Hobbies Playing Music A Beginner's Guide to the Guitar Capo Share PINTEREST Email Print Wesley Hitt / Getty Images Playing Music Playing Guitar Basics Tutorials Tab, Chords & Lyrics Music Education Playing Piano Home Recording By Dan Cross Dan Cross is a professional guitarist and former private instructor who has experience teaching and playing various styles of music. our editorial process Dan Cross Updated October 27, 2017 A capo is a small tool that clamps a barre across the strings of the guitar (the actual fret clamped is up to the guitarist) effectively raising the pitch of the instrument. Capos are often used by guitarists to play songs in different keys. In situations where singers prefer to sing in G♭ or E♭, a guitarist can use a capo to allow for this, while still playing basic chords in open position. If you play guitar, you should own a capo, no matter what style of music you play. Capos aren't just for beginner acoustic guitarists - blues legend Albert Collins routinely used a capo on his Telecaster. How to Use a Capo attach the capo as close to the metal fret as possible without causing buzzes when you hit the stringsmake sure the capo is tight enough that all open strings ring clearlythe capo-ed fret becomes your new nut Capo Cautions make sure capo doesn't bend your strings when you clamp it on, as this will make your guitar sound out of tunecapos can get in the way of your fretting hand - check to be sure whatever capo you choose doesn't interfere with your techniquepay close attention to the points of contact between the capo and the guitar - you don't want your fretboard scratched There are several types of capos, each of which has relative strengths and weaknesses. The following pages provide a critical look at each type of guitar capo. 01 of 03 The Spring Loaded Capo The Dunlop Trigger Capo is a popular spring loaded style capo. The spring loaded capo utilizes a spring-controlled handle that enables you to add or remove the capo quickly. Pros of the spring loaded capo: can add or remove capo quickly - often mid-songcapo can be clamped or unclamped with one handnot expensive Cons of the spring loaded capo: the amount of pressure applied to strings is not adjustablemore prone to string bendingbulky 02 of 03 The C-Clamp Capo The Shubb c-clamp capos are some of the most widely used and respected capos available. A c-clamp capo requires manually turning a screw which causes the capo to apply pressure to the guitar strings. Pros of the c-clamp capo: probably the most sturdy and reliable type of capoless tendency to put the guitar out of tunemore compact - less likely to interfere with guitarist technique Cons of the c-clamp capo: more finicky to clamp/unclamp than the spring-loaded caposcosts a couple bucks more than the cheapest capos 03 of 03 The Toggle Capo The Dunlop Pro Curved capo is one of the more popular toggle capos. A toggle capo is a very lightweight piece of hardware, which uses a notched mechanism for tightening the capo onto the guitar strings. The toggle capos are cheap enough that you can afford to buy a few in case you lose one. Pros of the toggle capo: very cheap to buy - usually just a few dollarssmall size won't impede your fretting hand Cons of the toggle capo: many are flimsytightening mechanism has a tendency to pull strings out of tune