1. Product guide
2. Buying advice
3. How we choose
Not many guitarists pay attention to their pick, with most opting to go with whichever looks the coolest or something a friend recommended. The fact is, this small piece of plastic has a huge effect on your playing technique, and your tone itself, which is why we’ve put together this guide of the best guitar picks available today.
Best guitar picks: Product guide
Material: Treated Delrin
Thickness: 0.6mm, 0.73mm, 0.88mm, 1mm, 1.14mm
Features: Powdered finish, low memory, made in USA, color-coded gauge system
+ Great tone and feel
+ A true classic
+ Durable
- Doesn't excel in any one genre
Jim Dunlop developed the Tortex pick in 1981 as the original CITES guitar drama made the industry seek alternatives to tortoiseshell. Well, both guitarists and tortoises alike are ever thankful for that. Dunlop has brought out a multitude of picks since, many offering a specialized playing experience for certain playing styles, but we discovered that the Tortex, in its basic happy-medium shape and with its sharp and bright response, feels like the best launchpad for your playing. Consider it a blank slate for all styles.
Material: Acrylic
Thickness: 1.5mm
Features: Jazz-sized (0.96-inch wide) pick, acrylic construction, sharp-v point, master finish or polished finish, variety of options
+ Acrylic feels and sounds great
+ Precise picking
+ So many options
- Expensive
Gravity’s line of acrylic picks comes in nine different shapes, four different sizes (0.96 inches to 1.25 inches), and three different thicknesses (1.5mm, 2mm, 3mm), so there are plenty of options. Indeed, doing the math, thousands of options. This little pick is about the same as a Dunlop Jazz III and the Sunrise profile offers a nice sharp point to make a connection with the strings. During testing, we found that this acrylic pick offers a clear, bright tone.
Material: Nylon
Thickness: 1.38mm
Features: Custom made for Kirk Hammett, V-shaped cutout, bevelled edges, medium size, green or purple sparkle finish, rounded tip
+ Good grip
+ Fast picking feel
- No lighter gauge options
- Shape not everyone’s bag
Metallica’s shredder-in-chief switched to these a few years ago after sending his spec request to pick titans Dunlop. It takes the Dunlop Jazz pickup design and runs with it. There is a bold v-shape cutout to enhance grip on a pick that is already pretty grippy thanks to the raised branding. We found that although the thickness took a bit of getting used to, those beveled edges ensure the pick attack is sharp and precise and the edge of the pick glides off the string whether you are playing an upstroke or downstroke.
Material: Ultex
Thickness: .73mm to 3mm
Features: Hand-burnished edge, thumb grip
+ Super comfortable
+ Burnished edge makes for smoother picking
+ Ultex is incredibly durable
- No thin options
Ranging from a fairly thin .73mm to a weighty 3mm, the Primetone Standard Grip picks cater to most players and playing styles. They’re made from super-strong Ultex material for a reasonable level of durability, as you’d expect from the slightly higher price bracket. With a simple yet effective thumb grip, these Dunlops are going nowhere fast. The smooth hand-burnished edges might sound a bit much, but the difference it made to our picking experience was truly impressive, making articulate playing much smoother and easier due to the lower resistance.
Material: Thermosetting plastic
Thickness: 2mm, 2.5mm
Features: No flex material, beveled edge
+ Glides across strings
+ Full, rounded tone
- Fewer gauge options
- Pricey
The Badazz III is another of these thick, precision-edged picks that make speedy jazz lines a breeze. It's available in two thicknesses, with the 2mm pick surely enough to dig into heavy gauge strings without any give, and a 2.5mm on hand for those fully converted to the thick pick. This will really suit the shredders who like to pepper their lines with pinch harmonics. ChickenPicks promises a “bright tone with lots of bottom end” and that their picks will last the distance - and we've found they deliver on both promises.
