Best ES Style Guitars Made In China in 2024
Here are the top ES style guitars made in China . So you can expect lower build quality when compared to others made in Korea, Japan or the United States. Guitars made in this country are meant for mass production, which translates into less attention to detail and quality control. This doesn't mean the product is made poorly at all. Chinese products have a bad reputation since long ago, but they've definitely improved a lot the last few years.
After comparing the 2000+ guitars in our database, these are the best scoring ones with these characteristics. You can use our filters to the left to narrow down these results, or click on "Compare" to get a deep comparison between them. Our automated scoring system takes into account the ratings from ours users who own the guitar, and dozens of parameters to determine the build quality, playability, pickups quality, value for money, and more.
There are affiliate links on this page that may earn us a commission if you purchase after clicking. We are members of the Amazon Associates Program, and many others. However, we compare each guitar against each other under the same parameters, so this doesn't influence our scoring.
After comparing the 2000+ guitars in our database, these are the best scoring ones with these characteristics. You can use our filters to the left to narrow down these results, or click on "Compare" to get a deep comparison between them. Our automated scoring system takes into account the ratings from ours users who own the guitar, and dozens of parameters to determine the build quality, playability, pickups quality, value for money, and more.
There are affiliate links on this page that may earn us a commission if you purchase after clicking. We are members of the Amazon Associates Program, and many others. However, we compare each guitar against each other under the same parameters, so this doesn't influence our scoring.
1. Epiphone Marty Schwartz ES-335
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What our users think
- Pickups noise: Noiseless (10 votes)
- Pickups power: Hot (6 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Epiphone Marty Schwartz ES-335
Epiphone Marty Schwartz ES-335
- Locking Tuners
- Expensive Wood
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Coil Split, Phase Out Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- Made in China
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
2. Gretsch G5622T Electromatic
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What our users think
- Neck profile shape: C (8 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Fast (12 votes)
- Pickups noise: Noiseless (2 votes)
- Pickups power: Clean (1 vote)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Gretsch G5622T Electromatic
Gretsch G5622T Electromatic
- NuBone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Expensive Woods
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
3. Harley Benton HB-35Plus
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What our users think
- Neck access to high frets: Normal (1 vote)
- Fret edges: Slightly sharp (1 vote)
- Tuning stability: Holds tune well (2 votes)
- Weight: Slightly heavy (2 votes)
- Neck profile shape: C (20 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (17 votes)
- Pickups noise: Noiseless (3 votes)
- Pickups power: Slightly Hot (2 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Harley Benton HB-35Plus
Harley Benton HB-35Plus
- Top Brand Pickups
- Coil Split Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Expensive Woods
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
4. Epiphone Dave Grohl DG-335
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What our users think
- Neck access to high frets: Easy (1 vote)
- Fret edges: Slightly sharp (1 vote)
- Tuning stability: Holds tune well (1 vote)
- Weight: Lightweight (1 vote)
- Neck profile shape: C (1 vote)
- Neck speed (thickness): Slightly chunky (1 vote)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Epiphone Dave Grohl DG-335
Epiphone Dave Grohl DG-335
- Expensive Wood
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
Strengths & Weaknesses
Gretsch G5422TG Electromatic Classic
Gretsch G5422TG Electromatic Classic
- NuBone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Expensive Woods
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
Strengths & Weaknesses
Gretsch G5422G-12 Electromatic Classic
Gretsch G5422G-12 Electromatic Classic
- NuBone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Expensive Woods
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
7. Gretsch G5622 Electromatic
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What our users think
- Neck profile shape: C (8 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Fast (12 votes)
- Pickups noise: Noiseless (2 votes)
- Pickups power: Clean (1 vote)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Gretsch G5622 Electromatic
Gretsch G5622 Electromatic
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Expensive Woods
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
8. Epiphone Joe Bonamassa 1962 ES-335
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What our users think
- Neck access to high frets: Easy (1 vote)
- Fret edges: Smooth (1 vote)
- Tuning stability: Holds tune well (1 vote)
- Weight: Slightly heavy (1 vote)
- Neck profile shape: C (5 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (4 votes)
- Pickups noise: Slightly Noisy (4 votes)
- Pickups power: Slightly Hot (2 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Epiphone Joe Bonamassa 1962 ES-335
Epiphone Joe Bonamassa 1962 ES-335
- Expensive Wood
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
9. Gretsch G5422TG Electromatic
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What our users think
- Neck access to high frets: Easy (1 vote)
- Fret edges: Smooth (1 vote)
- Tuning stability: Not bad (1 vote)
- Weight: Very lightweight (1 vote)
- Neck profile shape: C (5 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (7 votes)
- Pickups noise: Noiseless (2 votes)
- Pickups power: Slightly Hot (2 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Gretsch G5422TG Electromatic
Gretsch G5422TG Electromatic
- Expensive Wood
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
10. Epiphone B.B. King Lucille
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What our users think
- Neck profile shape: C (5 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (4 votes)
- Pickups noise: Noiseless (10 votes)
- Pickups power: Hot (6 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Epiphone B.B. King Lucille
Epiphone B.B. King Lucille
- Expensive Wood
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Varitone Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock