"Classical guitar" covers more ground than many people expect. Underneath that single label sits a whole family of different body constructions, bracing styles, and sizes, each developed to suit a particular kind of playing. This page breaks down the main types you are likely to come across and explains who each one tends to suit best.
The traditional Spanish classical guitar
Most classical guitars built today still follow the traditional Spanish design, with braces fanning outward from the center of the top in a radiating pattern. This approach has remained the dominant style for more than a century because it produces a balanced, warm, and versatile tone suited to the core classical repertoire as well as most other styles a player might explore. For beginners and intermediate players, this is usually the safest and most well understood starting point, since its sound and playing feel are predictable and extensively documented.
Double top guitars: lighter and louder
The double top is a more recent construction method in which the soundboard is built from two very thin layers of wood sandwiching a honeycomb style core material. The result is a top that is simultaneously lighter and stiffer than a traditional single piece top. In practical terms, this allows the instrument to project significantly more volume in a large space, such as a concert hall, without a major sacrifice in tonal quality. Double top guitars tend to attract performing musicians in particular, since volume and projection matter a great deal on stage.
Lattice bracing: a different kind of projection
Lattice bracing is another modern alternative to the traditional fan pattern, arranging the support struts in a crisscross grid, often using thinner, carbon fiber reinforced strips. This produces a different sound and projection profile than the traditional design: the tone is often described as more even across the fingerboard and able to carry over longer distances. Guitars built with lattice bracing are frequently chosen for similar reasons as double top instruments, when a player's priority is maximum volume and carrying power.
The flamenco guitar
A flamenco guitar differs from a classical guitar in both construction and purpose. It is typically built lighter than a classical instrument, often with thinner plates and an overall lighter build. Tonally, a flamenco guitar produces a brighter, more percussive sound that cuts through fast rhythmic patterns and percussive techniques such as the golpe tap. Many traditional flamenco guitars use cypress for the back and sides instead of rosewood, since cypress is lighter and supports the brighter, faster responding sound that flamenco playing calls for. A flamenco guitar suits players focused specifically on flamenco style, while classical repertoire players generally gravitate toward the more traditional classical construction.
The 10 string guitar
Some players and builders have extended the standard six string classical guitar with four extra bass strings, creating what is known as a 10 string guitar, or decacorde. The added strings extend the instrument's range downward and open up chord voicings and resonance effects that are not possible on a standard six string instrument. This is a more specialized instrument that requires the player to adjust to a wider neck and a more complex string layout. We cover the 10 string guitar in more detail in a separate article.
Guitars for children: smaller proportions
For younger players, classical guitars are built in several reduced size categories, most commonly labeled 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, and 7/8 of a full size instrument. In these smaller models, the scale length, neck width, and overall body proportions are all scaled down together so the instrument fits a child's hands and body comfortably. Choosing the right size matters, since an instrument that is too large can make practicing frustrating and can negatively affect playing posture over time.
Where to go next
If you are considering a new handmade instrument, start with our guide to choosing a new classical guitar. Curious about the extended range instrument mentioned above? Read more in our article on the 10 string guitar. For details on how these instruments are actually built, see our page on guitar construction. Two examples of typical body constructions are also covered in more detail on classical guitar model 1 and classical guitar model 2.
