How to Tune a Ukulele

Tuning a ukulele is fun and easy and can be a great way to get a child involved in music. The ukulele's strings are tuned to G, C, E, A from low to high, which corresponds to singing the line "My Dog Has Fleas."

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Use a piano, guitar or tuning fork as a reference point for tuning. Also, many online sites provide ready-to-use reference sources to easily tune your ukulele.
2. Strike a G on your reference source or play the G tone on the Internet. Strike the low G on your ukulele and twist the corresponding tuning button until your ukulele's tone matches your reference tone.
3. Continue to tune the C, E and A strings of your ukulele in the same manner. Strike or play your reference source each time you adjust the ukulele until your ukulele's strings match the tone of your reference source.
4. Check your ukulele's stings against themselves. Press on the fifth fret of the low G string and strum down from the G string to the C string. Both stings should match since the fifth fret of the G string is a C note. If the tones do not match, twist the tuning button of the C string until they correspond.
5. Test the E string by pressing on the fourth fret of the C string and strum down the C and E strings. If the tones do not match, adjust the tuning button of the E string until they match.
6. Verify the A string is tuned by pressing on the fifth fret of the E string and strumming down the E and A strings. Make adjustments as necessary until both strings are in tune.

Tips & Warnings

• New ukulele strings require tuning many times over several days until the strings settle and stop stretching.