Can I look up a Mexican, Japanese, Korean or Indonesian Fender serial number?

Yes. Fender publishes a separate dating chart for each country of manufacture. Mexican serials use MN, MZ and MX prefixes; Korean use CN, VN and KC; Indonesian use IC and ICF; Japanese use single letters or JV, SQ and JD. The country can be identified from the serial prefix itself.

What is the difference between Made in Japan and Crafted in Japan Fender serial numbers?

Fender reused the same letters across both eras, sometimes a decade apart. The letter A indicates 1985 to 1986 in the Made in Japan era and 1997 to 1998 in the Crafted in Japan era. Only the decal on the neck separates them.

Why do some 1990 Fenders have an N9 serial number?

Fender mistakenly applied N9 decals, which properly belong to 1999 and 2000, to some instruments built in 1990. It is a documented factory error and means the N9 prefix spans roughly ten years.

Where is the neck date on a Fender guitar?

Pencilled or stamped on the butt end of the neck heel where the neck joins the body, so the neck must be removed to read it. Fender did not apply neck dates consistently between 1973 and 1981.

Fender Serial Number Lookup

Q: Can you tell the exact year of a Fender from the serial number?

Usually not. Fender state in their own documentation that their serial numbering is often non-sequential and usually overlaps two to four years. American instruments from about March 2010 use a US prefix with the two-digit year and do give a single year, as do Mexican MX and Korean KC serials. For earlier instruments the serial gives a range and the neck date narrows it.

Q: What does a V serial number mean on a Fender?

On an American instrument V indicates the American Vintage Series and encodes no production year, because Fender used the prefix from 1982 into the 2010s. On a Japanese-made instrument V plus six digits indicates 1996 to 1997. The neck decal distinguishes them.

Free tool · Bros Guitars NYC · Authorised Fender dealer

What year is my Fender?

Covers Fenders built in America, Mexico, Japan, Korea and Indonesia. Just type the serial in — you do not need to know where it was made, the prefix tells us. And read the answer carefully: Fender say themselves that their numbering usually overlaps two to four years, so an honest answer is often a range plus the way to narrow it.

The neck says “Crafted in Japan” rather than “Made in Japan”

Every country Fender builds in, in one tool

You do not need to know where your guitar was made. Type the serial in and the prefix answers that first: America, Mexico, Japan, Korea or Indonesia. The tool tells you the country, then the year or the honest range.

Most lookups only cover American Fenders, which is strange, because the Mexican-built Stratocaster is one of the most widely owned electric guitars on earth. Fender publishes a separate chart for each country and we have used all of them.

Why the answer is often a range

Fender’s own product-dating page says their serial numbering is often non-sequential and usually overlapping two to four years, and that dating by serial number is not always precisely definitive. That is because necks, bodies and neck plates were made in batches and married up later. So the serial gives you a window, and the neck date narrows it. This tool does both halves rather than pretending the first half is the whole answer.

Four traps this tool catches

A V-prefix serial does not date an American Fender at all. V means American Vintage Series and ran from 1982 into the 2010s. Worse, V plus six digits is also a Japanese prefix for 1996 to 1997, so the same number means two completely different guitars depending on the neck decal.

N9 is the worst prefix Fender ever used. It belongs to 1999 and 2000, but Fender misapplied N9 decals to some instruments built in 1990.

Made in Japan and Crafted in Japan reuse the same letters, sometimes a decade apart. An A is 1985 to 1986 in one era and 1997 to 1998 in the other. Only the decal on the neck separates them, which is why there is a tick box for it above.

CN means two different things. CN plus five digits is a Korean-built instrument, but Fender also use CN on many US Custom Shop guitars. Both appear in Fender’s own published lists.

The full charts

These are generated from the same data the tool above uses, so the two cannot drift apart.

Common questions

Can I look up a Mexican, Japanese or Korean Fender here?

Yes. The tool covers American, Mexican, Japanese, Korean and Indonesian instruments, and identifies the country from the serial itself. Fender also builds in China and has separate schemes for acoustics, amplifiers and banjos, which are not in this tool yet.

Can you tell the exact year of a Fender from the serial number?

Usually not. Fender state that their numbering often overlaps two to four years. American instruments from 2010 onward, and Mexican and Korean instruments with a two-digit year in the prefix, do give a clean answer. For everything else the serial gives a range and the neck date settles it.

What does a V serial number mean on a Fender?

On an American guitar it means American Vintage Series and encodes no year. On a Japanese one it means 1996 to 1997. Check what the neck decal says.

Where is the neck date on a Fender?

Pencilled or stamped on the butt end of the neck heel, so the neck has to come off to read it. If you would rather not, bring it to us and we will read it at the counter for free.

Do you have lookups for other brands?

Yes: Martin, Taylor, Guild and Gibson.

Bring it in

We are an authorised Fender dealer at 316 East 84th Street in Manhattan, open Monday to Friday from noon to 8pm and Saturday from 10am to 8pm. We will read a neck date for you free. Call 646-559-8771.