Just like our beloved instruments, not every guitarist is built the same. We come in all different shapes and sizes, and nowhere is that more evident than in our hands.
Some have small hands, short fingers, long fingers, big hands, and big fingers. I always think of seeing some of my favorite players live: I was stunned by how relatively diminutive Noel Gallagher’s fingers were, and later that year by the massive size of Justin Hawkins’ hands.
Finding a guitar that is comfortable to play is just as important as one that sounds great. This is especially important for beginners: I’ve lost count of the number of students I’ve had say they want to give up because playing is so uncomfortable due to their relatively large hands.
Fortunately, I have got your back with a selection of some of the best wide neck acoustic guitars available today. All of these have a nut width of at least 1.75 inches or more. This is vital: wider nuts typically come with wider necks, and therefore strings that are more spaced out.
Note: we have another piece on wide neck electric guitars, if you're interested.
5 Best Wide Neck Acoustic Guitars for Fat Fingers
1. Seagull Guitars S6
The Seagull S6 boasts one of the widest necks among (steel-string) acoustic guitars, with its nut width being 1.8 inches. This makes it ultra comfortable for people like me with considerably large hands.
The real issue when you have wide fingers is cramming the pads of your fingers into the small space available on a fretboard. With the wider nut on offer here, there’s a few extra millimeters available to fit into.
Its nut width is actually the highest among guitars that are not out of the reach of us mere mortals, such as ultra-premium models from Martin, Gibson, Eastman etc.
Seagull S6
At first glance, it looks like your standard acoustic guitar. But as the saying goes, “Looks can be deceiving”. Seagull has clearly gone with a more substance over style approach with the S6. Instead, they have poured all of their focus into an instrument that sounds great.
The sound of the S6 is very clear, very full, and very vibrant. In fact, if you've played other popular acoustics within the same price range, you should be quite surprised by the fullness of the sound that the S6 produces.
I find that the sound of this guitar leans a bit more to the bright end of the tone spectrum, but still has a lovely touch of warmth.
I found there to be plenty of definition within the chords I was playing. Country-style broken arpeggios worked particularly well. I did miss the extra warmth and bottom end power available when playing a dreadnought, but it’s hard to argue against a sound this good at this price point.
The guitar’s body is large enough to provide a loud and resonant sound. You also have the option to plug the guitar in if you need some extra volume.
The preamp is a bit disappointing to me, however. It only has Treble, Bass, and Volume knobs. It also features a fairly basic, but handy enough, tuner. I tend to use a pedalboard tuner live anyway, even for acoustic gigs.
When gigging with this guitar, I’d be using a pedalboard EQ, too, and my LR Baggs DI (read my review) to help improve its tone.
This focus on sound has led to the S6 missing some conveniences. There is no cutaway. That means that you will probably not be playing the 17th – 21st frets all too often.
I think the S6 is clearly more geared towards rhythm and fingerstyle players, and not as much to lead playing. Of course, it’s an acoustic guitar: I don’t spend much time at that end of the fretboard for acoustic playing anyway.
The neck itself is quite a bit wider than what you would normally find on an acoustic, with a nut width of 1.8 inches. It took me a little while to get used to the neck. If you don’t play acoustic too often you might struggle a bit with the neck. For beginners, I might suggest looking at other acoustic guitars first.
For me, I have larger hands, and I found the neck width nicely comfortable. I didn’t struggle to play, for example, A-shaped major seventh chords.
If you don’t mind getting used to the neck and don’t need the higher frets, then the Seagull S6 is a great guitar. I don’t really see the guitar’s simple look and minor inconveniences to be a deal-breaker.
I still think the guitar more than makes up for it with its excellent sound. Its relatively low price is also a great incentive to pick up the S6.
Further reading: my full review of the Seagull S6 (Cedar).
2. Ibanez AC340
Ibanez isn’t often associated with acoustic guitars. Just because they are better known for their high-quality electric guitars, doesn’t mean they don’t also know how to make excellent acoustics.
Their Artwood series AC340 is not only one of their best acoustic guitars, but might be one of the best budget acoustics out there.
Ibanez AC340
The AC340 is made from a few less expensive woods, Okoume for the body, Nyatoh for the neck, and Ovangkol for the fretboard. That doesn’t mean it is cheap by any means, though.
I think the build quality is excellent. The guitar is as sturdy and well-built as any more expensive guitar. The guitar feels nice and solid in my hands, and resonates nicely against my body when I’m playing six-note cowboy chords.
