Play Chess online

Chess is a game for two players. It is played on an 8x8 board, with a dark square in each player's lower left corner.
The goal in the chess game is to capture the opponent's king. This capture is called 'checkmate'. Checkmate happens once the king is under attack, cannot move and cannot be helped by its own army of chessmen. Initial chess position is shown on the picture. Chess pieces (white or black) for each player are: 8 Pawns, 2 Rocks, 2 Knights, 2 Bishops, 1 Queen, 1 King. There are 2 chess piece sets: Classic and Ornate, selected in the game preferences
The players can use time control to limit the time spent on a game. If there is no checkmate on the board, the player whose time expires first loses, unless there is a draw via stalemate, insufficient mating material, etc. A time add-on per each move can be elected as well, it is a popular option for online chess.
All chess players have ratings, shown beside their names, it is re-calculated after each played game.
You can play chess for free or join money tournaments to win cash prize. No installation required.

Play Chess online