Guitar Player
Guitar Player is a digital guitar-media brand and the web extension of the world's longest-running guitar magazine (founded 1967), owned by Future US, Inc. (Future plc). It publishes free editorial content — news, gear reviews, artist interviews, lessons, and buying guides — for global guitar enthusiasts, monetized via advertising and affiliate commerce.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1967
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Guitar Player does
Guitar Player is the digital continuation of the world's longest-running guitar magazine, founded in 1967 and now operating as GuitarPlayer.com under Future US, Inc., a subsidiary of the UK-listed international media group Future plc. The site publishes editorial content across nine structured sections — Guitarists, Guitars, Gear, Lessons, Buying Guides, Reviews, Makers, Music, and News — covering electric and acoustic guitars, pedals, amplifiers, bass, accessories, music industry news, and artist interviews. Content is produced by a small editorial team of 1–10 employees based at Future's New York headquarters (130 West 42nd Street) with group-level support from Future plc's Bath, UK headquarters.
The core product is GuitarPlayer.com itself: a free, ad-supported digital publication with no disclosed subscription or paywall. Its underlying technology is a conventional multimedia publishing platform built on Future's futurecdn.net CMS stack, delivering articles, image and video integrations, social sharing, and the 'The Pick' email newsletter. The site is editorially led by Christopher Scapelliti (Editor-in-Chief), a long-tenured music journalist whose bylines include in-depth interviews with figures such as Pete Townshend, Slash, Jack White, Billy Corgan, and Beatles engineers Geoff Emerick and Ken Scott.
Guitar Player's business model is content-led and dual-monetized: display and sponsored advertising from guitar manufacturers and gear brands, plus affiliate commerce commissions earned when readers purchase products through links embedded in reviews and buying guides (explicitly disclosed as 'When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission'). The audience is global and consumer-facing — amateur and professional guitar players seeking news, education, gear-buying guidance, and artist coverage — reached through SEO, organic social, email newsletters, and direct web access. The site is horizontally segmented within Future plc's broader entertainment and music vertical portfolio.
Guitar Player firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Guitar Player
- Legal name
- Future US, Inc.
- Website
- https://guitarplayer.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1967
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Guitar Player is a digital guitar-media brand and the web extension of the world's longest-running guitar magazine (founded 1967), owned by Future US, Inc. (Future plc). It publishes free editorial content — news, gear reviews, artist interviews, lessons, and buying guides — for global guitar enthusiasts, monetized via advertising and affiliate commerce.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Guitar Player industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Music Media Publication
- NAICS
- Periodical Publishers (513120)
- SIC
- Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Music Discovery & Curation Platforms (Recommendations, Playlists) (MPAIACAH)
Keywords
Where Guitar Player is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Guitar Player business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Advertising: The site generates revenue through display advertising, sponsored content, and brand partnerships with guitar manufacturers and gear companies featured in reviews and articles.
- Affiliate Commerce: GuitarPlayer.com earns affiliate commissions when readers purchase products through links on the site, as disclosed in article pages: 'When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.'
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Guitar Player product offering
Product offeringCore offering
GuitarPlayer.com is a digital media publishing website that delivers editorial content dedicated to guitars and the guitar community. The platform publishes daily articles covering guitar news, in-depth artist interviews, comprehensive gear reviews (electric guitars, acoustic guitars, pedals, amplifiers, and accessories), buying guides, guitar technique lessons, music industry news, and profiles of luthiers and manufacturers. Content is delivered through the website and the "The Pick" email newsletter, reaching a global audience of guitar enthusiasts and musicians.
Product overview
GuitarPlayer.com is a media publishing website operated by Future US Inc, offering comprehensive coverage of guitar-related content through multiple interconnected sections. The core product is the website itself, which publishes editorial content including guitar and musician interviews (Guitarists section), instrument coverage (Guitars section), equipment reviews (Gear section), educational tutorials (Lessons section), purchasing guidance (Buying Guides section), product reviews, manufacturer profiles (Makers section), music industry coverage (Music section), and general news. The site operates on a traditional media publishing model without additional modules, platforms, or add-on products.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- GuitarPlayer.com A comprehensive online media publishing platform dedicated to guitar content, featuring news articles, gear reviews, instrument articles, guitar lessons, buying guides, and musician interviews across electric guitars, acoustic guitars, pedals, amplifiers, and accessories. The site is freely accessible and targets individual guitar enthusiasts and musicians globally.