Likewise, I found the finish not to be too thick or plastic-feeling, which is a risk on guitars in this price range. On acoustic guitars, I like to feel like the wood can breathe.
Playability is also fantastic. The neck is fairly slim with jumbo frets. It's got an impressive 1.771 inch nut width. But I still think fretting is a breeze and moving up and down the neck is smooth.
The jumbo frets make switching between chords and emphasizing key tones within a chord much easier.
I had a lot of fun running through the intro riff to Drive By Truckers’ “Decoration Day” and playing the open-string hammer-ons within the open chords.
The neck is nice and wide, so my my fingers weren’t bumping into each other as I played through my favorite songs.
The body is also very comfortable. It is a bit smaller than other acoustics in my opinion and is a bit thinner in the middle. This makes the guitar sit a bit tighter to your body I feel which makes playing much more comfortable than larger bodies. This, of course, is all a matter of personal preference: I actually tend to play parlor sized acoustics, so this is fine by me.
More importantly, the guitar’s tone is just as high-quality. Okoume is comparable to mahogany which I feel gives the AC340 a similarly warm tone to that of a mahogany guitar. It’s nice and warm, although I do miss the snap of a solid spruce top.
Its smaller body doesn’t affect its volume and resonance much. To me, the AC340 is still quite loud and even louder than some other larder bodied guitars.
Some common shortcomings are present on the AC340. The lack of a cutaway makes reaching those higher frets a bit of a challenge. And the lack of electronics means you will only be able to play the guitar mic’d up or with a detachable mic or pickup.
Given the AC340’s price, however, these shortcomings are less of an issue for me. I don’t really expect budget acoustic guitars to have these types of conveniences like I would with a guitar twice the price.
For playing on a couch or taking on a camping trip, this is an awesome guitar.
3. Washburn G55CE
The Washburn Comfort G55CE is an excellent guitar. It strikes a great balance between comfortable playing and great sound.
Washburn G55CE
Washburn hasn’t called the G55CE the Comfort for nothing. Comfort is truly the name of the game with this guitar.
The neck has a nice thickness to it, with a nut width of 1.75 inches to allow for a great grip without becoming uncomfortable. I also found it to be smooth enough that moving up and down the neck feels easy.
The frets are well-spaced to and my fingers weren’t becoming squished up. This is especially evident higher up by the body. The higher frets are also easily reachable thanks to the generous cutaway.
I found the body to be just as comfortable as the neck. The Grand Auditorium body is wonderful to play with while sitting or standing. The G55CE’s body sits in that great sweet spot where it is big enough to still have a boomy sound, but not too big to be cumbersome.
My favorite part of the body is definitely the rounded top of the body. While it is nothing new on an acoustic guitar, it isn’t something you see often. The little bevel where my forearm usually rests is a nice accommodation. I played this guitar for a four-hour cover gig and had no issues with comfort at all.
I’ve always argued that it’s most important to enjoy the act of playing, and these concessions to player comfort really do make the playing more enjoyable. With no uncomfortable edges digging into my arm, I can concentrate on enjoying playing my guitar.
This rounded top gives your arm a comfortable resting spot while playing.
Of course, comfort isn’t everything in an acoustic guitar, it also needs to sound good. And the G55CE sounds just as great as it feels.
I was a bit skeptical that an all-laminate guitar would sound good. The G55CE, however, manages to have a well-rounded sound for a laminate guitar.
The sound is fairly centered, not leaning too heavily to either the bright or warm side. That doesn’t mean that it sounds flat and the sound is quite vibrant.
The guitar isn’t overly resonant or loud, though. Unplugged, I really hear the difference between this guitar and a solid-top acoustic guitar.
Luckily, Washburn has included a Fishman Presys+ pickup and preamp, so playing the guitar through an amp solves the volume issue quite well. I was able to easily compensate for the guitar’s relative lack of sustain and projection with the pickup/preamp system.
The preamp also gives the guitar a great amount of versatility. With a full 3-band EQ, Brilliance, Notch, and Phase. This gives you a lot of room to shape the G55CE’s sound however you wish.
Bizarrely for an acoustic guitar, this Washburn almost sounds better when plugged into a proper PA than it does unplugged in my living room. I can only assume that that’s because Washburn designed it with bulky-fingered live guitar players in mind!
