Fender Telecaster players are musicians known for playing the Telecaster, an electric guitar designed by Leo Fender, founder of Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. Also included are musicians associated with the similar Broadcaster and the Esquire guitars.

Because of the great popularity of these models, musicians are listed here only if their use of this instrument was especially significant—that is, they are players with long careers who have a history of faithful Telecaster use, or the particular guitar they used was unique or of historical importance, or their use of the Telecaster contributed significantly to the popularization of the instrument.

Esquire players are here listed alongside players of the more famous Telecaster, since Fender regards it as part of the "family of Telecaster guitars". While the one-pickup Esquire has been marketed as a separate model from the two-pickup Telecaster (which was originally named the Broadcaster) since its reintroduction in 1951, the Esquire and Telecaster are so intimately linked in their development and history, and so similar in design and tonal characteristics, that they are considered variations of the same model.

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Jim Adkins (born 1975) of alternative rock/pop punk outfit Jimmy Eat World received his own signature Telecaster model after a favourite guitar of his - the Fender TC 90, itself a double-cutaway Telecaster with P90 pickups - went out of production due to low sales. Although Adkins's signature model returns to a traditional single-cut Telecaster body, it strays from traditional Telecasters on its own right as it features a shorter 24.75" scale length and a set neck more common in Gibson-style guitars. Nicholaus Arson (born 1977) guitarist of Swedish garage rock band The Hives almost exclusively plays Telecasters, switching between stock Teles, Esquires, a Telecaster Custom (with only the bridge pickup wired) and a center-block (similar to a Gibson Firebird) Telecaster-style custom guitar. Syd Barrett (1946–2006), guitarist/singer/songwriter of the band Pink Floyd; used a unique mirror-disk covered EsquireAlthough Barrett's mirror-disk guitar has been called a Telecaster in several sources, a photograph shows clearly that it has no neck pickup, and is therefore an Esquire. See: and a 1960s-era Custom Tele. Phil Baugh (1936–1990), a hot country guitarist whose song "Country Guitar" with Verne Stovall, recorded on his Telecaster, was a hit in 1964 and earned him numerous awards. He worked as a popular session guitarist in Nashville from 1975 until his death in 1990.

