Fender changed 141 prices at Thomann between September 30 and October 23, more than any other brand, and they didn't all go the same way. The Player II series, made in Mexico, got cheaper. The American Ultra II, made in California, got more expensive. And the Custom Shop took back part of a discount it gave in September.
Fender's October by series
| Series | Listings that moved | Which way | Price now |
|---|---|---|---|
| Player II | 22 | mostly down | $862 (€769) in 16 versions |
| American Ultra II | 19 of 30 | up, 4 to 8% | Strat and Tele from $2,498 |
| Custom Shop, €3,000 and up | 31 | mostly back up after a September sale | median still 4.8% below August |
| Tone Master Pro | 10 | down, 4 to 7% | $1,624 (€1,449) |
Player II: the lowest prices we have recorded
16 Player II Stratocasters and Telecasters now cost €769, 15 of them since October 23. In August the same 16 cost between €772 and €889, and most fell in two steps, on October 2 and October 23. The Player II Strat HSS in black is cheaper still at €756, and 2 more versions sit below €769.
Fender Player II Stratocaster RW, $857
The top Strat in our index: €879 in August, €769 now, after four cuts. #1 of 628 ST style guitars.
Fender Player II Telecaster RW, $857
Down from €809 in August. #1 of 185 T style guitars.
American Ultra II: about 5% more
19 of the 30 American Ultra II listings went up, most of them on October 2. Most Stratocasters and Telecasters moved from €2,229 to €2,349, the Jazz and Precision basses from €2,349 to between €2,439 and €2,499. That is close to what they cost in August 2025: between then and this August, most of them had become 5 to 10% cheaper.
Fender American Ultra II Stratocaster, $2,619
Up 5.4% on October 2. The step from a Player II Strat to this one has grown from about $1,510 in August to $1,770. #6 of 628 ST style guitars.
Custom Shop: half of September's discount is gone
On September 9, Fender cut 25 Custom Shop guitars and basses, most of them by €400 to €600. On October 1, 24 Custom Shop listings went back up, most by €200. The median Custom Shop listing that moved still costs 4.8% less than on August 17: the '65 Stratocaster Relic in Candy Apple Red, for example, went from €5,399 to €4,799 and is now €4,999.
Also cheaper
- Tone Master Pro, Fender's floor modeler, fell 6.8% to $1,624 on October 2, and its bundles 4 to 7%.
- The Blues Deluxe Reissue tube combo dropped from €1,129 to €1,069 on October 23.
Questions
Is the Player II worth buying now?
By our records, this is its lowest price since we started tracking in August, and it fell in steps rather than in a one-day sale. The Player II Strat is also the highest-ranked ST-style guitar in our index.
Will the American Ultra II come back down?
We can't say. October's rise mostly undid cuts made before August, so it looks like a price correction rather than a sale ending. Black Friday promotions could still bring it lower for a while.
How we measured. Euro prices from Thomann's partner feed, recorded every night. We compared each Fender listing's price on September 30 and October 23, 2026, counting changes of at least 0.5%; August prices are from August 17, 2026. Dollar prices use the European Central Bank rate. Cards show today's price and rank.
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Denis Kataev runs AudioFu. Every night the site records the prices of more than 38,000 instruments and studio tools at Thomann, and he writes about what those numbers show: what got cheaper, what just arrived, and which discounts are real.
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