hard on this, and I want it to be a great article that helps you find the right guitar. If you have any questions or think I should change something please leave a comment below, thanks so much