Play along
Jingle Bells: guitar chords and tab for beginners
United States, 1857
Jingle Bells
by James Lord Pierpont
- Tempo
- 120beats per minute
- Count
- 4beats in each bar
- Key
- C majorthe home note
- Level
- 1 of 3easiest
Level 1. Strum one chord per beat. Start here.
Chord names above, strum arrows below. Down arrow = strum down toward the floor, up arrow = back up.
Hold this chord
How to read it
- Red cross: don’t play that string. Skip it when you strum.
- Green circle: play that string open, with no finger on it.
- Number: press there with that finger. 1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 pinky.
- Letters: the strings, thickest (low E) on the left to thinnest (high e) on the right.
Space bar plays and pauses. Left and right arrows jump a bar.
The chords
The chords in Jingle Bells
3 chords, open shapes apart from F: C, F, G7. 4 beats in each bar, 120 beats per minute, in C major.
C major
3 fingers
Fingers, notes, sound →F major
barre, 4 fingers
Fingers, notes, sound →G seven
3 fingers
Fingers, notes, sound →
In words: C major is x 3 2 0 1 0. F major is 1 3 3 2 1 1 (finger 1 flat across fret 1). G seven is 3 2 0 0 0 1. Numbers are frets, thick string to thin, and x means do not play that string.
About the song
James Pierpont published it in 1857 as a sleigh-racing song, not a Christmas one. The chorus melody repeats the same note three times over and over, so your left hand barely moves. A great song for practising the strum.
Questions people ask
- What chords are in Jingle Bells?
- Three chords: C, F and G7. F needs a finger laid flat across the neck, which is the hard part of this one.
- What key is Jingle Bells in?
- C major. The key control on this page moves it up or down, and tells you where to put a capo so you can keep the same easy shapes.
- Is Jingle Bells easy to play on guitar?
- Yes. It is one of the easier songs here: three chords at 120 beats per minute, and you can slow it to half speed while you learn it.
- What is the strumming pattern for Jingle Bells?
- Six strums in each bar: down, down, up, up, down, up. There are 4 beats in every bar. The arrows above the chord boxes move with the sound, so you can see the pattern as you hear it.
- How do I play Jingle Bells on guitar?
- Three ways on this page, all from the same arrangement. Chords mode strums one chord at a time, Melody mode picks the tune from the tab, and Fingerstyle mode plays the bass with your thumb under the tune. Start in Chords mode at 60 percent speed.
- Who wrote Jingle Bells?
- James Lord Pierpont. United States, 1857. The music is old enough to be in the public domain, so it is free to learn, play and record.
Learn more
Easy Christmas songs on guitar
Easy Christmas songs on guitar for beginners, easiest first: Jingle Bells, Away in a Manger, Silent Night and more, each playing along at your speed..
How to read guitar tabs
How to read guitar tabs: six lines are the six strings, numbers are frets, left to right is time.
Guitar string notes
The notes on every guitar string, open and up the neck, with a fretboard map.
Easy songs to play on guitar
Easy songs to play on guitar for beginners, sorted easiest first, each with its chords and a player that lets you slow it down and follow along..
More
More songs
United States, early 1900s
When the Saints Go Marching In
Traditional
Easy4 chords: C, G7, C7, FUnited States, 1848
Oh! Susanna
Stephen Foster
Easiest2 chords: C, G7United States, 1887
Away in a Manger
James Ramsey Murray
Easy3 chords: C, F, G7United States, 1750s
Yankee Doodle
Traditional
Easy3 chords: C, G7, FUnited States, 1835
Amazing Grace
Traditional (New Britain)
Easy3 chords: C, F, G7Scotland, 1788
Auld Lang Syne
Traditional
Easy3 chords: C, G7, F