Best Electric Guitar Under $5000 (our top Pick)
The PRS McCarty 594
The McCarty 594 by PRS is one of the nicest and most versatile electric guitars money can buy. It's made by hand in the United States, with a ton attention to detail, beautiful aesthetics, and a thick, percussive tone profile that can handle almost any musical style.
You're doing alright for yourself if you can afford a $5000 electric guitar. You're also probably a pro-level player who knows a lot about the industry and a lot about what you want out of an instrument. So this list is simply going to serve as a tool and loose guidelines, showing you some of the best electric guitars under 5000 dollars, though with plenty of room to read between the lines.
These are some of the guitars that we've seen most often purchased, mimicked, customized, and that have had the most staying power in the industry.
Starting at $4500 and ending at $5000, these are some of the best money can buy.
But it's also important to mention that all electric guitars in this price range are going to be incredibly solid, especially if you focus on reputable manufacturers.
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Watch the Article
Short on time? Watch a summary of this roundup that focuses just on the bullet points:
Best Electric Guitars Under 5000 Dollars
This section is our roundup of electric guitars that cost less than $5000 but more than $4500. They're our picks for the best electric guitars in this price range, based on a filtering system and quality indicators that we'll talk more about below. For this list we've focused on guitars from PRS, Gibson, Fender, and Ibanez. If you have questions, feel free to drop us a line in the comments section below and we'll chat there.
PRS McCarty 594
Best Overall
n/a Guitar Chalk Rating
NEW RETAIL
$4795
USED RETAIL
$4000-$5000
PICKUPS
HH
STYLE
Modern Rock
You'll have trouble finding a nicer electric guitar that can handle a wider range of styles. You get versatility and as much attention to detail as possible. Made by hand in the United States.
Gibson Les Paul Custom
Best for Rock and Metal
n/a Guitar Chalk Rating
NEW RETAIL
$5000
USED RETAIL
$4200-$5500
PICKUPS
HH
STYLE
Rock/Metal
Very high playability and responsive to touch and picking dynamics. Lots of iconic appeal and elegance as well.
PRS Custom 24
Best for Versatility
n/a Guitar Chalk Rating
NEW RETAIL
$4700
USED RETAIL
$3500-$5000
PICKUPS
HH
STYLE
Modern Rock, Metal
Nothing that PRS makes in this price range is going to be a bad deal. The Custom 24 is one of the nicest guitars on the planet, and we love it for its versatility and heavy, modern rock profile.
Fender Custom Shop Eric Clapton Stratocaster
Best for Blues
n/a Guitar Chalk Rating
NEW RETAIL
$4600
USED RETAIL
$3200-$4500
PICKUPS
SSS
STYLE
Blues, Lead
For lead styles built on sweet and bluesy tones, it's hard to beat Eric Clapton's Custom Shop Strat.
Ibanez Joe Satriani Signature JS1CR - Chrome Boy
Best for Speed
n/a Guitar Chalk Rating
NEW RETAIL
$5000
USED RETAIL
$4400-$5100
PICKUPS
HS
STYLE
Speed, Rock
Incredibly slick look and fantastic tone with the Sustainiac/humbucker pickup combination.
Which features matter most?
In this price range you should expect everything to be top dollar and the highest possible quality grade. Parts, electronics, pickups, tonewood, construction methods - all of this should be without compromise. You should also expect that your particular guitar is made by hand, or at least has a healthy dose of first-hand attention to detail.
However, it's also true that most of the quality indicators for a $5000 electric guitar are about the same as the $2000 electric guitar.
At the end of the day, it's a piece of wood with some electronics and strings. Complexity and variety eventually run out.
As such, we recommend focusing on the following list of quality indicators.
What to Look For
- Pickups/humbuckers: Should be specialty pickups or built by a third party (Seymour Duncan, DiMarzio, etc.)
- Tonewood recipe: Should have high grade tonewood in the body and in the top piece (if the guitar uses a top piece)
- High grade hardware: No stock or filler parts
- High grade electronics, setup by hand: Nothing factory or without a high degree of customization
- Customization: High degrees of customization should set these guitars apart from the typical stock variety of other guitars in lower price ranges
Keep in mind, in a guitar this expensive, a lot of what you pay for is the novelty and the nuanced levels of customization, particularly in signature guitars like the Eric Clapton model. For it to be worth the added expense, you should be able to recognize and appreciate the novelty of the guitar and the subtle customizations that have been made.
How did we choose?
We used all of those factors to analyze and choose the best electric guitars under 5000 dollars. First, we filtered out the less reputable brands and went only with leading manufacturers that have been producing great electric guitars for decades. We also avoided boutique guitar builders in an effort to appeal to as many people as possible, primarily focusing on the following brands:
- Fender
- PRS
- Ibanez
- Gibson
From within these brands we filtered by price, focusing on the best-selling guitars between $4500 and $5000. Among those best sellers, we looked for guitars that fit our aforementioned quality standards:
- Humbuckers from reputable third party
- High degree of customization
- High ratings and accolades from the community
- No stock or "processed" parts of any kind
After going through all these filters, we were left with just a few guitars that fit our requirements.
And while this list isn't comprehensive, we think it definitely gives you some solid direction to go in and some great options to start with.
Frequently Asked Questions
In this section we've posted and answered a few frequently asked questions as they relate to electric guitars in the $5000 price range. If you have additional questions feel free to drop those into the comments section below and we'll jump in to help out as much as possible.
Electric guitars in the $5000 price range are, without question, a bit of a luxury item. However, they're also highly customized with plenty of attention to detail given to even the smallest aspects of their design. If that high level of customization is something you're willing to pay for and you find the right fit, a $5000 electric guitar might be worth it to you. You're also paying for the pristine and novelty of the instrument at that point as well. Is it worth it? Only you can make that call for sure.
We would only recommend guitars in this price range to seasoned players that know exactly what they want in an electric guitar, though anyone who can afford a guitar like this will certainly enjoy playing it.
A lot of the guitars in this price range are signature models designed by pros, in cooperation with a particular brand. This doesn't necessarily mean they're "better," but it does mean they're more likely to have received a higher level of customization which is a hallmark of guitars that retail in this price range. It stands to reason that signature guitars are more likely to require the amount of work and attention to detail that will push it to the $5000 price point.
Related Content
In this section we've added some content that might be helpful to you as you research electric guitars, either in this price range or another.
Written by GC Editorial on Amps and Buying Guides
Written by Bobby on Amps and Buying Guides
Written by Bobby on Amps and Buying Guides
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