Directly Compare Fender Stratocaster Models

Fender Stratocasters are perhaps the most popular and widely used electric guitar in existence. Their design has been widely imitated and repurposed by other guitar manufacturers, but the Fender Strat was the first iteration of the body shape and an original design by Leo Fender.

This has given way to a wide range of Stratocaster versions, serving every skill level and nearly every musical style.

There are few areas of music that haven't been touched by the Fender Stratocaster.

For those that have settled on a Stratocaster as their guitar of choice, this is a place that allows you to compare them directly, side-by-side.

Comparison Table

With the tool below, you can compare Fender Stratocaster models quickly. 

We're doing our best to update this page with additional Strats that we may have missed, so feel free to point those out in the comments section if something comes to mind.

We've included pricing info in the table, but the orange compare buttons allow you to see additional points of comparison, for up to four Stratocaster at a time.

Fender Stratocaster Quality Tiers

Like any lineup of guitars, Fender Stratocasters can be broken down into tiers of quality, depending on which model or "series" you might be considering. For Fender, we have the following three quality tiers:

1. Low
2. Middle
3. High

We'll cover which Stratocaster series fall under each tier.

Low

The lowest quality tier falls in a price range of about $600 to $950 and includes the following series:

• Player series
• Player Plus
• Deluxe
• Anniversary models

Middle

For the middle quality tier, our price range hovers between $1000 and $1600, with the following series included:

• American Professional II
• Noventa series
• Vintera series
• Sultana series
• American performer

High

On the highest quality tier, we have most of the signature models and the Strats made in Fender's Custom Shop. Here are the series we end up with:

• Most signature models (Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, Eric Johnson, etc.)
• Original '50s, '60s, and '70s
• American Ultra
• American Ultra Luxe

Primary Differences Between Models

Differences between Fender Stratocaster models can be harder to pin down, especially if you're not familiar with wood grade or tonewood quality. But you'll also have upgrades in parts like hardware and pickups.

Any of the following areas can potentially be different, depending on which two Stratocaster models you're comparing:

• Tonewood type
• Lumber grade and quality
• Lumber rarity 
• Pickup quality
• Construction/factory location
• Bridge hardware quality
• Quality of interior electronics
• Tuning machine type/quality

Best Value for the Money

So which Stratocaster is the best value for what you pay?

In most cases, we'd recommend being either in the upper ranges of the low tier or the lower ranges of the middle tier, between the $800 and $1300 price range. That puts the following Stratocaster models at the top of our list

• Fender Deluxe series
• Fender American performer series

If you're purely looking for the best meeting point of price and quality, these two Stratocaster models are where I'd recommend camping out. There are plenty of colors and variety even within these two series, so I'd pull something from there if you want to get the best bang for your buck.

Conclusion

Fender Stratocasters give you a ton of options to sift through, even before you get to choosing a color. But hopefully being able to compare Fender Stratocaster models in one spot will help you make a decision and make the options seem a little less overwhelming. 

Again, if you know of a Stratocaster that we missed (needs to be Fender), then feel free to drop a note in the comments section below and we'll check it out and add it to our comparison table.

See you there.

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