40 Easy Guitar Songs for Beginners

The best way to learn to change chords quickly is by learning songs by your favorite artists and groups. However, it’s tough for beginners to know what songs they should be trying to play and which ones are best left for a few months.

So, I decided to break things down to the absolute basics so that anyone who is currently starting their guitar journey knows not only what they should be learning at the moment, but also what beginner-friendly song to move on to next.

We’ll start with simple two-chord songs, before moving on to those that feature a few more. But don’t worry, I’ll only be including nice, easy chords, so you won’t find any horrible F or B major chords anywhere.

I will be taking some small liberties and simplifying some of the songs from how they are played, but don’t worry about this. As your guitar skills improve, you can add in the extras over time.

So let's get straight to it with some…

Easy 2-chord Songs

It’s hard to believe that anyone can write a catchy song that we all love with only two chords, in this case, C and G, but believe me, there are lots. First, let’s take a look at the chord shapes.

As for the rhythm patterns, I’ll be using ‘D’ and ‘u’ to represent Downstrokes (D) and upstrokes (u). A space between them means there is a rest in the rhythm.

All songs are in 4/4 timing unless stated otherwise.

Anyone Else But You – Mouldy Peaches

This quirky, anti-folk love song is a duet expressing unconditional love between two imperfect individuals. It gained widespread popularity after being featured in the movie ‘Juno’, where the main characters sing it to each other.

The whole song is just G to C, back and forth. In fact, it isn’t even a full C; they use a Cmaj7, which is a C chord without the first finger, making it even easier to play. Simply move your first and second fingers down from the low E and A strings when playing the G chord to the A and D strings to play the Cmaj7 chord.

The rhythm is D Du Du uDuDuDu.

Give Peace A Chance – John Lennon

One of the greatest anti-war anthems ever written features two simple chords, C and G. It was recorded by John Lennon in Montreal during a "Bed-In for Peace" with Yoko Ono in 1969.

The rhythm is D D DuDu.

Jambalaya (On The Bayou) - Hank Williams

Next, we have a country song that celebrates Cajun culture and describes a lively party on the bayou where everyone enjoys jambalaya, crawfish pie, and gumbo.

Once again, you can play it using just G and C, but Hank uses a G7 instead of the G, which is slightly harder for beginners. Start with the G, then when you decide it’s time to master the G7 chord, come back to the song and play it the Hank Williams way.

The rhythm couldn’t be easier - D D D D.

You Never Can Tell – Chuck Berry

Rock and roll pioneer, Chuck Berry’s song about the story of a young couple's life from their teenage wedding through their married life, is another 2-chord classic. It’s C to G this time, and the rhythm is D DuD Du.

More simple 2-chord Guitar Songs that only contain C and G chords

Five Little Ducks - C to G with a D DuD Du rhythm

Itsy Bitsy Spider - C to G with a D DuD Du rhythm

Everyday People – Sly and the Family Stone - Lots of chord changes in this one, but they are all G to C. The rhythm is DuDuDuDu followed by uDuDuDu.

Moving on to the E and A chords…

Achy Breaky Heart – Billy Ray Cyrus

We’ll start with a mega-popular country song about a man whose partner has left him, but he doesn't want his heart to know. The chords are E to A all the way through, and the rhythm is D D DuDu.

Other Easy 2-Chord Songs featuring various chords

A Horse With No Name – America - Em to D - but they actually use the single finger D6/9 chord instead of the D, which is even easier - Rhythm D Du uDu

State of Grace – Taylor Swift (Acoustic version) - D to G - Rhythm DuDuDuDu

Drunken Sailor – Em, D - Rhythm D DuD DuD D D D

Fire On The Mountain – Grateful Dead - D to C - but the original is B to A - Rhythm - D D DuD

Dance the Night Away - The Mavericks - E to B7 - Rhythm D D DuD

What I Got – Sublime - D to G - Rhythm D Du Du

Songbird – Oasis - G to Em - but Oasis plays an additional chord, a G/F♯, which is a G chord with an F♯ bass note, as opposed to the usual G, between each chord change. Rhythm D D D D

Feelin’ Alright – Joe Cocker - E7 to A7 - but the original is C7 to F7 - Rhythm D D D Du uDu uDu

Eleanor Rigby – The Beatles - Intro C to Em, Verse Em to C, but the chorus also uses Em7 and Em6 - Rhythm D Du uDu

Row Row Row Your Boat – 3/4 timing - E to A - Rhythm D uD u

Great-sounding 3-Chord Progressions

Playing two chords should be getting easier and easier, so let’s raise the bar and add in another chord to play lots more classic songs.

We’ll be using the chords…

Leaving On A Jet Plane – John Denver

Let’s take off with this 70’s classic that only contains three chords of G, C, and D. The intro is all D, while the verse and chorus is repeats of G / C / G / C followed by G / C / D / D.

The rhythm is D Du uDu.

The Joker – Steve Miller

Yes, it only contains three chords, and no I’m not ‘joking’! All you need is a G, a C, and a D to play this song. The chord progression for the intro and the verse is G / C / D / C, and the chorus is G / C / G / C followed by G / C / D / C.

The rhythm is D D D Du.

Note: the original is in a different key, so to play along with the video or a stream, you will need to tune all the strings down a whole step, i.e., E to D, A to G, C to D, etc., etc.

Ring of Fire – Johnny Cash

Once again, only three chords, which for the verse are G / C / G / C followed by G / D / G / D which is then repeated, before going to the chorus - D / C / G / D - followed by C / D / G / D / G / D. Rhythm D DuD Du.

