Best beginners guitar

Firefly for a semi-hollow body
Used Mexican Fender for a tele or strat
Agile 2500 model or 3100 model for a Les Paul

All are fantastic for their price, will age with you, and each represent different styles. It’s just up to the player as to which one best suits him or her.

If you go used, don't even bother with Reverb or CL or FB or the internet. Go to Southpaw Guitars in Houston, they specialize in left-handed guitars. You'll be able to actually play examples new and used, at many price points.

Shopping used lefty is difficult because overall LH inventory is scarce in the marketplace. Only about .5 percent of the guitars I service are lefty.

For the scarcity reason, lefties tend to hang on to great examples, so the little you see used is either entry level stuff and/or bad examples and usually overpriced.

You may not want to go super nice, but something I regretted for years was not having nicer electric equipment to start. It makes a big difference to have something decent sound wise and makes you want to pick it up more often. Used Mexican fenders are a good way to go. Don’t get a shitty amp, many suggest modelers for beginners and there are some great ones these days. Boss Katana is really cool and versatile and be played at quieter levels

Overall though, when I started I played acoustic primarily. It’s just easier to pick it up and play.15+ years later and I still play that same acoustic 90% of the time. Most songwriters write things on acoustic first. As another poster said Yamaha makes really decent stuff. In the $300-500 range you can find decent epiphones, Taylor’s and even some Martin’s. I find Sweetwater to be the best “catalog” on the internet so you can get an idea of what is available there. I would also recommend a smaller bodied guitar, it will be a little quieter and more approachable.

Electrics you really have to give some volume for them to open up and sound good. When you start, for years, you will make loud noticeable mistakes that are pronounced on electric. That’s not to say it can’t be super inspiring when you turn it up, just that you won’t always want to while homing skills and learning songs.