Ukulele tuning is something that you will need to be able to do on a regular basis. Our guide will teach you how to do it so you can focus on playing!
Written by Jay Searle / Published January 19, 2024
Last updated: February 22, 2024
Just like any other stringed instrument, ukuleles can fall out of tune and have you wondering why nothing you play sounds like it should. Knowing how to tune your ukulele should be at the top of your priority list. You’ll need to do it whenever you’re changing your uke’s strings, and existing strings will slowly detune bit by bit over time.
Fortunately, tuning a ukulele isn’t a difficult process. You only need to be familiar with the main parts of a uke, choose your preferred tuning type, and turn the tuning pegs until each string is in tune.
We’ll cover this thoroughly in our ukulele tuning step-by-step instructions below. But first, let’s list all the main uke parts so that you know what instructions are referencing.
Main Parts of a Ukulele
Ukulele Body
The largest part of the ukulele, the body, is a big piece of wood holding the bridge. A uke’s neck is typically set or screwed into the body. It’s of little significance for the tuning process but is arguably considered the most important part of a ukulele when it comes to sound projection.
Soundhole
A large hole usually carved in the middle of a ukulele’s body is called the “soundhole”. It enhances the sound vibrations produced by the strings, boosting the overall volume, tone, and resonance.
Similar to the ukulele’s body, it doesn’t directly impact the intonation. However, a well-designed soundhole will enable you to tune your uke by ear more efficiently.
Ukulele Saddle and Bridge
A small piece of wood glued to the ukulele’s body, usually several inches below the soundhole, is called the bridge. The primary function of this ukulele feature is to serve as a mounting spot for the strings. The saddle sits on top of the bridge and supports the strings. The maximum vibrating length of the string is measured from the saddle to the nut at the other end of the instrument.
A stable, well-designed bridge will maintain optimal string tension and mitigate problems caused by things such as a warped neck, super-high action, and so on. If the bridge is moving, unstring the ukulele, use a glue-removal solution, and inspect the wood where the bridge was attached. Thoroughly clean the spot and glue the bridge back into its original position.
The Neck
The tall piece of wood attached to the body housing the fingerboard is called the neck. Most players refer to its back side whenever they mention a ukulele’s neck, but the entire piece is considered a single feature. Improperly stored and irregularly maintained necks can sometimes warp, which can reduce the intonation quality of the instrument.
If your uke’s neck is warped, it’s recommended to take it to a professional to avoid further damage. The heat-treating process is ideal but complex for people who’ve never tried it before.
Fretboard
The frontal side of the ukulele’s neck holding the frets is usually called fingerboard or fretboard. It contains fret bars that divide octaves into equal pitches, and inlays (markers) for easier fretboard navigation. If improperly glued or damaged, frets can move or completely fall out of their sockets, which can affect the tone but not the intonation of a uke.
Ukulele Strings
Typically made of nylon but steel variants also exist, ukulele strings are mounted on the bridge, run along the fingerboard, and are finally wrapped around the tuning pegs. Once plucked, they produce vibration, which bounces off the tonewoods and ultimately results in sound.
Older strings tend to fall out of tune more often while new strings may keep falling out of tune until they “settle in”. Play your uke frequently to accelerate this process.
Nut
A small strip placed below the headstock, usually made of synthetic or bone materials, is called the ukulele’s nut. This feature has small grooves where the strings are nested.
Headstock (Head)
The head of a ukulele is its topmost part. Tuning pegs are always placed on the ukulele’s headstock.
Tuning Pegs
Machine heads, machine gears, tuners, or tuning pegs are synonyms for hardware pieces used to tune each string of a ukulele. The number of pegs corresponds to the number of strings, and each peg is assigned to a single string.
Things to Consider Before Tuning your Ukulele
Using a Guitar/Ukulele Tuner
Using a tuner is easier and recommended for beginners. These electronic devices (or smartphone apps) pick up vibrations from your strings, indicate the current pitch, and tell you in which direction you should rotate the pegs.
An example would be this clip-on tuner by Donner.
Tuning by Ear
Tuning by ear is effective method to train your ears and recognize more nuanced pitches on the instrument. You’ll need a reference point to tune your uke by ear, so you can either find your starting point by pressing a G note on a piano or by using a pitch pipe.
With the G string in tune, you then use it as a reference point for the remaining pitches. For example, holding the fifth fret on the G string will give you a C, so just tune the second string until you get the same pitch on both. Repeat this process for the other strings.
