Guitar Tricks vs JamPlay (2022 pricing, features & comparison)

Guitar Tricks and JamPlay are the most popular online guitar programs and both incredibly solid programs. There are other great online guitar lesson programs out there as well, like TrueFire and Guitar Gate, just to name a couple that come to mind.

Yet Guitar Tricks and JamPlay are still two of the most common and well-known options. If you wonder how they compare to one another, I'll show you in this article. The issue is that they have different strengths and are better suited for different people and situations. Every time I do a review of a site like Guitar Tricks or JamPlay, I try and identify the type of person that would benefit the most from that product. That way you can look and see if you fit that profile, before you spend your hard earned money. This comparison is the same way.

It's meant to let you look at the two options side by side, without any sensationalizing comments about them being "the best" or that "there's nothing else that comes close."

They're just two good choices that we're going to look at together.

For starters, we'll separate all the basic features like price, membership and other front line specs. 

To actually compare the two programs you need to look at their strengths and weaknesses in terms of skill levels they address and how well they address them. While both programs have material for all skill levels, I tend to find Guitar Tricks is better in the realm of broad beginner guitar lessons while JamPlay has more to offer the intermediate or advanced player.

While Guitar Tricks tends to do a much better job of ordering content and organizing their material around entry-level lessons, JamPlay has more for the intermediate and advanced student. 

The only place I really like JamPlay's design more than Guitar Tricks is in the video section of their lessons and courses. JamPlay's navigation system at the video level is really good, while elements outside of those pages seem a little dated and more difficult to navigate. 

While the Guitar Tricks player isn't quite as feature-rich as JamPlay's, their Wistia backend is a big positive, meaning they have the power of Wistia's servers behind their content. JamPlay's video quality seems to be marginally better, especially on larger format displays where their videos seem slightly sharper.

The only reason I gave JamPlay a bump in the Slow Down/Speed Up section is because they allow you to both decrease and increase the speed of playback while Guitar Tricks only lets you decrease the speed. Increased speed can be really helpful for when you want to cover ground in a more timely manner. 

Supplemental Material

Both programs add supplemental material to their videos wherever it's applicable. However, this is an area where JamPlay has a clear advantage and their more thorough approach really comes into focus.

Both programs do a solid job of displaying tabs and notation, but JamPlay goes the extra mile with a ton of additional content, where applicable. Chord diagrams come in tab and diagram format while audio files are available for nearly every aspect of each lesson. There are even a lot of videos, particularly song lessons, where they'll include Guitar Pro tab files for download. I don't want to sell Guitar Tricks short, but this is definitely an area where the thorough approach from JamPlay is paying off.

The only area where Guitar Tricks doesn't have JamPlay's number is in the instructors section, as JamPlay does a good job getting actual artists to come teach their songs. This includes, among others, Staind's Mike Mushok and Joel Kosche formerly of Collective Soul.

So which is better?

Speaking broadly, Guitar Tricks does a much better job with their site design, volume of content and organization, while JamPlay tends to be a bit more thorough and in-depth, yet with less content.

I should point out that these are not the only two good options.

In fact, there are a ton of fantastic online guitar lesson resources, both free and paid, that are worth a look. 

If you're looking for more details on these, or other programs, here are a few reviews I've done that might be helpful:

• Guitar Tricks Review
• JamPlay Review
• TrueFire Review
• Fender Play Review

In most cases you aren't dealing with one that is simply better than the other. Rather, it's an issue of what you want out of a program and what strengths you want to prioritize. In this case, if you want more in-depth, intermediate to advance content, JamPlay is a better option in your situation. 

That doesn't mean it's better than Guitar Tricks, just that it might be more valuable and suitable to you at the moment.

By the same token, guitar students that prioritize song lessons, beginner content and easier navigation will lean towards the Guitar Tricks program.

If you have questions about either of these programs, feel free to drop me a line in the comments section below. I've worked for Guitar Tricks before, and have a good relationship with several of the folks at JamPlay, so I have a lot of familiarity with both companies.

They're good people, and I know both companies put in a lot of work to make sure they produce a high-quality product. 

• Article formatting and Content: Bobby Kittleberger
• Proof Reading: Millie Roark
• Guitar Tricks Contact: Ben Martin
• JamPlay Contact: Aaron Miller
• Products tested on: Lenovo Desktop with Widescreen Monitor and Apple 27" iMac