Top 10 Best Guitar Pickups

Strings? Sure. Frets? Necessary. But the secret sauce sitting between your fingers and your amp? That's the pickup. That little block of tech under your strings does more heavy lifting than your tonewood, your cable, or your weekend practice routine.

You want bite? Smooth warmth? Growl that could scare your neighbor's dog? It's all in the pickup. Single coils snarl with clarity. Humbuckers punch with a velvet glove. Actives scream like a banshee after coffee. Your choice of pickup can make a $200 axe sound like a boutique beast or turn a premium guitar into a confused, mid-heavy mess.

This list is your chance to decide which brands and models have truly earned their spot in your signal chain. Are you all about that vintage glassy tone? Maybe you want something modern that chugs tighter than a Swiss train schedule. Whatever you play, whether it's shred, jazz, doom, or funk, cast your votes for the pickups that bring your sound to life.

1. Seymour Duncan Pickups

   I have a Charvel San Dimas with a JB Trembucker in the bridge and a Duncan '59 in the neck. Between these two pickups and adjusting the volume correctly, I can get just about every tone needed for rock, metal, blues, or even classical - Beethoven converted to guitar.

   For rock tones, I can go from Eddie Van Halen to Jimmy Page. Cleaner sounds? Just roll down the volume, and I can get tones like David Gilmour or even George Harrison. Raising the volume and using both pickups gives me a Slash-like tone. With the neck pickup and volume down a little, it's almost like a single-coil pickup tone but with more sustain. The bridge pickup can do almost the same, and with the JB Trembucker, it's great for shredding.

   And these aren't even Seymour Duncan custom shop pickups! They cost about $72 each and come standard on many reasonably priced guitars.

2. EMG Pickups

   Customer service is a big deal to me. When all I wanted was gold pole pieces for a Crunch Lab and Liquifire set, DiMarzio said it would take 8 to 10 weeks! I canceled that order.

   I called up EMG and told them I wanted a custom color, and it was here in a week! Built them right then and there.

   Not only that, but EMGs came stock on a lot of my guitars, and they just have this "roar." They sound great live and on recordings. I also have love for Seymour Duncan!

   I'm really torn between EMG and SD, but EMG has a clarity to them because they are active, and SD active pickups just aren't as good. As a whole, I think SD is better, but I'm a metal guy, and these pickups give fantastic sound even through tons of distortion and effects.

   They sound really nice clean as well as with crazy gain. Overall, my favorite pickup combos are the EMG 85/81 and the SD 59/JB.

3. Bare Knuckle Pickups

   There's a reason they're hard to find. They don't release them until they're perfect. Great pickup company, never heard a poor one.

   Also, another reason they don't come stock in many guitars. You gotta pay for the top boutique quality, but that's what you get out of Bareknuckles.

   Best pickup ever - a bit pricey, but worth every penny. Puts every other previously named brand to shame aside from EMG, who, as everybody knows, is mostly an active-pickup maker.

   My Les Pauls and my '73 SG sound as they should with these, with unrivaled note definition and harmonics.

4. DiMarzio Pickups

   I have a pair of D-Activators in my SG Mahogany neck-through, and they are amazing. Max the volume and tone on the bridge, and you'll cut through any mix. Roll the tone back, and you get a dark sound that is still defined.

   Go to the neck, and if you keep the tone down, you can get a wicked overdriven sound or a subtle clean. Roll the neck's tone up, and you get a defined cutting lead tone and a glassy clean. Rolling the volume back cleans up even on high gain, and with the volume off, you can achieve the twang bang even!

   On a 2 Volume 2 Tone setup, there aren't many sounds I can't achieve. Very versatile. The best thing I ever did to a guitar was add these pickups.

5. Lindy Fralin Pickups

   I just discovered these pickups when another guy was playing his Strat through my old Fender amp. He has the 43 Steel Pole pickups, which are really hot. We ended up switching my Strat and his. Mine has DiMarzio 409/404/403 single coil humbuckers.

   I ordered a set of the Fralin pickups the next day. This guy also says the capacitor on the tone circuit of the guitar can be switched to an old-style rolled copper one, which makes a significant difference and takes out harshness. FYI.