More simple 3-chord Guitar Songs that contain G, C and D

Happy Birthday

Amazing Grace

Joy To The World

Away in a Manger

Moving on to songs featuring the chords D, G, and A…

Mr. Tambourine Man – Bob Dylan

This surreal, poetic song full of mystical imagery is actually quite basic and suitable for beginners.

The Intro is a D with a touch of the Dsus2 chord. Sounds complicated, but Dsus2 is simply a standard D chord without the second finger. Simply lift it, then put it back down to make the D chord to add a bit of sparkle.

Then it’s on to the verses and chorus which are:

G / A / D / G

D / G / A / A

G / A / D / G

D / G / A / D

The rhythm is D D DuDu.

Big Yellow Taxi – Joni Mitchell

The verses are mainly G to D, to G to A to D, with the chorus going from D to G, to D to G, to A to D. She also includes Dmaj7 and D7 occasionally, which you can add in as your skills improve. Rhythm D uDu u u uDu.

Bad Moon Rising – CCR

The intro and the verse consist of D / A G / D / D repeated, while the chorus is G to D to A to G to D. The strumming pattern is D D uD followed by D D D D.

This Land Is Your Land – Woody Guthrie

To play it in it’s most simplistic way, it’s G / D / A / D all the way through. But it’s worth adding the D7 and the A7 chords as you improve to make the song shine.

Free Fallin’ – Tom Petty

There’s some quick chord changes in this song, but well worth learning if you’re happy to put the time in.

The Middle – Jimmy Eat World

Simple enough, it goes D / A / G / D all the way through. Rhythm D DuDuDu.

More simple 3-chord Guitar Songs that can be played using D, G and A

Midnight Special

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Old Macdonald Had A Farm

I’m A Little Tea Pot

Humpty Dumpty

Baa Baa Black Sheep

And finally, 3-chord songs that feature the chords A, D, and E…

Lay Down Sally – Eric Clapton

A variation on the standard 12 bar blues progression - A / A / A / A, followed by D / D / A / A, ending with A / A / D / D / E / E. Rhythm D D uDu.

Three Little Birds – Bob Marley

This song unusually starts with the chorus before moving to the first verse, the chorus chords move between A and D. The verse is A / E / A / D, followed by A / E / D / A. Being a reggae song, the rhythm is played on the off-beat, so rest for the 1 count and play every other beat from then on.

Let’s get Awesome!

Three chords is usually enough for beginners but I just have to end with the most used chord progression in musical history. It contains four chords, but it’s well worth getting it under your musical belt because it will let you play hundreds of songs.

The chords are…

G / D / Em / C

This progression has been used so much that the wonderful band, Axis of Awesome, created a song to parody the use of this chord progression, suitable named “4 Chords”, as shown in the video below. It actually contains sections from 47 very popular songs and shows how they all use the same chord progression.

The band also integrate other songs into live versions, taking the total included to a staggering 75. They play it in the key of D, therefore the progression they use is D / A / Bm / G. However they play it live in E, making the chords E / B / C#m / A. But for beginners, G / D / Em / C is by far the easiest option.

The songs included, that you can play with these four chords in this order are:

Journey – "Don't Stop Believin'"

James Blunt – "You're Beautiful"

The Black Eyed Peas – "Where Is the Love"

Alphaville – "Forever Young"

Jason Mraz – "I'm Yours"

Train – "Hey, Soul Sister"

The Calling – "Wherever You Will Go"

Elton John – "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (from The Lion King)

Akon – "Don't Matter"

John Denver – "Take Me Home, Country Roads"

Lady Gaga – "Paparazzi"

U2 – "With or Without You"

The Last Goodnight – "Pictures of You"

Maroon 5 – "She Will Be Loved"

The Beatles – "Let It Be"

Bob Marley – "No Woman, No Cry"

Marcy Playground – "Sex and Candy"

Men At Work – "Down Under"

Jill Colucci – "The Funny Things You Do" (Theme from America's Funniest Home Videos)

Jack Johnson – "Taylor"

Spice Girls – "2 Become 1"

A-ha – "Take On Me"

Green Day – "When I Come Around"

Eagle Eye Cherry – "Save Tonight"

Toto – "Africa"

Beyoncé – "If I Were A Boy"

Kelly Clarkson – "Behind These Hazel Eyes"

Jason Derulo – "In My Head"

The Smashing Pumpkins – "Bullet with Butterfly Wings"

Joan Osborne – "One of Us"

Avril Lavigne – "Complicated"

The Offspring – "Self Esteem"

The Offspring – "You're Gonna Go Far, Kid"

Akon – "Beautiful"

OneRepublic – "Apologize"

Eminem featuring Rihanna – "Love the Way You Lie"

Bon Jovi – "It's My Life"

Lady Gaga – "Poker Face"

Aqua – "Barbie Girl"

Red Hot Chili Peppers – "Otherside"

The Gregory Brothers – "Double Rainbow Song"

MGMT – "Kids"

Andrea Bocelli – "Time to Say Goodbye"

Robert Burns – "Auld Lang Syne"

Five for Fighting – "Superman"

The Axis of Awesome – "Birdplane"

Missy Higgins – "Scar"

However, Axis of Awesome did change the key for lots of them to make them all work together. Changing the key keeps the relationship between the chords the same, but raises or lowers the overall pitch depending on what key is selected.

Wrapping it Up!

There you have it, 40 of the best guitar songs for beginners, plus lots of others that you can move on to with time. It’s well worth learning them all, even if you’re not a big fan of some of the songs. Each one contains something that will improve your guitar skills and make learning harder songs in the future far easier.

Practice, practice, practice, and soon you’ll be well on your way to becoming a rockstar!