They are in order of range, narrowest first, because on a guitarthe distance between a tune’s lowest and highest note decides more about how hard it is than its speed does. Jingle Bells covers the least ground and is the one to start with; Carol of the Bells covers the most.
- Jingle Bells
- Jolly Old Saint Nicholas
- Up on the Housetop
- Away in a Manger
- We Wish You a Merry Christmas
- Good King Wenceslas
- Joy to the World
- O Come, All Ye Faithful
- The First Noel
- Deck the Halls
- Auld Lang Syne
- O Christmas Tree
- God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
- Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
- O Holy Night
- Silent Night
- Carol of the Bells
Which guitar plays how many
| Guitar | As written | Moved | Cannot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acoustic | 16 | 1 | 0 |
| Classical | 16 | 1 | 0 |
The carols, easiest first
The large line is the fret — 0 is the open string. A dash holds a note another beat and an underline is half a beat.
1. Jingle Bells
James Lord Pierpont, 1857 · United States · G3–D4 · fifth · 51 notes
The picking hand changes string 9 times. The whole of Jingle Bells for guitar →
2. Jolly Old Saint Nicholas
1874 (music in print) · United States · D4–B4 · major sixth · 48 notes
The picking hand changes string 4 times. The whole of Jolly Old Saint Nicholas for guitar →
3. Up on the Housetop
Benjamin Hanby, 1864 · Ohio, United States · G3–E4 · major sixth · 67 notes
The picking hand changes string 33 times. The whole of Up on the Housetop for guitar →
4. Away in a Manger
James R. Murray, 1887 · United States · D4–D5 · octave · 44 notes
The picking hand changes string 8 times. The whole of Away in a Manger for guitar →
5. We Wish You a Merry Christmas
19th century or earlier · England, West Country · D4–D5 · octave · 52 notes
The picking hand changes string 11 times. The whole of We Wish You a Merry Christmas for guitar →
6. Good King Wenceslas
1582 (tune) · Finland and Sweden · D4–D5 · octave · 53 notes
The picking hand changes string 12 times. The whole of Good King Wenceslas for guitar →
7. Joy to the World
Lowell Mason (arranger), 1836 · United States · G3–G4 · octave · 57 notes
The picking hand changes string 13 times. The whole of Joy to the World for guitar →
8. O Come, All Ye Faithful
John Francis Wade (attributed), c. 1743 · England and France · D4–D5 · octave · 61 notes
The picking hand changes string 10 times. The whole of O Come, All Ye Faithful for guitar →
9. The First Noel
1823 (in print) · Cornwall, England · G3–G4 · octave · 72 notes
The picking hand changes string 24 times. The whole of The First Noel for guitar →
10. Deck the Halls
16th century (tune) · Wales · F♯3–G4 · octave and a semitone · an octave lower · 68 notes
The picking hand changes string 32 times. The whole of Deck the Halls for guitar →
11. Auld Lang Syne
18th century · Scotland · D4–E5 · octave and a whole step · 56 notes
The picking hand changes string 5 times. The whole of Auld Lang Syne for guitar →
12. O Christmas Tree
16th century (tune) · Germany · D4–E5 · octave and a whole step · 61 notes
The picking hand changes string 5 times. The whole of O Christmas Tree for guitar →
13. God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
18th century or earlier · England · D4–E5 · octave and a whole step · 67 notes
The picking hand changes string 4 times. The whole of God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen for guitar →
14. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Felix Mendelssohn, 1840 · Germany and England · D4–E5 · octave and a whole step · 76 notes
The picking hand changes string 5 times. The whole of Hark! The Herald Angels Sing for guitar →
15. O Holy Night
Adolphe Adam, 1847 · France · G3–B4 · octave and a major third · 95 notes
The picking hand changes string 41 times. The whole of O Holy Night for guitar →
16. Silent Night
Franz Xaver Gruber, 1818 · Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria · G3–C5 · octave and a fourth · 46 notes
The picking hand changes string 17 times. The whole of Silent Night for guitar →
17. Carol of the Bells
Mykola Leontovych, 1916 · Ukraine · B3–E5 · octave and a fourth · 92 notes
The picking hand changes string 4 times. The whole of Carol of the Bells for guitar →
Why some Christmas songs are missing
Every tune here is in the public domain, which for Christmas music means carols and 19th-century songs. The 20th-century standards people also think of as Christmas songs are still in copyright, and a guitar arrangement of one is a copy of its melody whatever notation it is written in, so they are not published here. Melodies only, too: there are no lyrics on any of these pages.
All guitar songs · Christmas songs on every instrument · The online guitar