How to put on a guitar strap and wear it at the right height
Put the strap on the tail button first, then the neck button, then set the length so the guitar sits where your fretting hand wants it. That is the whole job on a guitar or bass with two strap buttons, and it takes about two minutes.
The two minute version
- Rest the guitar on your knee or on a bed so it cannot fall while your hands are busy.
- Push the tail button through the hole in one end of the strap. The tail button is the one at the bottom edge of the body, opposite the neck.
- Find the second button. On a Stratocaster, an SG and most other double cutaway solid bodies it sits on the upper horn. On a Telecaster, a Les Paul or another single cutaway it sits on the side of the upper bout near the neck joint, and on many acoustics and archtops it is screwed into the heel of the neck.
- Push that button through the hole in the other end of the strap.
- Stand up with the strap over your shoulder and look at where the guitar has landed.
- Take it off, move the tail end to a different slot or hole, and put it back on. Two or three goes and it is set.
What we sell: one strap, the Soldier double-layer cowhide strap, in black, dark brown, tan or white. Suede-finish back, length set through a row of slots on the tail. £54.95 with free UK delivery.
Start at the tail button
The end you fit second is the end you fight with while the guitar is hanging, so fit the tail end first and leave the guitar supported. With one end on, the body can sit on your thigh or flat on a bed while you work the second hole over the neck button with both hands. Do it in the other order and the guitar swings from the neck button while you push, which is how headstocks find door frames.
On an acoustic-electric the tail button is usually the output jack as well, a metal barrel screwed into the end block, and the strap goes over it the same way. If your guitar has a tail button and nothing at the neck end, you have the one button case instead, and attaching a strap to an acoustic covers the lace that solves that.
Getting a stiff new strap over the button
A hole in new leather has never been stretched, and a strap button has a lip wider than its shaft, so the first fitting is always the tight one. Work it, do not yank it. Hook one edge of the hole over the lip of the button, then roll the leather around the rim a little at a time until the rest drops over. Holding the strap end in your hands for a minute first helps, because warm leather gives and cold leather does not.
The risky moment is pulling hard on the strap with one hand while the other hand is the only thing holding the neck, so keep the body supported and put both hands on the strap. A new leather strap is stiff at the button end for the first week or two, which is normal, and it is the one place on a strap where a little warmth and patience beats force.
Setting the height: let your fretting hand decide
Your picking hand adapts to almost any height, because it rests on the body of the guitar. Your fretting hand does not. Set the strap, stand up, then play a chord at the first fret and a bend up at the twelfth. If your fretting wrist has to fold sharply to get around the neck down at the first fret, the guitar is too low for you. If your forearm is lifted and your shoulder is doing work, it is too high.
Plenty of players settle with the guitar somewhere between the belt and the hip, and the height that works is the one your fretting hand stops complaining about. If you would rather measure it than guess, how long a guitar strap should be gives you the tape measure method, button to button over the shoulder.
Sitting and standing are two different lengths
Seated, the guitar rests on your thigh and the strap carries nothing. Standing, the strap carries all of it and the guitar hangs a few inches lower. That is why a guitar that felt right on the sofa feels wrong at a rehearsal.
Set the height standing, since standing is the case the strap exists for. Sit down with the same setting and the strap goes slack while the guitar rides higher on your thigh, which is normal and is not worth re-adjusting unless you play most of a set sitting down.
Which way round the strap goes
The adjustable end goes to the tail button. Both ends of most straps will physically fit either button, so nothing breaks if you swap them, but with the adjustment at the tail the leftover tail hangs down by the body where it is out of the way. Put it at the neck end and the loose leather sits under your fretting arm.
The other half of the question is which face goes up. On a leather strap with a suede or rough side, the rough side goes against your shirt, where it grips, and the finished side faces out, where the stitching and any logo are meant to be seen. On a strap that is the same on both faces it makes no difference at all.
When the strap will not go over the button
Check the button first. A strap button whose screw has backed out sits proud and catches, and a quarter turn with a Phillips screwdriver often fixes it. Button heads vary by pattern, from about 12 mm across on a Gibson style button to about 14 mm on a Fender vintage style one, going by the parts suppliers' own measurements, so a hole that slips onto one guitar can be a genuine mismatch on another rather than a stiff strap.
If the hole is genuinely too small for the button, a round leather punch opens it cleanly, and since most strap holes are about 8 mm while those button heads run wider, a punch of about 9 to 10 mm is the size to reach for. A knife or a pair of scissors makes a slit that keeps tearing, so it is worth doing properly or not at all. The other route is strap locks, which replace the button with a stud the strap clips onto, and the strap lock guide covers when they are worth fitting. We do not sell them. Most music shops do, and the main brands are sold as a direct replacement for a standard strap button, though the screw in the box is not always the same gauge as the one already in your guitar.
Where our strap fits
The Soldier double-layer cowhide strap has solid leather ends with one button hole in each, so it goes on any guitar or bass with two strap buttons, using the same routine above. The length is set through a row of slots on the tail, like a belt, so changing the height means moving one slot rather than undoing anything. It is £54.95 and delivery inside the UK is free.
Two things we cannot tell you. Soldier has not confirmed the width or how far the strap adjusts, we asked on 14 September 2026, and until they answer neither figure appears on this site, so if an exact number is what decides your order the 30-day return covers you either way and we refund the return postage. And on an acoustic with a tail button and no neck button, this strap is not the answer on its own. You can see the ends and the row of slots on the product page.
Questions
Which way round does a guitar strap go?
The adjustable end goes to the tail button, so the spare length hangs down by the body instead of sitting under your fretting arm. If the strap has a suede or rough back, that face goes against your shirt and the finished face points out.
How high should I wear my guitar strap?
High enough that your fretting wrist does not have to fold sharply to reach the first fret. Plenty of players settle with the guitar somewhere between the belt and the hip, and the height that works is the one your fretting hand stops complaining about.
How do you attach a guitar strap?
Push the tail button through the hole in one end of the strap, then the neck button through the hole in the other end. Keep the guitar resting on your knee or on a bed while you do the second one, because that is the end that takes the force on a new strap.
Should a guitar strap be tight?
Snug on the button, not tight over your shoulder. The hole should hold the button without being forced on, and the strap should be short enough that the guitar stays where you set it when you take your hands off it.