10 Best FREE Guitar VST Plugins; Updated 2023!

Last updated on December 31st, 2023 at 06:30 pm

Up until very recently, guitar plugins didn’t sound realistic at all and had a plastic- and very unnatural feel to them, especially the higher notes which always sounded completely fake.

Nowadays, there’s some companies that develop great-sounding guitar simulations, although most of them may require some tweaking here and there to actually sound realistic, and best of all, a couple of these plugins are free!

I decided to test as many out as possible, so you don’t have to!

Here are the results:

The Best FREE Guitar Plugins are;

Free Guitar VSTs

Let’s kick things off with my absolute favorite guitar simulation out there (it even beats a lot of the premium ones): Ample Guitar M Lite II.

Note: If you like, you can check another post I wrote about strictly free acoustic Guitar VSTs right here.

Ample Guitar M Lite II

The best free acoustic guitar simulation Plugin.

Ample Guitar M Lite II is a free acoustic guitar simulation, or virtual instrument, that has a very realistic feel to it, even when compared to more expensive pieces of software and it’s by far my favorite acoustic guitar VST.

It sounds absolutely fantastic, while also giving you the option to add some effects. You can even double the guitar with the simple press of a button, which will add width and body to the sound.

You can simply download some MIDI files and play them using Guitar M Lite II, and while you may need to tweak a couple settings to get it to sound more realistic, it’s definitely far easier to achieve than with most other acoustic guitar simulation software.

By the way, you can also download a free bass simulation plugin on their site as well which sounds terrific, make sure to try it out as well.

Check it out here: Ample Guitar M Lite.

It’s also worth checking out Acou6tics, a premium Guitar Simulation VST, that definitely outperforms Ample Guitar M Lite in every aspect, however, it’s not free. Still, if you need the most realistic acoustic guitar sound, check out Acou6tics.

While we are still on the topic of acoustic guitar simulations, I just found out about another one, tried it, and decided to add it to the list. I’m talking about Monster Guitar.

Monster Guitar

Good for laying down chord progressions fast

Moster Guitar is a very simple and straight forward guitar plugin that comes with over 1Gb of samples.

When looking at the interface you can see that it has a chord section which (depending on the preset you’re using it may not have this functionality) lets you play a single note on your MIDI keyboard and Monster Guitar will play the entire chord, and the key will depend on the note you select in the “Key” section.

It offers the typical ADSR controls, as well as Reverb, and High- and Low-pass filters.

One note about the filters: Go easy on them since they can completely remove all of the frequency content if you turn them up all the way, resulting in no sound.

Most of the presets sound a bit unnatural, but the one you can see in the image above is absolutely fantastic since it’s quite realistic, and it even lets you choose between different strumming options.

Check it out here: Monster Guitar.

Shreddage Stratus Free

Best Stratocaster simulation VST (excellent for metal).

Shreddage stratus is a simulation of a Fender Stratocaster that you can get for completely free! As far as the sound quality goes, it’s ultra-realistic and if you know how to use this kind of software properly, you should be able to create some very real-like guitar tracks with it.

It’s not the simplest VST to learn since it’s got so many different parameters you can adjust, such as instant multitracking which lets you double the guitars and pans them right and left for a thicker sound, as well as bite, global offset (cuts off some of the attack), and more.

One fantastic feature is the “Shred” settings under the performance tab which let you adjust how much of the pick’s sound you want to hear, and this is really useful when creating a sweeping arpeggio lick where the picking sounds aren’t as evident as when you’re alternate picking.

Listen to it here;

If you’re looking for a realistic Stratocaster sound, then make sure to grab this awesome freebie.

Check it out here: Shreddage Stratus.

Spitfire LABS Guitars

Multiple sampled guitars with a very realistic sound.

I mention the LABS collection by Spitfire on a lot of my posts because of how great all the instruments they have sound and because it’s mind blowing that they are giving them away for free.

These are sampled recordings or Electric Guitar, Lap Steel, Peel Guitar, Mandolin, Guitar Harmonics, and even a Charango, recorded by professional players, and they are probably some of the more realistic guitar sound you can get, even when compared to paid plugins.

All of these plugins are available in VST2, VST3, AAX and AU format which means that they will work in any DAW and Operating system.

Check it out here: Spitfire LABS Guitars.

Vinyl Guitar

Acoustic and Nylon Guitar Simulation.

Vinyl guitar was created with the intention of making a realistic-sounding Lo-Fi and Trap friendly guitar sound, and they achieved this by sampling it twice: Once to record the actual guitar, and then they resampled it on an actual vinyl record player to make it sound more LoFi and realistic.

It comes in VST and AU formats, so it should work on most Operating systems, the UI is extremely clean and easy to use since it doesn’t have too many bells and whistles, which is both a pro and a con: Pro because it’s simple to use, con because you don’t get as many tools to shape the sound and getting it to sound realistic will take some effort.