4. Guild D-120
I’ve had a soft spot for Guild guitars for a long time now. I put it down to seeing Slash play Guild acoustic guitars on the Use Your Illusion live DVD.
The Guild D-120 is not only a fantastic-looking guitar, but a fantastic sounding one as well. It is one of those guitars that you can just feel the love and care that has gone into creating it.
Guild D-120
The tone of the D-120 is immediately noticeable. It has a full and warm, yet quite mellow, tone.
I actually get a vintage feel from the D-120. I almost automatically started playing older blues stuff on the D-120. It just has that sort of sound. Like a lot of guitars in this vein, it feels like a love letter to the classic Martin dreadnought.
The guitar’s great tone is all thanks to its completely mahogany body and neck, with a rosewood fretboard. Not only does the mahogany give it a great tone, but also a fantastic dark brown look.
The solid top is doing most of the work here. The mahogany body does give this guitar a darker, warmer sound that I found too boomy when picking near the neck. Playing closer to the bridge, around the sound hole sweet spot, helped bring some treble-forward articulation to the sound.
The D-120 is also a very comfortable guitar to play. The jumbo frets mean I don’t have to press too hard to achieve a clear, crisp fretted note. I was actually able to play some of Polyphia’s “The Worst” with all its hammer-ons and harmonics thanks to this guitar’s wonderful jumbo frets.
The D-120 sadly doesn’t have a cutaway. So, the 17th fret and up is likely just going to sit there unplayed unless you have a longer reach. I don’t really mind this, however: I’d probably use this for acoustic rhythm playing. I’m not doing any fretboard gymnastics at my solo acoustic shows!
The neck is a slim C shape with a nut width of 1.75 inches. It’s like a heftier Telecaster neck, to my hand, so I could easily see myself switching between this acoustic guitar and an electric during live shows.
Unfortunately, to do so would require the installation of an aftermarket pickup, as this gorgeous Guild lacks a built-in pickup or preamp.
This limits the D-120 for me to a studio, home, or camping guitar. I’d be tempted to bring a soundhole pickup to gigs (like the LR Baggs Anthem) just to play this guitar live! Overall, an excellent instrument from a great brand.
5. Martin D-10E
Martin guitars are among the most well-known and sought-after acoustics. Unfortunately, Martin guitars are also quite known for their high price tag. Their pre-war American-made guitars are, deservedly, discussed in hushed tones among serious acoustic players.
Fortunately, Martin does make some more affordable guitars. One such guitar is the D-10E.
Martin D-10E
The D-10E is technically one of Martin’s entry-level guitars, but that doesn’t mean there is anything beginner about this guitar. I don’t think Martin have taken any shortcuts with this guitar and it is just as high-quality as any of their higher-end models.
This guitar is extremely comfortable to play. I think the frets are big enough for those with larger hands and the neck is smooth and comfortable. The nut width is also a comfortable 1.75 inches.
The sound of the D-10E is basically what you can expect from a Martin. Crisp, clear, and vibrant, this guitar just sounds fantastic.
Martin made some strategic concessions to make this guitar so affordable. Most notable is the choice of tonewoods: sapele for the sides and back, which is much cheaper than mahogany. Likewise, the fretboard is Richlite, not rosewood or ebony.
For me, I like the sound of Sapele. It’s more or less indiscernible from mahogany, at least to my ear. Most importantly, it features a solid spruce top, which gives this guitar its all-American Martin character. The snap and sustain from the spruce top sets this guitar apart from others in its price range: you couldn’t wipe the smile from my face as I was playing it. I had tremendous fun playing Johnny Cash and Jason Isbell acoustic parts for hours.
Interestingly though, the guitar didn’t sound perfect out of the box. I felt the tone was actually a bit flat in the beginning. This concerned and confused me since I have never played a Martin that sounded flat. Luckily, the tone improved as I played until it settled on that beautiful Martin tone.
One thing that I found very interesting was the tuner and volume and tone control. Where the tuner and preamp usually sit on top of the guitar, Martin has gone with an interesting solution. They have put the tuner and volume and tone controls inside the body of the D-10E.
This was of course done to hide it and make the electronics as discrete as possible. I personally don’t mind having the preamp on top of the guitar’s body. I actually find it a bit annoying having to reach inside the sound hole to turn on the tuner or to adjust the tone and volume, and then have to look at a small LED through my strings.
