How Do You Choose Left Hand Fingering for Guitar?

When you play simple music, you let the left-hand fingering happen by instinct.

That works.

But with more complicated music, random left-hand fingerings don’t get the best result.

How do you decide which fingering is best?

Here are a few approaches that help:

1. Check Videos

Carefully watch great musicians playing the piece. Slow each video down if necessary, and watch repeatedly to confirm fingerings.

2. Try Multiple Options

If a passage is challenging, think of at least three fingerings. Experiment with each one to see which works best.

3. Fast Needs Easy

When playing a fast passage, default to the easiest fingering. Can you play in one position without shifting? Do that. Can you use open strings? Do that. Is it easier with hammer-ons and pull-offs? Use those.

4. Slow Needs Tone

If it is a slow piece, however, your goal is to make the most beautiful sound possible. You may decide to shift more often to keep the melody on a single string. You may avoid open strings because they don’t sound as warm as fretted notes. You may do fewer hammer-ons and pull-offs because they are inconsistent in tone.

Before you choose left-hand fingerings, I suggest starting with a 10-minute Warmup Routine.

If you would like a free PDF of my Warmup, click here.