How to Choose Your First Guitar
 

If you would like to learn to play the guitar, and choose your first guitar, there are important steps, and should be taken into very careful consideration:

• Focus on the larger guitar manufacturers such as Fender, Ibanez, and Gibson.
• Go to the local music store and ask them what kind of beginner guitars they have
• For your first guitar, you do not need the rolls Royce of guitars. Don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on your first guitar. Not only will you not have the ability to truly utilize your nice new guitar, but you will not know how to take good care of the guitar, such as tuning properly, changing strings when needed, and just keeping it in nice shape.
• Once you feel like you are ready for an upgrade, go for it.

Wise words indeed!

I'd add:

Take someone with you that has been playing a while, and knows what they're looking at, and listen to their advice, also hold out for the best deal you can get ask them to throw in a set of strings or a strap etc.
They won't throw you out of the store for asking, plus they don't want to lose a potential regular customer, (believe me you will be!).

they have people at the stores to tell you/recommend to you what type of guitar you should get if you're a novice/advanced player.

I agree that the people at most stores will show you around, but they're also out to make a sale. Knowing it's your first guitar, they can steer you towards a guitar that may or not be right.

I say you get the guitar that FEELS the best to your hands for the money you can afford. Avoid going for a cool look - as you grow as a musician, you'll want a different guitar anyway. Go for the one that feels right to your hand, your body style.

I'd rank the order this way.

1. Price range (don't play guitars you can't afford - it'll ruin it for you)

2. Feel and fit

3. Sound

4. Looks

JSMidd has got it right. all that matters really is how it feels in your hands. I personally play an Ibanez Artcore. It fits in my hand perfectly and I absolutely love it. My friend plays a Fender Strat. When he first got it he said it just fit right into his hand. Neither of us would rather have the other's instrument for any reason whatsoever. So basically, go around and try a bunch of guitars out to figure out what you like. once you have, look around for something with the same feel that is affordable. If you want something decent quality but not top brand however, you can buy a cheap knockoff and redo all of the electronics in it. No matter what anyone says it'll sound just fine.