I am a beginner at guitar and is it right for your fingers to hurt when you press down on the strings?

Question

i started playing 3 days ago and are your fingers suppose to hurt when you press down on th strings? it hurts enough for me to put tape on them to play. is it because of the strings? because i have to press hard

Answer 1

This is completely normal.  Build those muscles on the fingertips and you'll be rocking out like Slash from G 'n' R!  bwahahahahahaha :)

Sometimes it's best to start on an electric guitar because the strings aren't as resistent...seriously.  That's how I started, then I "moved up" to acoustic.  

Answer 2

yes, because you have to develop calluses on your fingertips.  Give a few days and play again. Don't give up.

Answer 3

your fingers naturally do hurt when you first start guitar, as the tips are quite soft and you aren't used to pressing down on the strings...

however, your finger tips grow tough over time so after a while they won't hurt much. if they hurt too much though, i would check with someone who knows guitars to check if they are decent strings...

:)

Answer 4

There may be help.  While developing the callouses, you might put a very light coat of fingernail polish or spray shellac on your fingers. Before it dries put your fingers in baby powder.  Athletes used to do this to the bottom of their feet to stop blisters from forming.

After a while the callouses will build and you won't even think about it.

Keep at it. Its a fun instrument.

Answer 5

Yes, you need to build up callouses on your fingers than they wont hurt, to do that you need to put up with the pain for a little while. if you play everyday it wont take long.

Answer 6

Oh yes. With time your fingertips will develop callouses and they will become as hard as rocks. It's a good sign that they hurt a bit. It means that you have done quite a bit of practising. I wouldn't keep any tape on them unless your fingers are actually infected or really damaged or injured in an unusual way. Believe me, they will toughen up with time. Do not stop playing once they get hard because you do not want to go through this again. One other thing - you may be pressing harder than you need to on the strings or with your thumb on the back of the neck. Try to see how you can get away with probably a lot less pressure than you are using now.

Hope this helps.

Answer 7

It could be that your strings are too tight (possible if the guitar is new), but it's more likely it's because your fingertips aren't used to the pressure applied by the strings. This is normal and happens to everyone when they are beginners.

If you keep playing for awhile, you'll start to develop callouses on your fingertips, and they won't hurt so much.