How Much Do Guitar Lessons Cost in Rockford, Illinois?

The Complete Guide to Guitar Lesson Pricing for Rockford

Marc Levesque - About Us - Lesson With You

Marc Levesque • 12/29/20 updated 11/7/23 •  3 min read

The Average Guitar Lesson Cost in Rockford, Illinois:

Guitar lessons generally cost between $40-$90 per hour* in Rockford, Illinois, but costs can vary widely depending on the teacher’s education and performing level, the location, lesson length and whether they are in-person or online.

The average price for a one-hour guitar lesson is $70. Live online lessons using Zoom or Skype charge between $25-50 for a half hour lesson. Local private one-on-one guitar lessons range from $35-50 for a half hour lesson, while in-person group lessons can cost $25 for a half hour lesson.

Guitar teachers without a music degree will charge as little as $35 an hour, and professionally performing guitarists with tour experience might charge well over $200! 

* All prices are converted to USD.
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Jess K.

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B.M. Berklee College of Music

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Maya R.

Guitar
B.M. McNally Smith College

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Jacob B.

Guitar
B.A. University at Buffalo

What Determines Rockford Guitar Lesson Costs?

Guitar Teacher Level

Guitar teachers without music degrees tend to charge between $35-$40 per hour but they don’t offer professional level instruction. Guitar instructors with music degrees in unrelated fields, like a Bachelor’s in voice or drums, who also have some guitar skills, typically charge in the range of $35 to $50 per hour. They generally have a solid understanding of music, but they don’t have advanced guitar performing abilities and are very limited in giving practical instruction in the long run. This increases the risk that they will teach beginners bad habits that will be harmful over time. The best Rockford guitar teachers have a Bachelor’s degree in guitar at the minimum. Lessons with these teachers typically range from $50 to $70 per hour on average. For teachers with a Master’s or Doctorate in guitar, you can expect charges typically between $60 and $80 per hour.

Q. Should beginners learn from professional guitar instructors?

The answer is YES. It’s best for beginners to play guitar the correct way from the start. A professional guitar teacher knows how to take you smoothly from the beginning to an advanced level without building any bad habits. 

The sooner you have a professional instructor, the sooner you will make real progress that sets you up for future advancement with musicality and stable technique.

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In-person vs Online Lessons

Guitar online lessons are generally the most affordable, with an average increase of about $10 for in-person lessons at a teacher’s studio, and a small additional increase to have the teacher visit your home. 

In-person prices can vary widely though depending on the number of qualified teachers in your area. In order to find highly-qualified teachers at reasonable prices, online lessons will be your best bet.

Pre-recorded vs Live Lessons

If you’re looking for the cheapest possible guitar lessons, there is the option of pre-recorded lessons. These are typically video or app-based lessons that aim to teach you basic guitar abilities for a monthly fee. 

Unfortunately, the lessons cannot compare to the quality of live one-on-one lessons where the teacher can customize the material for you, give you live feedback on your playing in real time, and help you become better at practicing and performing. Any student who is interested in becoming a capable guitar player is better off looking for live one-on-one lessons, such as the $35 half hour lessons offered through Lesson With You.

How much do guitar lessons cost? Guitar Lesson Cost Guide - Lesson With You

How to Find the Cheapest Guitar Lessons

We surveyed over 100 teachers across our own site, Lesson With You, and three other major sites, Takelessons.com, Lessons.com and Thumbtack.com, using a random zip code as the location. We specifically looked for teachers who have a degree in guitar and teach online lessons.

Lesson With You has a set price of $65 per hour and is a better deal than the three alternatives mentioned, and indeed the value is better than any other site we have found. Each guitar teacher at Lesson With You has a Master’s or Doctorate in guitar, including from schools such as the University of Southern California, but the lessons are only $65 per hour, making the live online guitar lessons an incredible value.

Takelessons had the highest average price among qualified guitar teachers, at $80 per hour. Even finding a teacher who didn’t major in guitar, such as one with a violin or piano degree, did not do much to lower the price. Sorting through the options, it quickly became apparent that many of the top teachers did not have formal education in music, and even those who had a music degree often did not have it for guitar, despite charging high prices for music lessons.

Thumbtack has a lower average price, at $70 among the teachers we surveyed. But like Takelessons, many of the guitar teachers listed either did not have a music degree or did not major in guitar. Takelessons and Thumbtack both have a very large number of teachers, so surely there are some good deals, but finding teachers who’s education and prices matched that of the teachers at Lesson With You is difficult and time consuming.

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About the author

Marc Levesque is a graduate of the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University where he studied Piano Performance and Arts Administration, receiving both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees before attending Carnegie Mellon University to study educational technology. As a pianist, Marc made his debut with the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra at age 15, playing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2., and he has performed at various summer programs and festivals across the United States, Italy, and Croatia. Marc is a co-founder of Lesson With You, which fully combines his love of music, technology, and education.