- The Pick Newsletter An email newsletter delivering guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, and deals directly to subscribers' inboxes. Users can subscribe through the GuitarPlayer.com site, supporting ongoing engagement with the audience beyond direct site visits.
Companies that use Guitar Player
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Guitar Player technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Guitar Player partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators2 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Guitar Player competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Guitar.com: Guitar-focused digital publication owned by BandLab, covering gear reviews, artist news, and lessons with a similar content-led GTM motion to Guitar Player.
- MusicRadar: Music gear reviews and news site also owned by Future plc, providing overlapping gear review and buying guide coverage with Guitar Player; competes for the same advertising and affiliate budget pool.
- Guitar World: The most direct peer: a guitar-focused editorial publication covering news, gear reviews, lessons, and artist interviews, also owned by Future plc making it a sister title to Guitar Player within the same parent portfolio.
- Premier Guitar: Independently owned guitar-focused magazine and website covering gear reviews, artist interviews, and lessons — directly comparable editorial scope and target audience to Guitar Player.
- Vintage Guitar: Long-running print and digital magazine covering guitars, gear, and collectors; serves a comparable guitar enthusiast audience with editorial content and reviews.
Regional players
- Total Guitar: UK-focused guitar magazine and website (Future plc title) covering gear reviews, lessons, and artist features with comparable editorial scope but primarily serving a UK audience.
Broad incumbents
- Sweetwater: Largest US musical instrument retailer with an extensive in-house editorial and video content operation covering gear reviews and buying advice; competes for both affiliate traffic and audience attention as a broad incumbent.
- Musician's Friend: Major online musical instrument retailer regularly featured in Guitar Player's buying guides; competes for affiliate commissions and end-purchase traffic with comparable gear-buying content.
- Guitar Center: Largest US guitar-specialty retailer with editorial gear guides and content; competes with Guitar Player for high-intent gear-buying traffic and affiliate commissions.
Emerging players
- Reverb: Online guitar gear marketplace with a substantial editorial content section (Reverb News) covering artist interviews and gear buying guides — combines commerce and editorial in a way that increasingly competes for Guitar Player's affiliate and content traffic.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Guitar Player social profiles
Digital presenceGuitar Player financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Guitar Player leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Guitar Player funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Guitar Player M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Guitar Player
What does Guitar Player do?
GuitarPlayer.com is a digital media publishing website that delivers editorial content dedicated to guitars and the guitar community. The platform publishes daily articles covering guitar news, in-depth artist interviews, comprehensive gear reviews (electric guitars, acoustic guitars, pedals, amplifiers, and accessories), buying guides, guitar technique lessons, music industry news, and profiles of luthiers and manufacturers. Content is delivered through the website and the "The Pick" email newsletter, reaching a global audience of guitar enthusiasts and musicians.
Is Guitar Player a public or private company?
Guitar Player is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Guitar Player founded?
Guitar Player was founded in 1967. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Guitar Player based?
Guitar Player is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Guitar Player make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Advertising is the primary driver. The others are affiliate Commerce.
Who are Guitar Player's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Guitar.com, MusicRadar, Guitar World, Premier Guitar and Vintage Guitar. Total Guitar is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Sweetwater, Musician's Friend and Guitar Center. Reverb is listed as an emerging player.
Does Guitar Player have an API?
No public API is recorded for Guitar Player.
What industry is Guitar Player in?
Guitar Player's product category is Music Media Publication. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAIACAH, Music Discovery & Curation Platforms (Recommendations, Playlists). Its NAICS code is 513120 and its SIC code is 2721.