Boston GP-178 Price: What the Steinway-Designed Grand Costs Used
The Boston GP-178 is a five-foot-ten grand designed by Steinway and built by Kawai. It sits in a sweet spot of size and price, and the used market reflects it.
By Joey Bouza, Founder, US Piano Connection · Updated October 19, 2026
Boston is the brand Steinway created in the early 1990s for buyers who wanted a Steinway-designed piano at a lower price. The pianos are designed by Steinway and built in Japan by Kawai to Steinway's specifications, then sold through Steinway dealers. The GP-178 is the five-foot-ten grand in that line, big enough for a serious bass and small enough for a living room, which makes it one of the most searched Boston models. This guide covers what it is, how it compares to its siblings and what used examples ask today.
The Boston grand line
| Model | Length | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| GP-156 | About 5 feet 1 inch | The compact baby grand; apartments and smaller rooms |
| GP-163 | About 5 feet 4 inches | The mid-size baby grand; the most common Boston grand in homes |
| GP-178 | About 5 feet 10 inches | The step into parlor-grand territory; teaching studios and larger homes |
| GP-193 | About 6 feet 4 inches | Semi-concert scale for small halls and serious players |
| GP-215 | About 7 feet 1 inch | The largest Boston; small concert and institutional use |
What a used GP-178 is worth depends on
- Generation. A Performance Edition or later GP-178 asks more than an early-1990s example of the same condition.
- Condition and hours. Many Bostons were sold to teaching studios and institutions through the Steinway dealer network; some have far more hours than a home piano.
- Finish. Polished ebony is the standard; other finishes are rarer and sell to a narrower audience.
- Dealer history. Steinway dealers offer trade-up programs on Bostons, so some used GP-178s come back through dealers with service records.
What Bostons are asking right now
The live median asking price by brand on this site is below. The GP-178 model guide lists every GP-178 currently for sale here with its year and price, alongside the GP-156 guide for the smaller sibling.
| Brand | Median asking | Lowest | Highest | Listings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yamaha | $8,470 | $400 | $85,995 | 510 |
| Steinway & Sons | $54,500 | $1,500 | $230,000 | 305 |
| Kawai | $8,990 | $648 | $185,000 | 218 |
| Baldwin | $8,970 | $10 | $54,385 | 142 |
| Steinway | $65,000 | $1,699 | $250,000 | 117 |
| Roland | $3,100 | $400 | $18,650 | 69 |
| Schimmel | $29,238 | $6,500 | $172,363 | 57 |
| Young Chang | $5,245 | $1,500 | $19,996 | 52 |
| Samick | $4,212 | $999 | $15,380 | 50 |
| Boston | $14,450 | $4,795 | $49,200 | 38 |
| Casio | $2,799 | $650 | $7,500 | 36 |
| Mason & Hamlin | $22,990 | $1,495 | $65,000 | 36 |
| Wurlitzer | $2,995 | $100 | $8,880 | 33 |
| Pearl River | $6,795 | $1,500 | $21,437 | 31 |
| Kohler & Campbell | $5,194 | $1,499 | $9,995 | 30 |
A Boston is not a Steinway and does not price like one, but it is also not a generic Kawai. Buyers pay for the Steinway scale design and the dealer network behind it. Compare a used GP-178 with Kawai and Yamaha grands of the same length to see what that premium is on today's market.
Inspecting a used GP-178
- Play the full keyboard for evenness and listen to the bass for clarity; the 178's length is its selling point and should sound like it.
- Check hammer wear and action regulation. Studio pianos often need both.
- Inspect the soundboard and bridges with a flashlight from above and below.
- Confirm the serial number and year on the plate; the Boston generation follows from the year.
- Ask whether the piano went through a Steinway dealer and whether service records exist.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a used Boston GP-178 cost?
- It depends on generation, condition and finish. See the GP-178 model guide for the examples currently for sale on this site and the brand median above for the Boston market overall.
- Who makes Boston pianos?
- Boston pianos are designed by Steinway and Sons and built by Kawai in Japan to Steinway's specifications, then sold through Steinway dealers.
- How long is the Boston GP-178?
- About five feet ten inches, between the GP-163 baby grand and the GP-193 semi-concert grand.
- Is a Boston as good as a Steinway?
- It is a different piano at a different price. The scale design is Steinway's; the construction and materials are Kawai's production-grade work, which is very good but not hand-built New York or Hamburg Steinway.
- What is the Boston Performance Edition?
- A later generation of the Boston line with design refinements. A Performance Edition GP-178 asks more than an early example of the same condition.
- GP-163 or GP-178: which should I buy?
- The 178 has a deeper bass and more dynamic range; the 163 fits a smaller room and costs less. Play both in the room size you have.
- Where is the serial number on a Boston grand?
- On the plate, visible with the music desk removed. Steinway's records date it.
- Do Boston pianos hold their value?
- Better than most mid-market grands because of the Steinway dealer network and trade-up programs, though not as well as Steinway itself.
About the author
Joey Bouza — Founder, US Piano Connection
Working musician and founder of Prospects International, the marketing firm behind appointment-based piano sale events across the country.
Prices and counts in our guides come from live listings on this site and are recalculated hourly. Where we quote industry-typical figures (mover quotes, tuning fees, rebuild costs) we say so, and we never publish a number we haven't measured or sourced.