Material: Celluloid
Thickness: Thin, medium, heavy, extra heavy
Features: Wavelength debossed grip pattern, made in USA, traditional Fender 351 shape
+ Warm tone
+ Good grip and feel
- Some might prefer the classic style
- Not as durable
Fender’s old-school 351 celluloid models, with the embossed logo, are the pick of choice for Angus Young. Newer versions have a printed logo and in hot, sweaty situations you might want a bit more grip. That’s where the Wavelength pattern can help, a series of grooves cut into the pick that should give you a little more purchase. The celluloid allows for a thinner pick with a similar action to heavier picks made from the likes of Delrin or nylon but we found that they can snap on you if you are really digging in with a light or medium pick, so it pays to size up a bit.
Material: Delrin
Thickness: 0.48mm, 0.60mm, 0.74mm, 0.88m, 1.0mm, 1.14mm, 1.5mm, 2.0mm
Features: Non-slip surface, rounded point, durable material, ‘Slinky’ color system
+ Super durable material
+ Excellent range of gauges
+ Versatile shape
- Not the fastest playing
Ernie Ball Everlast picks feature a huge range, all color coded for ease of use. With such a massive range of gauges on offer, it's one of the most versatile sets of picks available. The point is quite rounded, so it’s not the best for shredders, but it certainly excels in regular lead work and riffing. We found its shape made it super comfortable for fast-picked arpeggiated chord work, and the thicker gauges are great for chugging drop-tuned riffs. In terms of feel it’s surprisingly grippy considering its smooth surface. They do wear down eventually, but we found they lasted longer than your average Tortex.
Material: Nylon
Thickness: 1.38mm
Features: Small/broad shape with embossed logo for grip, medium-sharp jazz tip
+ Classic feel and tone
+ Great value
- Takes some getting used to
- Newer designs offer bolder solutions
There is a cult surrounding the Jazz III guitar pick, one enthusiastically encouraged by Dunlop for obvious reasons, but sustained by the players themselves. Eric Johnson loves them, Joe Bonamassa got into them through Johnson... What makes them so good? It’s the feel, the warm tone, the ease with which they glide over the strings, and, at 1.38mm, we found that they're thick enough to change your picking style without feeling like you have changed instruments. A stone-cold classic and one of the best guitar picks for good reason.
Material: Delrin, polycarb
Thickness: Light, medium, heavy, extra heavy
Features: Thumb-grip in various sizes and left-handed, teardrop shape
+ No dropping picks
+ Allows for hybrid styles
- Takes a bit of getting used to
- Only one shape
This is an interesting option for those who find themselves always dropping their pick or curious about moving from a conventional flat pick to a thumb pick. The wraparound thumb grip is available in regular and large sizes, and there is a left-handed version too. Once you find the size for you the Bumblebee can be used as a regular flat-pick or for a more thumb-led picking style. We found that the Delrin teardrop pick makes a slightly rounded contact with the string and performs similarly to Dunlop’s Tortex pics in terms of tone, but the design really allows for you to find your own attack.
Material: Delrin with molded rubber grip
Thickness: Medium
Features: Delrin construction with molded rubber grip, thin profile
+ Non-slip design
+ Versatile feel
- Could be difficult to keeping picking hand relaxed
- Small picking surface area
This is a pick for those who can’t quite decide between light, medium, or heavy. The way these picks are constructed, with molded rubber laid over Delrin, means that how you grip your pick makes all the difference to its response. Grip near the tip and it will perform like a heavy pick - warm and precise. Release the pressure on the middle of the pick and it will behave like a light pick and brighten up. This is the sort of pick that might require a change of style, but we feel that being able to change gauge as you’re playing just by how you grip the pick is probably worth editing your style for.
Material: Casein
Thickness: 2.0mm
Features: Extra heavy casein pick
+ Unique sound and feel
+ Very durable
- Very heavy
- Not for everyone
Many players long for the authentic tone of traditional tortoiseshell just without the animal cruelty aspect of this coveted material. Well, thankfully, D'Addario has a solution in the form of the 351 Casein pick. This heavy-duty plectrum uses a natural dairy protein which the boffins at D'Addario say sounds exactly like the real thing. Producing a loud, warm attack, this pick is surprisingly versatile and incredibly comfortable. Now, the standard 351 Casein Pick may look familiar in shape, but it has a right-handed bevel to help the pick glide along the strings effortlessly, plus the pointed tip provides near-perfect balance for strumming and lead parts.
Best guitar picks: Buying advice
How to choose the best guitar picks for you
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