   Lindy Fralin has the best sounding boutique pickups I've heard, from humbuckers to single coils. Very high-quality stuff.

6. Gibson Pickups

   P90s are my favorite pickups. There are some better P90s than Gibson makes out there, but not many and not significant improvements. Gibson does pickups well, especially at their price point compared to other brands.

   I always find it funny when someone posts a guitar for sale with "upgraded" pickups that are Duncans. At best, they're a sideways move from Gibson to give different tones. Definitely not a better pickup.

   The perfect balance between the fat humbucker and the skinny-sounding average single-coil. Enough warmth to soothe listeners' ears and crispness to get that chill that creeps your forearm hair, whether in clean or overdriven levels of sound.

   It was love at first listening.

7. Lollar Pickups

   Lollar's CC pickup is the exact replica of the pickup that guitar legend Charlie Christian used in his Gibson ES-150 in 1936. It is the best neck pickup for Telecaster-type guitars, in my humble opinion. I highly recommend them.

   The Charlie Christian pickup is highly warm and dynamic. It's not too high or too low in frequency, and it gives off a horn-like resonance. These are the pickups of the future.

   The Firebird pickup is the best I've ever heard. It sings in the neck position, and every touch you make will change your tone, but don't think it can't scream in the bridge.

8. Ron Ellis Pickups

   I put a set in my Franken-Strat. Unlike any Strat I've ever heard. Very tight bass, smooth mids, and highs. Cello-like sound. Lots of air around the notes. Pricey but worth it to me.

9. Bill Lawrence Pickups

   I was always iffy about Teles. The neck pickups always seemed a little muddy. The bridge was so bright it hurt my head. Then I got a set of Keystones, and now I love my Tele. Even a friend who is strictly a humbucker fan was surprised by how much he liked both pickups.

   Bill Lawrence, not even in the top ten? Are you kidding me? They give the best tight and compressed tones ever and are the most versatile, from cleans to high gains. They are not as well known as Seymour Duncans, but they definitely deserve to be way higher than this.

   Vote for them!

10. Ibanez Pickups

    A very good sound. I have an RX350 with AH1-AS1-AH2 pups, and it sounds great. A little noisy, but nobody is perfect. Good ones!

The Newcomers
11. ?

    Coils Boutique Pickups

12. ?

    Darkmoon Pickups

    Great custom pickup company based in New York. They will make you virtually anything that has to do with pickups and wiring. I've ordered a second HSH pickguard with a crazy super switch and three push-pull pots configuration, and it was EXACTLY what I described to the tech.

    Another cool thing about them is that they make real mother-of-pearl inlays that are absolutely gorgeous. I bought the abalone ones after seeing them in a Darrell Braun video on YouTube. Considering the handcrafted quality, they keep their prices pretty low and always have some promotional discount program happening.

    These guys definitely deserve a mention and credit.

The Contenders

13. Fender Pickups

    Fender has that special clean sound typified by Hank Marvin. Excellent tone and twang for a clean sound. Any pickup can be used when playing distortion, but it needs something better for a clean sound.

    Fender makes those pickups.

    Fender Custom Shop guitars remain the most authentic-sounding reissues you can find. If you want real Fender tones, they still do it as well or better than anyone.

    All my Fenders have the factory pickups. My '88 Tele '52 R.I. sounds killer. My '79 Strat with my old Super and a Tube Screamer is God's Land.

14. Q-Tuner Pickups

    They don't add or subtract anything from what your guitar normally sounds like. Best example: put your ear up to the body of your guitar and play, that's what they're gonna sound like. Personally, I think they're a brilliant product!

    The neck Q-tuner is incredible. So bright, percussive, and clear. The amount of articulation is absolutely unreal. It's like a parody of the best bits of various neck humbuckers and single coils all at once.

    Q-tuners are the world's first guitar and bass pickups powered by neodymium magnets. The ultimate Hi-Fi sound.

15. Lace Pickups

    Lace should be way higher on this list! Their pickups sound fantastic, come in a variety of styles, and are affordable. Guitarists who use these awesome pickups include guys from Mastodon, High on Fire, Red Fang, King Crimson, Dimmu Borgir, EYEHATEGOD, Neurosis, and many more. Enough said.