To make it sound more realistic, however, they include fret noise, pick noise and string buzz control, reverb, and controls such as Attack and release.

Lastly, you can choose between Acoustic and Nylon guitar strings, and even though it doesn’t really sound just like a real guitar would, it definitely has that LoFi vibe that a lot of Trap musicians are looking for.

Check it out here: Vinyl Guitar.

Haunted Guitar Lite

Dark-sounding Stratocaster (Ideal for horror movies & games)

Here’s another Stratocaster simulation that was designed to sound a bit spooky, so if you’re looking for a guitar simulation that is supposed to sound scary and dark, this one might be just for you.

You can add a hissing background noise (kind of what you hear in scary movies), select different presets such as Ancient Void, Asylum, Sinister, and more.

It’s got a total of 224 samples, ADSR, HP/LP Filters, a couple of effects, and more, plus the UI looks absolutely fantastic (Although a bit dated and grainy, but this just adds to the creepiness)!

If you’re looking to compose a track for a horror film without having to spend a dime, Haunted Guitar Lite will definitely come in handy.

It’s worth noting that, on it’s own it doesn’t seem to sound all that great, but once you add some ambience to it, that’s when it really starts sounding like you would expect.

Oh, you can also get the premium version for about $35!

Check it out here: Haunted Guitar Lite.

Solaris GTR Lite

Great for Lo-Fi

Solaris GTR Lite has been especially designed for Lo-Fi productions and for adding ambience to productions.

Compared to most other free virtual instruments on this list, this one features a ton of different modules to control the way it sounds.

For example:

• Distortion.
• Reverb.
• Chorus.
• LFO Modulation.
• Delay.

Of course, it offers volume, panning, and tune control, and it also provides you with access to High- and Low-pass filters, and ADSR.

It’s also worth noting that it’s 100% royalty free, which means that you can use it in commercial productions without ever having to pay a dime for it.

Speaking of spending money, Quiet Music (the manufacturer) also offers a full version of the Solaris GTR that costs $30.

Check it out here: Solaris GTR Lite.

Guitar Harmonics Essential

Acoustic Guitar Harmonics that sound like a Harp.

This wonderful freebie was created by Cinematique Instruments and it’s available in VST 3, AAX and AU formats, which means that it should work on basically any OS out there.

As you can see from the name, it’s a plugin that focuses on the sound of guitar harmonics to create more of an angelic or harp-like vibe, and I find the plugin to be extremely good-sounding on its own and I definitely see it as a very viable tool for creating music for games, videos, etc.

Guitar Harmonics Essential is an instrument for Steinberg’s HALion sampler, but don’t worry, you don’t need to purchase Cubase to get it since it works in any DAW.

Last but not least, it offers some tone shaping options, such as tone, attack and decay, and you also have access to delay and reverb settings.

Check it out here: Guitar Harmonics Essential.

Spicy Guitars by Keolab

Acoustic Guitar Synthesizer with chord detection.

Spicy Guitar is a free physically modeled acoustic guitar synthesizer that features a chord detection system, which allows you to play chords easily, adding that strumming sound that you hear when playing a real guitar, which just adds to the overall realism.

As soon as you play three or more notes, the automatic chord detection system kicks in and strums the chord.

You can select between 9 different guitars and two different string types, and when playing the notes on a keyboard, the plugin will detect those notes and show them on the virtual fretboard.

You can switch between legato and sustain, adjust palm mutes and harmonics (you can play harmonics by holding down a key on your keyboard), as well as the vibrato.

Lastly, you can change the tone and add reverb!

Check it out here: Spicy Guitar.

Classic.GTR Lite

Basic Classic Guitar Simulation (Retro sound).

Classic.Gtr Lite is a free multi-sampled classical guitar plugin for Windows and Mac available in VST/VST3/AU formats, and the guitar was recorded and then processed by various effects to give its tonal characteristics (It’s got a total of 301 samples).

The way it sounds reminds me a lot of the Playstation games of the early 2000’s, which to me is a bit nostalgic but it’s also a kind of sound that I found absolutely fantastic for just that: Games.

This plugin mainly focuses on simplicity; You can scroll through the 7 different presets or create your own sound, and all of the tone shaping options are boiled down to modulation settings, an amp envelope and High- and Low-pass filters.

Check it out here: Classic.GTR Lite.

Conclusion & Recommendation

Although all of the plugins on this list have their place in a production, I highly recommend Guitar M Lite II. It’s a beast of a plugin.

Not only does it sound great, but it also offers a ton of features and is really easy to use.

Other than that, Haunted Guitar Lite is quite unique and is the only plugin that lets you create creepy and scary atmospheres in seconds.

Frequently Asked Questions