The Best and Easiest Musical Instruments to Learn For All Ages

Taking up music is one of the best things you can do, but how do you know what the easiest musical instrument to learn really is? There are so many instruments to choose from, and it can be overwhelming if you aren’t sure which ones are difficult to pick up.

When choosing the right instrument for you and your personality, you need to think about a few things before you pull the trigger. And those are:

Your Age
Your Personality
How Much Time You Have to Invest
If Music Comes Natural to You or Not

Choosing the Easiest Musical Instrument to Learn

Before you decide to buy any old instrument, it is best to consider a few things that most beginners wouldn’t think of. The good news? We’ve accumulated a lot of miles in the music industry and have been down the beaten path of taking up an instrument that just doesn’t work out.

First and foremost, think about the music that you love listening to. You can easily get inspired by your favorite type of music. You can also start ruling out some instruments that may not make sense for the type of music you are interested in playing. For example, if you like rock and roll, buying a cello is probably not going to inspire you too much.

Second, you need to strongly consider investing the time to learn to read music. There are some instruments, like bass, guitar and drums that you might not have to read as much sheet music. At the same time, taking the time to learn the saxophone, piano, flute, clarinet or violin means being able to read musical notes is an absolute must, which will require additional learning.

Lastly, envision your musical goals and aspirations. If you want to jam by yourself, learning guitar, ukulele, harmonica and saxophone are always highly sought after. On the flip side, if you are considering being part of a band, drummers and bassists will probably suit you more. If classical is your style, obviously stay clear of buying a drum kit. Instead, think of something that will fit into an orchestra or an ensemble.

What Are The Best Musical Instruments to Learn for Adults?

The first age group we are going to cover is the adult age range. You may be a young adult looking to take something up, or maybe you’re a little older and looking for the best instrument to learn at 50. Either way, we break down which one is right for you.

Top 5 Easiest Instruments to Learn for Adults

Ukulele

Affordable for most people and super fun to play, the ukulele is historically one of the easiest instruments to learn for young adults and older (at 50 years or above). It’s much different than the guitar. In fact, the ukulele has four nylon strings, as opposed to the guitar’s six. This helps anyone pick up simple chords much quicker and you can even play some of your all-time favorite songs in a matter of weeks. To add more value in choosing this instrument, you will also be able to harness the necessary fundamental skills that will make it much easier if you ever decide to take up the guitar later down the road.

Harmonica

Don’t get turned off by the size of it. The harmonica is a beautiful instrument to learn and on the easy side as well.

Piano / Keyboard

We grouped the Piano and the keyboard piano in the same category here. Regardless of your choice, they are pretty similar.

Alto Saxophone

This may not strike most musicians as the easiest musical instrument to learn, but once you invest some time up front, you can easily play really cool music with it. You wouldn’t even need the best alto saxophone to create some of your favorite music.

Guitar

There are so many online guitar lessons you can enroll in, which makes the guitar one of the easier instruments to learn. If you’re wondering how long it takes to learn guitar, it all depends on your musical background, how passionate you are and how much persistence you have.