Ukulele Tuning Options
Another important factor to consider before starting the ukulele tuning process is which tuning you’ll use. The names of each string correspond to the pitch they produce when plucked “openly” (unfretted). For example, if the standard “gCEA” tuning, the strings would be called g, C, E, and A from the bottom upward, respectively.
Baritone ukulele uses a different tuning featuring the notes D, G, B, and E (“DGBE”). These are the same four pitches found in the top four acoustic guitar strings. That’s why guitarists transitioning over to the ukulele find learning on a baritone much easier.
Another popular choice is the “ADF#B” tuning, which is effectively a single semitone higher than the standard “GCEA” tuning.
Re-entrant Tuning
To understand what re-entrant tuning is, we must first define what music theory refers to as “linear tuning”. It is a system in which open (unfretted) strings include pitches ordered from lowest to highest. In other words, the lowest string would have the lowest pitch, and vice versa. With re-entrant tunings, this is not necessarily the case.
Some ukulele chords (the likes of Fmajor7 and most jazz chords) are absurdly difficult to play in a standard linear ukulele tuning (G4-C4-E4-A4). That’s why many players use various re-entrant tunings to assign different pitches to their strings and make certain chords considerably easier to pull off.
‘Standard’ Ukulele Tuning – High G
Most soprano, concert and tenor ukuleles use a re-entrant tuning as standard. The G string is tuned up an octave and is of a higher pitch than the following C string. This is often notated as a lower case ‘g’. The following E and A strings are tuned to their relative pitches above the C in a ‘linear’ fashion.
The high ‘g’ gives the ukulele a much brighter sound due to its higher pitch. This is the most traditional tuning and is the sound you probably first think of when somebody mentions the ukulele.
Low G Ukulele Tuning
Low G ukulele tuning is essentially ‘linear’ tuning, where the G string is tuned to a lower pitch than the following C string. Most concerts and tenors can support low G tuning, but you’ll need to purchase a low G string separately.
Sopranos, on the other hand, are just a little bit too small for low G. You’ll find that to tune the G string to a low G will cause the string to go really slack and almost become unplayable.
How to Tune Your Ukulele: Step-by-Step Guide
To tune your ukulele to any tuning you want, simply follow these steps:
- Pick your tuning method – You will be searching for the pitches of your desired tuning (GCEA, DGBE, or ADF#B). Place the tuner on the headstock if you plan on using it;
- If tuning without a tuner – Find the G note by playing it on an app, a piano, or online videos;
- Play the first note – Pluck the first string on your ukulele (G String), and compare its pitch to the G note from the second step (or the tuner);
- Find the correct tuning peg – Trace the G string along the fretboard to its designated tuning peg;
- Turn the tuning peg – Twist the peg clockwise to increase the pitch, or counter-clockwise to decrease it (NB: tuning pegs on the opposite side of the headstock may be the reverse);
- If using a guitar/ukulele headstock tuner – If you are using a tuner, the indicators will help you find the “sweet spot”. Most will have a bar or set of bars that may be color coded to indicate when you have reached the correct pitch.
- Tune the other strings – Repeat the steps 1-6 for the second, third, and fourth string.
Pro Tuning Tip:
For more stable tuning, always try to tune up to the correct pitch. This means if your string is “sharp” (higher than the correct pitch), then loosen the string off slightly by turning the tuning peg until it goes a little “flat” (lower than the correct pitch). Then, slowly increase the string tension until it matches the correct pitch.
Conclusion
Tuning your ukulele is a breeze, but it can be difficult if your instrument’s intonation is suffering from problems such as a warped neck, damaged nut, moving bridge, and so on. These issues often require an adjustment to your ukulele’s setup. You can do this yourself if you’re confident. Otherwise, it’s better to get a professional to do it as you could damage your uke.
Ideally, you want to be able to tune your ukulele by ear, as you are also training your ear to detect slight changes in pitch. This can be quite hard when you’re starting out, so don’t feel like you have to do this over using a tuner. Whatever method you choose, hopefully our guide was helpful in ensuring that your ukulele tuning gets the best results.
Jay Searle
Website Founder & WriterJay is a self-professed music nerd and ukulele lover. When not working on the website you’ll find him strumming along to his favorite tunes, spending time with his family, or learning to play the piano.