Jeff Beck (1944–2023) Emerging in the mid 1960s with the Yardbirds, Beck proved that a ragged Fender Esquire could moan like a fuzzed-out violin. His lines in “Heart Full of Soul” and “Evil Hearted You” defined psychedelic guitar. Matt Bellamy (born 1978), frontman, lead singer, pianist and guitarist of Devon-based band Muse, as well as bassist for British-Australian supergroup The Jaded Hearts Club, mostly plays Telecasters in his songs, concerts and tours. From 2000–2009 most of them were custom designed by Devon-based Guitar designer Hugh Manson, after which the job was taken up by the head luthier at Manson Design Works. Bellamy also bought a stock in the workshop and became its owner in 2019, though Bellamy has also used Fender Telecasters. He also gave Tom Morello a custom Telecaster. In 2020, Bellamy bought Jeff Buckley's "Grace" Fender Telecaster and used it to record his EP "Cryosleep", he also used it to record a song with The Jaded Hearts Club alongside using it for Muse's 2022 album Will of the People. Both Buckley and Morello have influenced Bellamy. Ed Bickert (1932–2019) Canadian jazz guitarist, one of the earliest jazz musicians to use a solid body electric exclusively. Began using a Telecaster while his other guitar was in the repair shop, and transitioned to Telecaster use for the remainder of his career.Guitar Player Magazine, July 1987, pp. 56, 57 Frank Black (born 1965) of the Pixies is a long-time Telecaster player. Ritchie Blackmore (born 1945) of Deep Purple, Rainbow and Blackmore's Night. Blackmore regularly used a Fender Stratocaster, but in live footage of Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow on the "Shadow of the Moon" tour in 1997 as well as various tours with Blackmore's Night onwards, Blackmore plays a Black Single Pickup Custom Jazz Telecaster. Mike Bloomfield (1943–1981) played a Telecaster on the first album by the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, considered a groundbreaking example of post-Chicago electric blues. He employed the same instrument on Bob Dylan's hit single "Like a Rolling Stone" and the album Highway 61 Revisited. Most famously, Bloomfield played his Telecaster on stage with Dylan at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival, at which Dylan "went electric" to much controversy among his fans. D. Boon (1958–1985) of the punk band Minutemen (band) preferred Telecasters, with very high treble and essentially no middle or bass on his amplifier settings. Jimmy Bryant (1925–1980), a prolific session musician, was given one of the first Broadcasters by Fender engineer George Fullerton. Fullerton compared this gift to "starting a prairie fire", and said that "pretty soon we couldn't make enough of those guitars". Roy Buchanan (1939–1988), a blues/rock musician whose playing inspired the likes of Jeff Beck, earning him the title "The Guitarist's Guitarist's Guitarist," was a faithful Tele man during his solo career. He played a 1953 Telecaster called Nancy. Jonny Buckland (born 1977), of Coldplay, frequently uses the '72 Telecaster Thinline. Jeff Buckley (1966–1997) used a blonde 1983 Fender USA Telecaster fitted with a mirror finish pick guard. Buckley used this guitar almost exclusively on his sole studio album Grace (1994). It featured an out of phase "glassy" sounding neck pickup. In 2020, the guitar was purchased by Matt Bellamy of Muse. James Burton (born 1939) has played a Telecaster since he was 13, and he has influenced many other guitarists. He was the most visible player of the Tele in the late '50s, appearing on television with Ricky Nelson almost every week on the Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet.. His most famous guitar is the Paisley Red Tele, which he first used while performing with Elvis Presley. He has also played with Gram Parsons and Merle Haggard. As a long-time Tele player, he wrote a foreword to A. R. Duchossoir's book detailing the history of the guitar. Anna Calvi (born 1980) frequently uses a 1990s American-made Fender Telecaster guitar and a vintage red Vox AC30 amp, both live and in the studio. Mike Campbell (born 1950), best known for his work with Tom Petty, has stated that his 1950 Broadcaster has been one of his live mainstay guitars since the beginning of the Heartbreakers. Campbell also played an early-'70s Telecaster with two humbuckers and Bigsby vibrato tailpiece nicknamed "Big Red." Jim Campilongo (born 1958) is a New York roots rock guitarist from San Francisco, known for recording a series of instrumental guitar albums and being a member of The Little Willies with Norah Jones. Campilongo plays a 1959 'top loader' Telecaster. He also plays Jim Campilongo signature guitars produced by the Fender Custom Shop which were modeled on his 1959 Telecaster. Campilongo cites Telecaster player Roy Buchanan as an important influence on his guitar technique. Martin Carthy MBE (born May 21, 1941) is an English folk singer and guitarist who has remained one of the most influential figures in British traditional music. He played a blue Telecaster when a member of Steeleye Span, from 1970 to 1972, 1977–1978 and 1999. Eric Clapton although primarily associated with the Fender Stratocaster, played a Telecaster during his tenure with the Yardbirds in 1964. Kurt Cobain (1967-1994), guitarist/singer/songwriter of the Seattle-based grunge rock band Nirvana; played his own custom-made Telecaster named "Courtney", after his then-wife Courtney Love, regularly during the Oceania tour in January/February 1992, and the infamous gig in São Paulo on January 16th, 1993 (considered by some to be one of the band’s worst), when he broke the guitar’s neck and threw it into the audience. Albert Collins (1932–1993) ("The Master of the Telecaster") created his original blues sound using minor open tunings and a capo placed high up on the neck. Fender offers an Albert Collins Signature Telecaster based on his '66 model, which features a humbucker in the neck position. Jamie Cook (born 1985) is the guitarist of Arctic Monkeys and used the Fender Telecaster reissue from 2005 to 2008. Hugh Cornwell has played a Telecaster since his early days in the Stranglers, originally one equipped with a Filtertron 3rd pickup. Graham Coxon (born 1969), guitarist of Blur, has relied on the Telecaster for the majority of his career, achieving a distinctive sound underlined by an inventive use of effects that played an integral part in Blur's success during the 1990s. He uses a blonde 1968 Telecaster with a Gibson PAF Pickup, a 1960 Lake Placid blue Telecaster Relic, and a 1972 Telecaster Deluxe, while his time with Blur saw him use a reissue 1952 blonde Telecaster. Steve Cropper (1941-2025) creates rhythm work known to be spare and crisp using the bridge pickup of the Telecaster, playing with Stax session band Booker T. & the MGs, who backed such stars as Otis Redding and Sam & Dave. Denny Dias of Steely Dan presaged the 1970s trend for dual-humbucker Teles by replacing both of the single coils in his guitar with humbuckers and installing a Stratocaster-style bridge. Jerry Donahue (born 1946) of Fairport Convention released a solo album in 1986 called Telecasting and was a member of the Telecaster trio called the Hellecasters. Bob Dylan (born 1941) owned a black-and-white early 1960s Telecaster with a maple cap fretboard, which became one of his first electric guitars, shaping his controversial electric sound. He used this guitar on his epic 1966 tour of Australia and Europe and then Robbie Robertson adopted it for his use with the Band for their first four albums and live concerts.

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John Flansburgh (born 1960), songwriter and guitarist for They Might Be Giants, owns and frequently uses two left-handed Telecasters in concert. However, his most iconic guitar is the Mojo Chessmaster, a lefty Telecaster with a custom body built for him by Chris Cush of the Mojo guitar shop. The Chessmaster (named by Flansburgh for its resemblance to a rook) has appeared in promotional images and music videos for the band from the early 90s up to 2018. Robben Ford (born 1951) has used a 1960 white Telecaster as one of his main guitars throughout his career. He has referred to it as "the best working guitar" that he has had and his "best friend over the years." Bill Frisell (born 1951) jazz guitarist noted for his atmospheric legato sounds, has used the Telecaster as his primary guitar since at least 2007. Danny Gatton (1945–1994) played a customized '53 Tele whose specifications were replicated by Fender for his Signature model, including unique angled bridge saddles for improved intonation of the classic 3-saddle bridge, and use of Joe Barden pickups. Billy Gibbons (born 1949), of American rock band ZZ top plays multiple custom Telecasters. He owns a John Bolin Broadcaster, T-style “Peeler” & Esquire, Palir Classic T & RebelRelic Holy Grail. Vince Gill (born 1957), who replaced fellow Tele-player Albert Lee in Rodney Crowell's backing band, uses a '53 Telecaster as his primary stage guitar.