Chess · Complete guide
Chess: how to play, where it came from, and how to win
Six pieces, one king, and fifteen hundred years of people trying to work it out. Learn the rules in ten minutes, then spend a lifetime on the rest.
Chess is the game every other strategy game is measured against. Two players, sixteen pieces each, one board, no hidden information and no luck — and yet after fifteen centuries nobody has come close to exhausting it.
The rules are simpler than their reputation. Each of the six pieces moves in one way, three special moves exist, and the game ends when one king cannot escape capture. You can be playing a real game twenty minutes after sitting down, which is why chess has spread further than any comparable game.
What keeps people is what happens after that. Chess rewards, in order: not hanging your pieces, seeing simple tactics, understanding pawn structure, making plans, and finally the hardest skill of all — working out what your opponent wants and quietly making it impossible. Every one of those steps is a different game, and most players discover at least three of them.
The guides below cover all of it. If you have never played, start with the rules. If you know the moves but lose without understanding why, the strategy guide is written for exactly that.
How to play
Every rule in one place: how the six pieces move, castling, en passant and promotion, check and checkmate, all five ways a game can be drawn, and how to read chess notation.
Where it comes from
Fifteen hundred years in one game: an Indian army game, a Persian court pastime, the European reform that created the modern queen, the first world champion, Fischer in Reykjavík, and the machines that surpassed everyone.
- Chess began as chaturanga in India around the 6th century CE, then became shatranj in Persia.
- "Check" and "checkmate" come from the Persian shah and shah mat.
- Around 1475 in Europe the queen and bishop gained their modern powers, creating the game we play.
- Steinitz became the first world champion in 1886 and turned chess into a teachable discipline.
How to win
A complete chess strategy guide in three levels: the opening rules and tactics that win beginner games, pawn structure and planning for intermediate players, and prophylaxis, imbalance and preparation for advanced play.
- Control the centre, develop knights before bishops, castle early, and do not move the same piece twice.
- Most games below 1200 are decided by hanging pieces — blunder-check every move.
- Pawn structure tells you where to play: attack on the side your pawn chain points towards.
- A knight on a protected outpost and rooks on open files are the two easiest strategic wins.
Common questions
Is chess hard to learn?
No. The rules take about ten minutes and most people play their first full game the same day. Playing well is the hard part, and that is a matter of habits rather than talent — chiefly checking every move for what your opponent threatens.
How long does a game of chess take?
Online blitz games take five minutes; a casual game over a board takes twenty to forty minutes; tournament games with long time controls can run four hours or more.
What is the best first move in chess?
1.e4 and 1.d4 are the two strongest and most popular. For a new player 1.e4 is the better choice: it opens lines for two pieces immediately and leads to positions where the opening principles you are learning actually apply.
Can I get better at chess without studying openings?
Yes, and below about 1800 you should. Tactics puzzles, blunder-checking and basic endgames are worth several times more than opening theory at that level.
Is chess solved?
No. Positions with up to seven pieces are solved completely by tablebases, but the full game is far beyond any computer. Engines play far better than humans without playing perfectly.
Do I need a chess set to play?
No — the board on this site runs in your browser with six computer levels, a coach that explains what each phase of the game needs, hints and takebacks, or a link to play a friend.
Guides
Play Chess free, right now
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