    Red, Silver, and Blue set in my Strat. Compare the clarity and tone head-to-head with any pickups. And for a good price too. Boom.

    Lace Sensors in particular are very close to the original gray-bottom Stratocaster pickup sounds, only enhanced.

16. Harmonic Design Pickups

    These pickups are made by guys from Bakersfield, CA, so naturally, they are going to be better than everything else out there. There needs to be just two spots on this list: the best (Harmonic Design) and the rest (SD, DiMarzio, EMG, etc.).

    You think you know, but you have no idea!

17. Rockfield Pickups

    I had a set of Rockfield Fat Ass in a Dean V. The quality of the tones was pretty close to what was coming out of a 1988 Gibson SG with an EMG 81/85 active set. They are all I use now.

    These get a very meaty sound and seem to be well-constructed, with even a bit of felt dampening on the rear of them.

18. Häussel Pickups

19. Golden Age Pickups

    The most underrated Strat pickup on the net. I've played Fenders, Duncans, and DiMarzios, and now I love playing the overwound Golden Age single coils at half the price. I bought them from Stewart-McDonald.

20. Kinman Pickups

    Kinman's products, attention to detail, and customer service are awesome. The net effect is you get great, authentic tone with no noise. I have several sets in different Stratocasters: the "Scoop," Impersonator 56's, and Impersonator 54's.

    The tone is awesome and there is no noise even at concert volumes. These are the only pickups I would ever use at this point. Also, I think the K9 harness they make for the Strat is underappreciated. It provides a unique setup of pickup combinations and tones. You can dispense with soldering and assemble it in about 10 minutes onto a Strat pickguard.

    The pots are smooth and the switch is silent between settings with no pop. I have a fairly large Strat collection, and I am working my way through outfitting all of them with Kinman setups. To Kinman: Keep up the great work, craftsmanship, and dedication to your art. Much appreciated!

21. Kent Armstrong Pickups

    Great pickups for jazz! The adjustable pole PAF0 is amazing. You have the custom option as well! Just contact Kent. He is a very nice person. Mine is a custom-built PAF0 floater in a Heritage Golden Eagle hollowbody with the stock cover.

22. Wolfetone Pickups

    Had a couple of sets, and for vintage PAF tones, they're a solid choice. Definitely recommend.

    These blow my Seymour Duncan JBs away, and those are really good pickups as well.

    How these are at 27 is beyond me. Listen for yourself!

23. Tesla Pickups

    The best ever, I know, for the powerful combination between dynamic actions.

    Excellent pickups, good value too!

    Best balance. Very well-priced!

24. Fishman Pickups

    25?! What?! Fishman sounds way better than most of the other names here, especially their Fluence Classic set. Unlike other brands, you never have to sacrifice distortion for tone and color, and vice versa. The Fluence Classic by Fishman are the only pickups I've heard that truly have and give anything.

    Mark my words, we will see them start to climb on lists like this, as they are becoming more and more popular. Vote up, people!

    Their Fluence set for Telecasters is awesome. Greg Koch can't be wrong.

25. Tom Anderson Pickups

    Tom Anderson all the way. I have them in my Strat, and they sound the best out of the 10 or so electrics I own.

    I have two T.A. split coils in a 9.8 lbs Mexican Tele, and they are stellar! I get a wide variation in tones using the pickup switch and split coil switches. It's allowed me to carry only the Tele as my electric on gigs.

26. Warman Pickups

    The 12 Gauge is like a Seymour Duncan with less bass and more crunch, both for $60! Warblades are epic for death metal. GIVE THEM A GO!

27. JW Guitars Pickups

    The pickups that these guys have are incredible! They were actually designed and built exclusively by JW, and there are no other pickups out there like them.

    I highly recommend visiting their website. You really should check out their other products too. I fell in love with their relic guitars and found awesome reviews on their pedals.

    I heard that they are coming out with another new product too. I can't wait to see it released!

    These guys are not wizards - they are scientists! Their pickups are extraordinarily developed and deliver some of the most precise and articulate tonal options out there!

    Buy one of their guitars and get the expression switch with it. Next thing you know, you have a Telecaster that can sound like a Les Paul or a Les Paul that can sound like a Strat - and so on!

    The best part is they are all passive. Love my JW Damsel!