How Much Does It Cost To Tune A Piano?

Pianos are a staple of many homeowner’s decorative tastes. Not only are they gorgeous and add class to the room they are in, but first and foremost, pianos are powerful instruments. Just like a car needs an oil change to keep running smooth, a piano needs regular tuning to stay sounding its best.

The average cost to tune a piano is $180 and professional piano tuners charge you $100 per hour. Grand pianos take longer to tune and cost $200, on average. You can expect to spend an extra $375 for piano voicing every 5 years.

If your piano is old and large, such as an old grand piano, tuning gets more expensive because repairs may need to be done before tuning. For the most part, professionals charge $60-$70 an hour for repairs. Pianos that are regularly tuned only take 1 hour to 1 ½ hours to tune, but unevenly tuned, older pianos can take as long as 4 hours to tune.

Let’s take a deep dive into the cost of tuning a piano.

The average hourly rate that professionals charge for piano tuning is $100, but some tuners charge as little as $60 an hour. Once you get into large grand pianos or even concert pianos, however, that hourly rate can jump to $150-$200. For new pianos, it is recommended that you have 4 professional tunings done within the first year.

In that first year, those tuning sessions will be shorter, i.e. 1 ½ hours, as the piano is new. That short tuning session could cost between $100 and $250 depending on the hourly rate.

Having your piano restrung can cost between $800 and $1,200 depending on the rate of the professional. Generally, it is recommended that you restring your piano between 3 and 10 years after a fresh set of strings. If the piano is clearly falling out of pitch quickly after tunings, it could be a sign that it is time for new strings.

There are 230 strings on a piano. Those 230 strings are “hammered” by the 88 keys on the piano’s keyboard. Low-pitch bass notes, for example, only strike one string at a time. As you move from left to right, the higher bass keys begin striking two strings.

High pitch treble notes are played by key striking three notes a time. There are 18 tons of pressure on the 230 strings of a regular piano. Concert pianos, however, can have as much as 30 tons of pressure on the stretched strings. Because of that, the strings are put under a lot of stress, and as such, regular restringing is just as important as tuning.

There is no set standard for how a piano size affects tuning costs but tuning a grand typically costs more than tuning a baby grand. With that said, for some tuners, their hourly rate is the same whether it be a baby grand or a full concert piano.

Generally, however, high end piano tuners may charge $200 an hour for a grand piano as opposed to the $100 they may charge for a baby grand. Some tuners will simply apply the same hourly rate across the board. The overall cost will be more with grand pianos even with the same hourly rate because it will take slightly longer than a small one.

Piano tuning refers to bringing the strings to pitch, whereas voicing refers to how the felt-covered “hammer” hits the strings. When you push a piano key, the hammer strikes the strings creating a tone. After lots of playing or years of a piano sitting there, the felt attached to these tiny hammers becomes worn and hinders the “voicing” of the piano.

Voicing costs roughly $350-$400 on average. Without having your piano voiced, you will not be able to achieve proper tone even if the strings are fully in tune. As long as you have your piano voiced every 1-5 years along with regular tuning, you should be able to achieve your desired tone.

If your piano has not been regularly tuned or it is old, it may need a pitch raise before tuning. A pitch raise is where the tuner will raise the pitch of each string across the board. The purpose of pitch raising is to avoid having strings that were already tuned go back out of tune before the tuning is completed.

Essentially, pitch raising makes it so that there is even, and appropriate tension exerted on all of the strings during the tuning. Generally, pitch raising does not cost extra, however, it adds to the time it takes for completion so it will fluctuate based on the hourly rate of the tuner.

No matter what your budget is, you should compare hourly and fixed rates between tuners. One local piano tuner may be $60 an hour whereas another may be $150 or more an hour. The location of the tuner matters as well because it could factor into pricing, especially if they charge for mileage, for example.

Inquire if the tuner you are considering has any certification. Many professional tuners are part of the Piano Technicians Guild, which upholds standards and often indicates the tuner is qualified. And finally, check out what other customers have to say about their experience with the tuner in question.

The only real way to save money on piano tuning is by keeping it regularly tuned. If you get your piano tuned twice a year every year, the tuning process will go quicker and be easier for the tuner. No matter what, expect to pay maintenance costs at some point or another in your piano’s life as doing so will also help keep your piano from going too out of tune.

Other than that, you could always opt for an electric or digital piano over an acoustic piano. Digital and electric pianos do not require tuning at all which can save you between $120 and $600 a year or more in hiring tuners. Digital pianos typically cost between $200 and $3,000.

It is fairly common for strings to break during a tuning. Consider asking the professional beforehand whether or not you are the one who will have to pay for broken strings, or if it is covered by their hourly or flat rate.

You can tune a piano by yourself, but it involves a lot of work. Because there are 230 strings on a piano, it is very time-consuming to tune it. It can take between 1 and 4 hours to tune a piano and requires tools such as a tuning wrench and felt strips.

If your piano simply cannot hold a tuning or the tuning pins themselves are faulty, it may not be worth having it tuned. That is because those two factors are indicators that your piano is on its last leg, so to speak. Instead of spending the $60 to $300 or more on tuning, many tuners will recommend that you simply invest in a brand new piano.

Yes, you can choose to have your piano tuned to A442. However, it is not generally recommended unless you have a large concert grand piano.

It costs anywhere from $60 to $300 to tune your piano, or even more depending on the complexity. That average cost is based on the general $60-$100 per hour piano tuning cost. If a piano is well maintained, regularly tuned, and in proper humidity and temperature conditions, tuning may only take 1-1 ½ hours.

Severely out of tune or old pianos may take up to 4 hours which could cost between $240 and $400, or more, for a tuning. Make sure to tune your piano 4 times in the first year. After that, decrease it to 2 tunings a year.

The best way to keep your tuner bill low is by regularly maintaining and having your piano tuned so that it takes less time to tune. Having your piano restrung can cost up to $1,200 and should be done every 3-10 years depending on rust and condition.

If you want your piano to stay in the best shape, you should: