Here’s a simple, beginner‑friendly way to play “This Land Is Your Land” chords on guitar, plus a bit of context and tips for practice.

Basic chords and key

Most easy versions use just three chords in the key of D:

  • D major
  • G major
  • A (or A7) major

These three chords will carry you through the whole song for standard campfire/sing‑along versions.

For a very common chorus progression (key of D):

D – G – D – A – D – G – D – A – D

Sample chorus layout (key of D)

You can think of it like this (each “|” is roughly one measure, 4 beats):

  • “This land is your land, this land is my land”
    • | G | D | A | D |
  • “From California to the New York Island”
    • | G | D | A | D |
  • “From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters”
    • | G | D | A | D |
  • “This land was made for you and me”
    • | G | D | A | D | G | D | A | D | (often a slightly longer line)

Different sources tweak where chord changes fall on syllables, but the harmony pattern (G–D–A–D) stays essentially the same.

Ultra‑easy three‑chord pattern

Many beginner tutorials simply give you:

  • Verses and chorus: cycle G – D – A – D
  • Stay on each chord for one bar (4 downstrokes) before switching.

That means you can play the whole song as:

| G | D | A | D | G | D | A | D | … (repeat as needed)

This keeps chord changes predictable and is perfect for group singing.

Strumming pattern ideas

For a straightforward folk feel:

  • Start with all downstrokes:
    • Count “1 2 3 4” on each chord, strum down on each number.
  • Once that’s comfortable, try a simple folk pattern like:
    • Down – down‑up – down – up (per bar) for each chord.

Some teachers use a “boom‑chuck” pattern: hit a bass note on beat 1, then lighter strums on the higher strings for beats 2–4.

Transposing to easier chords (key of C)

If you prefer open C/F/G shapes:

  • D → C
  • G → F
  • A (or A7) → G (or G7)

Then your main three chords become:

  • C – F – G (or G7)

And you can follow a similar pattern:

| F | C | G | C | … (mirroring G–D–A–D from the D‑major version).

Mini “story” to help you remember

Imagine you’re walking across the country: you start on D (home), visit G (the forest), then head to A (the big city), and always return to D (home base). Each line of the song is you taking that same little trip: home → forest → city → home (D → G → A → D), over and over, all the way from California to the New York Island.

TL;DR:
Most easy versions of “This Land Is Your Land” use just three chords (D, G, A or A7) in repeating patterns like G–D–A–D, with simple downstroke or boom‑chuck strumming, making it ideal for beginners and singalongs.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.