About
About GuitarRef
We built the tool we always wished existed.
For anyone who has ever tried to buy or sell a vintage guitar, the experience is familiar. You find an instrument you love, you search online for comparable sales, and you end up with a handful of forum posts from 2014, a dealer asking twice what Reverb shows, and no clear sense of what the guitar is actually worth today.
GuitarRef exists to fix that.
We are a small team of guitarists, collectors, and data obsessives who got tired of a market where pricing was opaque, inconsistent, and dominated by whoever had the most confidence, or the loudest voice on a forum. We believed that the vintage and high-end guitar market deserved rigour: Real data. Real prices. Independent.
So we built it.
HOW IT WORKS
GuitarRef tracks thousands of active listings across the major guitar marketplaces every month, covering a growing catalog of 350+ models across 19 brands, from Gibson and Fender to Martin, Taylor, Gretsch, Rickenbacker, and beyond. We add new models regularly as our database expands.
No sponsored content. No manufacturer relationships. Our affiliate links to Reverb help us keep the lights on, they never influence our valuations or what we write.
WHAT WE COVER
Our catalog spans over 150 years of guitar history, from pre-war Martin acoustics to contemporary PRS electrics. For each model, you'll find a current market valuation, price history, associated artists, and curated listings from Reverb, the world's largest marketplace for musical instruments.
THE SUSTAIN
We also publish The Sustain, a newsletter dedicated to the vintage guitar market. Every two weeks, we break down what the data is telling us: which models are rising, which are undervalued, and what the broader market trends mean for buyers, sellers, and collectors. You can subscribe at thesustain.substack.com.
GUITARREF IS INDEPENDENT
We are not affiliated with any manufacturer, dealer, or marketplace. When we display listings from Reverb, we may earn a small commission if you make a purchase, this is how we keep the lights on, and it never influences our valuations or editorial coverage.
GuitarRef. Independent valuations for guitars that matter.