Fortunately, this Martin guitar is extremely comfortable to play. The frets aren’t quite jumbo-tall, but they don’t demand too much pressure to play well. Likewise, the nut width is comfortable enough to accommodate my fingers for even the most demanding barre chords.
Other than the awkward placement of the tuner and controls, my only issue with the D-10E is the lack of a cutaway. I barely use the upper frets on an acoustic guitar, but it’s nice to have the option. Other than those two small issues, the D-10E is every bit as fantastic as you would expect a Martin guitar to be.
Should You Buy a Wide Neck Acoustic Guitar?
While wide neck guitars are designed with guitarists with larger hands and fingers in mind, I don’t think you should necessarily jump straight to wide neck guitars.
I believe in starting with the smallest solution first and working your way up. The issue might not be with the size of your guitar’s neck.
Changing Your String Gauge
In some cases, the issue might not even be that your neck is too small. It might simply be that you aren’t using the right strings.
For fat fingers, going down a gauge or two can often solve any issues you have. The lighter gauge should make it easier for you to fret your strings, making playing easier.
You don’t want to use a very heavy gauge with an acoustic guitar anyway. Try starting on 11- or 10-gauge strings. If you are still struggling, go down to 9’s or even 8’s.
Choosing the Right Fret Size
Another solution might be to get larger frets. Frets come in different sizes and their size can have an effect on your playing.
If you have larger hands, try going for medium jumbo or even large frets. Larger frets make bending easier and are generally more comfortable to play if you have larger hands.
Choosing the Right Scale Length
Similar to fret size, the scale of a neck also plays a major role in how comfortable a neck is. A longer scale neck will have frets that are more spaced out.
This of course means that there is more room for your fingers to move between frets. If you have larger hands, I would recommend going with at least a full-scale 25.5-inch neck.
This should be the perfect scale for most guitarists. But if you are still struggling, then try a guitar with a longer scale, like a baritone.
The downside of a longer scale is that you will have to stretch further to reach frets. But this usually isn’t a problem for guitarists with larger hands.
Choosing the Right Neck Width
If none of these other options work, then you should try a wide neck guitar for fat fingers. If the issue is that open chords or power chords feel very cramped, then a wider neck will be the likeliest solution. Although, wider frets can also help.
I would still make going with a wide nut guitar my last resort. A wider neck might seem like it is the solution, but can sometimes actually be worse. This is especially true for beginners who don’t yet have the dexterity to reach strings that are further apart.
Technique is Also Important
If you have gone through all the different types and sizes of necks and you are still struggling, then the issue might be your technique.
Unfortunately, if you have larger hands, you just have to be more aware of your technique. Particularly when it comes to playing chords.
The problem might simply be that you aren’t keeping your fingers vertical enough. Try moving your thumb more towards the center of the neck. This will give you more leverage to curl your fingers so that you use more of their tips.
You can also try fretting a chord differently or using a different shape. For example, you can use one finger to fret the A and D strings in E minor. Or bar the G, B, and e strings in D major.
Chords also have different shapes that sound similar enough. Open chords can be played as bar chords.
Open chords also have simpler fingerings. C Major, for example, can be played without fretting the third fret on the E string.
Playing in an open tuning can also make chords much easier to fret. You don’t, and in fact shouldn’t, have to stick to the basic chord shapes.
Are My Fingers Just Too Big?
No. Not only is there no such thing as having too large fingers for playing guitar, but that is not a healthy mentality to have. Anyone can play guitar, regardless of the shape or size of their hands.
Johnny Hiland, an amazing country guitarist, and Israel Kamakawiwo’ole, best known for his cover of Somewhere Over the Rainbow, are two great examples of guitarists with large fingers. Israel also famously played Ukulele (which is much smaller!).
Practice Makes Perfect
As cliché as it is, practice is important. If you practice enough, you will eventually be able to play, regardless of the size of your fingers.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, it's worth remembering that the size of your hands and fingers don’t determine your ability to play. With a suitable guitar and a little bit of practice, anyone can become a master of the instrument.
Thanks for your article. I have been looking for some time for a guitar with wider string spacing as a result of arthritis in my fingers. After playing a while I cannot bend my index and middle fingers enough vertically not to touch the string below. Is very frustrating. I have been looking for acoustic guitars with a 45 mm nut hoping that the string spacing is a little lighter and will provide me with the relief that I need. If you have any suggestions it would be appreciated thank you. Bob C.