10 Easy Christmas Guitar Songs

In general Christmas music is easy to play, save for the occasional tough jazz standard, and it is popular because of how accessible it is for most singers and musicians. Here are 10 easy Christmas songs to play on your guitar and impress a holiday audience.

Away in a Manger

This is a carol directly inspired by the Bible and it has had many variations since it was composed in the 19th century. Of course while it can be played in more complicated ways, you can handle this one because it’s a straightforward 3 chord song. Once you have the basics down you can add in more flourishes and melody.

One of the easiest ways to play it is in the key of D and only using the chords D, G, and A. Of course the strumming will be light and slow as this is not an upbeat Christmas tune. It will sound amazing if you can play fingerstyle and arpeggiate the chords as you move through the song.

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

This may be one of the oldest carols on the list, we have manuscripts of it from the 1650’s so it is at least older than that. It is an easy song to play on the guitar, with one caveat, there is a prominent B7! Now this is not an easy chord, but the way this song is played, it makes great practice.

The chords in the key of Em are all relatively easy except for that B7 but they all easily change as you sing the lyrics. You can start simply and just strum down once on each chord and sing until you get to the next. As you get better at hitting the B7 you can add fancier picking or strumming in.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer was originally a book published by Montgomery Ward, and it became so popular they had a song written for it. The most famous version is the one Gene Autry released in 1949, it has since been covered by a variety of genres and artists.

This song is a mixture of super easy and some intermediate guitar chords. The main verse is just G and D, while the intro and bridge have a difficult Bm7 chord and some faster changes. The good news is there is no rush to the rhythm at the opening of the song so you can take it at your own pace.

Silver Bells

A year after Rudolph was released Christmas songs were super popular and one of the many hits of 1950 was Silver Bells. It is another tune that has had many covers, but they always are in a soft and magical vein. This song is meant to be played with a slower tempo, which is good as there are lots of chord changes.

There do appear to be a lot of chords, especially 7ths, but the changes mostly move with the lyrics. So if you take it slow the times where you move to a new chord will be obvious. Keep it to the key of C and the only difficult chord you will have to deal with is the F chord, which isn’t easy to switch to quickly!

O Holy Night

This carol originated as a French poem in the early 1800’s and is currently known for having a difficult vocal range. So while it may not be too hard to play on the guitar, it may be tough to sing! But it has great chords so why not give it a try.

This song starts very easy in the key of G with simple G, C, and D chords, but then we get to a part that is more challenging. The chords move to Bm and F# which can be tough barre chords for beginners, but they are close by on the second fret so it should be manageable. The rest of the song goes back to being easy with the chords above and an added Am and Em.

What Child Is This

This carol was another 19th century creation; however it was sung over the tune of “Greensleeves” which is at least as old as the 16th century! So no matter how you look at it this song has had some legs! There are many variations but the easiest key for guitar is Am.

The entire piece is simply a repetition of the chords Am-C-G-Em-Am-F-E, which is a similar progression to other medieval sounding tunes. Once you can play this classic Christmas carol other renaissance pieces may not seem so hard.

Up on the Housetop

So far our older carols and tunes are often slow in tempo and solemn, but this 19th century tune is a lot more upbeat. This is another Christmas song that was made popular by Gene Autry and has been covered many times across genres.

It only uses the open chords D, G, A, and an A7 added in at times. The key to playing this song correctly is to get a good, syncopated strum going, something like a boom chick or down down up. Practice a strum that makes the song feel lively and fun!

Frosty the Snowman

Here is another 1950 Christmas hit that was made popular by Gene Autry, he sure had the market cornered on holiday music! Frosty is one of those songs that is very easy in the verse, and then the bridge gets more complicated. In the key of G the verse is simply G, C, and D.

But the bridge adds some barre chords and a diminished Db, it’s not overly difficult if you take it slow. These extended chords are great practice though, as they will prepare you for the jazzier and difficult chord Christmas songs.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Judy Garland made this song popular in the 1940’s and now it is a movie soundtrack staple of the holidays. The easiest version to play is in the key of D so it gives you easy chords like Em, A7, and G. There are only two difficult chords and that is the Bm and F#m.

However if you have been practicing with these last few songs you should find these barre chords to be easy by now! Plus they are kind of essential to play many other Christmas songs. Obviously the tempo and strumming of this song will be light and slow so it gives you plenty of time to make the chord changes.

Here Comes Santa Claus

We could almost have named this list the Best Christmas Songs of Gene Autry! Here we have another late 40’s early 50’s classic provided by the nostalgic voice we all know! The start of this song is easy with just a C and G7, but the chorus gets a little tougher with some faster chord changes.

However at this point you should be getting better with playing chords like the B7 and F, otherwise the rest are not too difficult. While this song is upbeat and needs a nice, syncopated strum, take the chorus slow at first until you can keep the momentum.

You can take these 10 easy Christmas guitar songs and easily branch off into more tunes. You will find that carols and modern popular rock hits are similar and once you know a few, the rest are easy to play. In fact, it is wise to memorize a few of these easier and popular holiday songs as you will surely have no trouble finding an audience that loves to sing along!

By Shawn Leonhardt for Guitar Tricks and 30 Day Singer