beginners uke for under $100

:agree: I think beginner & entry level are just a price point - any uke can be played by anybody with practice.

I got a caramel uke, spruce top, mahogany sides & back, all solid. $80 from...
https://www.amazon.com/Caramel-CT30...4&keywords=caramel+solid+spruce+tenor+ukulele.

Ebay has the same instrument.

Maybe I got lucky but the action, as delivered, was okay & it has great sound (for an $80 uke, that is). I switched the #4 to low G, & it now it sounds even better. Not as good as my Pono (not by a yard) but bloody good for $80.

caramel seems to have disappeared from aliexpress??

I am teaching a beginner Uke class for our homeschool co-op. We have about ten people and six of them have new Caramels. Adding that to my friends and family who play them, and I think there is not a better bargain to be had than the ukes from caramel. They seem to even be improving on setup and playability. My first couple needed a little adjustment at the nut and saddle as well as some fret clean up. All of the ones that the students got recently were all thoroughly playable right out of the box. Their concerts really shine.

Iulia said:

caramel seems to have disappeared from aliexpress??

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They sell on eBay and Amazon, and have their own website. I don't think they would need any further web presence.

+1 for Caramel. I have six of them in all sizes. The last two I bought didn't need any setup, they came almost perfect. My neighbor has three and only one of them had to be adjusted. If you change the strings to fluorocarbons, they are golden. $30-Sopraninino, $45-Soprano, $55- Concert, $65 Tenor and $85 for a Baritone. They may need a little fret sanding, but still they are pretty great.

Choirguy said:

They sell on eBay and Amazon, and have their own website. I don't think they would need any further web presence.

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I'm in UK, so I don't tend to use the US ebay or Amazon sites, but I suppose if they are shipping from China anyway it might make no difference.

They WERE on aliexpress recently but vanished.

Oscar S. OU-2

Going a bit against the flow here, but I feel that buying a ukulele off of eBay or Amazon for a true beginner bears the risk of getting a poorly set up instrument that may get in the way of learning.

I believe that (especially for a beginner) deciding where to buy a ukulele is more important than what particular instrument to get. Buying it from TheUkuleleSite/HMS, Uke Republic, Mim's Ukes, Mainland, or in Europe: Southern Ukulele Store, Omega Music, ukuMele.de guarantees getting a well set up, very playable instrument with good intonation up the neck regardless of the price point. It may cost a couple extra bucks, but at least it'll be good for sure.

Case in point, my first ukulele was from a large online retail store, right out of the box. It sounded decently, it was constructed well, had a solid top and all, but it wasn't set up. The action was high, the intonation was 30+ cents off in the 12th fret, and the whole thing just wasn't fun to play. As a beginner, I didn't know what was wrong, though. I had no concept of action, intonation, or saddle compensation. I only knew I wasn't having fun and it didn't feel good.

I might have stopped my ukulele journey right there if I had not found the forum here and learned about all of these things. Knowing about them didn't mean I could actually fix the problems (I still don't want to have to make my own saddle, file the nut, etc.), and so I bought another ukulele altogether, this time from a place that did setups (ukuMele.de) -- and what a difference it made.

So my advice for a beginner isn't to just look at the price, but buy one's first ukulele from a place that includes setups.

I don't completely disagree with you, but I would argue that one of the $36-$40 Caramels, which are coming over with far better set-ups (one in a recent order of 4 was perfectly set to 2.65mm at the 12th fret and arrived in tune!) give the new player an instrument they can learn basics on and not be afraid of breaking, allowing for a future purchase from Mom, HMS, or Uke Republic in that $250-$600 range, after the player has determine that they are going to stick with the instrument.

I just purchased, from Musician's Friend, a Luna Concert "Daddyo" model for $44, free shipping, no tax, and including a gig bag. I bought it for my grandchildren to use since they have shown an interest in the Ukes and I prefer to limit their use of my solid wood instruments until the kids are more skilled and careful.

I pretty impressed with this ukulele. It is all laminate, mahogany I think, with a retro graphic on the top. It came with Aquila SuperNylguts but I will probably try some fluorocarbons to see if it will brighten up. It plays real well with good intonation, particularly impressive since it is factory fresh and has had no additional setup. The neck looks like it is five pieces. But it is straight, solid and is topped with a nice unbound rosewood fretboard. The tuners are non-descript open backs with pearloid buttons that look nice and hold tune. Over all I'm very pleased with this gamble of a purchase. It is an inexpensive instrument that is capable of playing real music right out of the box.

I personally wouldn't rely on names unless you want the names of the ones you should stay away from.
Every decent brand has lemons and gems, you have to either play them or buy from a decent store that does
A good setup. I've seen and heard SOME good Lunas am makalas.. good luck and happy strummings

Foooolks!
I'm just ordered online Lag U77S Soprano Uke for almost 65$ thanks to discount. The other choices were be Kala KA-S or KA- 15S(-H1) or Lanikai U21. Still I can cancel it and change my mind but I didn't want to miss the discount chance. So, what do you think guys? Do you think Lag one is better than the others or not?

mwalimu said:

Since I started bringing my uke to work (I teach and I generally play during lunch), a number of my students have been asking me about learning to play. Since the first real question is what uke to buy, I was wondering what opinions people have on decent beginners ukes for $100 or below.

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I play in a local community Ukulele club, the average age is about 60 and mostly the players haven't been playing for more than a few years. Some folk seem to be 'comfortably off' whilst others seem to have more limited funds, we all rub along happily together regardless and just have fun. There's a range of instruments there - non are painted - from a muted £30 Mahalo up to fancy stuff costing say £300. Sitting next to various people over the years the (good basic) skill of the player is the key factor, but after that the instrument that surprised me most is Kala's KA-15s. Their plain looks help to keep their cost down (currently $55 on USA Amazon) but they sound good and IMHO are both better sounding and better value than their cheaper Makala sisters - you might not need or want something else from the Kala for many years. If I could change my first purchase it would be to a Kala KA-15S onto which I'd put Martin M600 strings, as with most ukes a little work on the nut may pay dividends too. After a false start I now have a Kala KA-P Soprano which I really like for its shape and sound.

@Arnok
If it were me - I'd get a Kala, I have a KA-S & it is a good uke & will serve you well.

I recently bought a beat up old instrument for $12.50. Iit is not memorable BUT with some gluing, cleaning, tweaking and restringing it has turned into a sweet little instrument. I know I could have bought something new BUT this has been fun and it will be a gift for someone who wants a basic instrument to take to a school where she teaches. When I see the person stick with it and do well then I shall provide a better instrument or maybe find a kit and assemble it for her.

Do not despise the garage sale possibilities.

ArnoK said:

Foooolks!
I'm just ordered online Lag U77S Soprano Uke for almost 65$ thanks to discount. The other choices were be Kala KA-S or KA- 15S(-H1) or Lanikai U21. Still I can cancel it and change my mind but I didn't want to miss the discount chance. So, what do you think guys? Do you think Lag one is better than the others or not?

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I'm not a fan of Kala, but the thing with buying cheap ukuleles online is that you don't know what you'll get. Quality differences between identical models of the same manufacturer can be huge, so even with recommendation for or against specific brands you may still get a dud or miss out on a great deal. It's a gamble.

If you can't buy locally where you can try out the exact instrument you'll take home, buy from a place that does quality control. The big music retailers do not. If that's not an option either, then just buy anything that grabs your interest and hope for the best.

Get a Flight and you'll fly!

Also maybe buy locally. Not sure, but worked for me.