Chess

Play Chess free online. Full chess against a local computer opponent or a friend.

Complete chess with every rule — castling, en passant, promotion, check, checkmate, stalemate, threefold repetition and the fifty-move rule. Play White or Black against a computer opponent that thinks right in your browser, or pass and play with a friend. Unfinished games are saved automatically.

  • Category: Board
  • Difficulty: hard
  • Players: 1 player vs computer
  • Typical game: about 20 minutes
  • Works on: desktop, phones and tablets

How to play Chess

Objective: Checkmate the opposing king: attack it so that it has no way to escape.

  1. White moves first. Select a piece to see its legal moves, then pick a square.
  2. Castle by moving the king two squares towards a rook.
  3. A pawn reaching the last rank is promoted — choose a queen, rook, bishop or knight.
  4. Undo takes back your last move (and the computer’s reply). Resign ends the game.
  5. Games against the computer are saved automatically; Restart starts a fresh one.

Scoring

A win scores 300 (Easy), 600 (Normal) or 1,000 (Hard), plus 5 for every move under 60. A draw scores a quarter of the win value.

Difficulty levels

Easy: the computer looks about two moves ahead and plays loosely. Normal: three moves. Hard: searches as deep as it can in about two seconds.

Tips

  • Develop knights and bishops early and castle to keep your king safe.
  • Check every capture before you move — is the piece defended?
  • In the endgame, bring your king into play.

Controls

Keyboard

  • Tab to a piece and press Enter, then Tab to a highlighted square and press Enter

Mouse

  • Click a piece, then click one of the marked squares

Touch

  • Tap a piece, then tap one of the marked squares

Chess achievements

  • Checkmate! – Beat the computer.
  • Club Player – Beat the computer on Normal or Hard.
  • Grandmaster – Beat the computer on Hard.
  • Blitz – Beat the computer within 25 moves.
  • New Queen – Promote a pawn against the computer.

Frequently asked questions

Is Chess free to play?

Yes. Chess is completely free on GamesPlayLand, with no download, no sign-up and no purchases.

How do you play Chess?

Checkmate the opposing king: attack it so that it has no way to escape. White moves first. Select a piece to see its legal moves, then pick a square. Castle by moving the king two squares towards a rook.

Can I play Chess on my phone?

Yes. Chess works in mobile browsers on phones and tablets. Tap a piece, then tap one of the marked squares.

Can I play Chess against the computer?

Yes. You play against a computer opponent that runs entirely in your browser, and the difficulty setting changes how strong it is.

Does Chess save my high score?

Yes. Your personal best, statistics and achievements for Chess are saved in your browser automatically.

More games like Chess

  • Backgammon – Race your fifteen checkers home and bear them off before the computer.
  • Checkers – Classic 8×8 checkers against the computer or a friend.
  • Chinese Checkers – Hop your marbles across the star into the opposite point first.
  • Connect Four – Drop discs and line up four in a row before the computer does.
  • Dominoes – Match the ends of the line and be first to play all your tiles.
  • Draughts Variants – International 10×10 and Brazilian draughts with flying kings.