Piano Brands Ranked: Tiers, Reputation & What Each Sells for Used (2026)
Piano brands fall into a few clear tiers. Knowing which tier a name belongs to tells you what to expect from the instrument — and the live prices below tell you what the market pays for it.
By Joey Bouza, Founder, US Piano Connection · Updated August 29, 2026
There is no single "best" piano brand — a concert grand and a beginner's console are built for different jobs. But the industry does sort makers into tiers by how the instruments are built, how they age, and how they hold value. The tiers below are the ones technicians and dealers use. The prices are not opinion: they are the current median asking prices on this site, recalculated hourly.
The tiers
Tier 1 — Handmade performance pianos
Steinway & Sons, Bösendorfer, Fazioli, Mason & Hamlin, Blüthner, C. Bechstein, Shigeru Kawai, Steingraeber, Grotrian. Built largely by hand in small numbers with the best materials; the reference instruments in concert halls and conservatories. They hold value for generations and are worth rebuilding — a 70-year-old Steinway or Mason & Hamlin grand is a restoration candidate, not a disposal problem.
Tier 2 — Premium production
Yamaha's CX and SX grands and YUS uprights, Kawai's GX grands and K-series uprights, Schimmel, Boston (designed by Steinway, built by Kawai), Estonia, Sauter, Seiler, Petrof's upper lines. Factory-built to tight tolerances; the standard for serious students, teachers and institutions. They depreciate from new, then plateau — a 20-year-old example is the used market's best value.
Tier 3 — Mid-market production
Standard Yamaha and Kawai models, Baldwin (post-2001, Gibson era), Young Chang, Samick, Pearl River, Hailun, Essex, Weber, Kohler & Campbell, Ritmüller. Good instruments for the money, widely serviced; the bulk of dealer used inventory. Resale is steady but they do not appreciate.
Tier 4 — Entry-level and vintage American production
Kimball, Wurlitzer, Story & Clark, Baldwin's Acrosonic and Howard lines, Everett, Cable, Winter, Lester and hundreds of stencil brands from the 1900–1980 boom. Some (the Acrosonic especially) were very well made; most were built to a price. Used value is low and depends entirely on condition, and a move can cost more than the piano.
What each brand is listed for right now
| Brand | Median asking | Lowest | Highest | Listings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yamaha | $8,250 | $400 | $89,995 | 408 |
| Steinway & Sons | $58,500 | $1,500 | $250,000 | 384 |
| Kawai | $8,492 | $648 | $185,000 | 196 |
| Baldwin | $9,992 | $10 | $60,775 | 126 |
| Roland | $2,848 | $400 | $18,650 | 70 |
| Schimmel | $34,780 | $6,500 | $172,363 | 51 |
| Samick | $4,435 | $999 | $11,995 | 48 |
| Young Chang | $4,785 | $1,500 | $19,996 | 43 |
| Mason & Hamlin | $22,990 | $1,495 | $68,500 | 39 |
| Boston | $14,200 | $4,795 | $49,200 | 37 |
| Wurlitzer | $2,488 | $100 | $10,195 | 32 |
| Kohler & Campbell | $4,990 | $499 | $10,195 | 30 |
| Pearl River | $6,647 | $1,500 | $21,437 | 30 |
| Casio | $2,999 | $1,030 | $7,500 | 29 |
| Essex | $8,395 | $3,899 | $19,990 | 25 |
How to use the tiers when buying
- Buy the highest tier you can afford in the type you need. A Tier 2 upright will outplay a Tier 4 baby grand at the same price.
- Within a tier, age and condition beat brand. A serviced 1995 Kawai beats a neglected 2010 one.
- Tier 1 and 2 instruments justify a technician's pre-purchase inspection ($100–$200 typical); for Tier 4, do the ten-minute screen yourself.
- Watch for brand names on the wrong tier: a vintage "Baldwin" console from the 1970s and a Baldwin SF-10 concert grand share a name and nothing else.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the best piano brand?
- For concert performance, Steinway, Bösendorfer and Fazioli lead; for value and consistency in a home, Yamaha and Kawai. "Best" depends on the job and the budget — that's why the tiers exist.
- Which piano brands hold their value?
- Tier 1 makers (Steinway, Mason & Hamlin, Bösendorfer) hold or gain; Tier 2 (Yamaha, Kawai, Schimmel, Boston) plateau after early depreciation; Tiers 3 and 4 decline steadily.
- Is Yamaha or Kawai better?
- They're peers. Yamaha tends brighter, Kawai warmer; Kawai's carbon-composite actions are a genuine advantage in humid climates. Buy the better-kept individual instrument.
- Are Baldwin pianos good?
- Pre-2001 American-built Baldwins — especially the grands and the Acrosonic uprights — were excellent. Post-2001 Baldwins are built in Asia to a mid-market standard.
- Are Kimball and Wurlitzer pianos worth anything?
- Usually a few hundred dollars in working condition, sometimes less than the moving cost. Exceptions are rare but exist — have a technician look at any that plays unusually well.
- What are stencil pianos?
- Pianos sold under a store or distributor's name but built by a larger factory. Common in the early 20th century and again with Asian imports. Judge them by the actual builder if it can be identified.
- Is a Boston piano a Steinway?
- It's designed by Steinway and built by Kawai in Japan — a Tier 2 instrument with Steinway's design scale, not a Steinway.
- Where do the prices on this page come from?
- From live listings on this site: the median, low and high asking prices for each brand with at least five priced listings, recalculated every hour.
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.