Whether it be the case that you are thinking of learning the violin, or if you are shopping around for a suitable instrument for your child, you have the option of renting a violin instead of buying one. There are pros and cons to renting a violin compared to buying one. These are outlined below:

Pros of renting a violin:

Renting a violin makes sense for young students, especially those aged between three and fourteen. Typically children this age would require smaller sized violins, and will need to upgrade the instrument as they grow. You may save more by renting, especially if your child starts learning the instrument at a very young age. This is because he or she will need to change to bigger sized violins as many as three or four times before starting on a full sized instrument.

An alternative scenario whereby renting a violin makes more sense than buying one is when you need the instrument for a short time period only. It may be the case that you are in a foreign country and need an instrument to make an impromptu performance, or if you plan to be in another country for a short time period of three to six months and do not wish to bring your own instrument along. In such cases, then renting a violin is a better option.

Cons of renting a violin

One downside of renting a violin compared to buying one is that rentals are typically second hand, used instruments. If the rental instrument is not properly set up with quality strings and components including the bridge, pegs, tailpiece and chinrest, you may find that you or your child will outgrow the instrument very fast. A quality instrument will challenge you or your child to pick up the violin quickly, whereas a poor quality rental one may stunt the progress of you or your child in picking up the skill of playing the violin.

Secondly, renting a violin does not give you or your child the sense of ownership. You need to be able to bond with your instrument to be able to play it well. It may make better sense to buy a violin if you or your child is serious about learning the instrument.

There is a third option, which is to rent a violin and eventually own it if you do decide to keep the instrument. This applies to new violins, and typically you will need to place a deposit which is the value of the instrument. In this scheme, you may opt to rent the instrument for short term basis such as three months. If you do decide to keep the instrument, then your deposit will not be returned to you. If you want to only rent the instrument, the deposit will be refunded to you once you return the violin. In this rent-to-buy scheme, you need to ensure the instrument is returns in good condition to be able to get hundred percent of your deposit back.