How to Play Chess: The Complete Beginner's Guide
Learn how to play chess step by step: the board, how each piece moves, check, checkmate, castling, en passant and the rules that decide a draw. Free, with interactive lessons.
Chess is a game for two players on a board of 64 squares. Each player starts with 16 pieces, and the goal is simple to say and endlessly deep to play: trap the opponent's king so it cannot escape. This guide takes you from zero to your first full game.
The board and the setup
The board is placed so that each player has a light square in the bottom-right corner. The columns are called files (a to h) and the rows ranks (1 to 8), which is how every square gets a name like e4 or g7.
- The rooks go in the corners, then the knights, then the bishops.
- The queen goes on her own color: the white queen on a light square (d1), the black queen on a dark square (d8).
- The king takes the last square next to the queen.
- Eight pawns fill the row in front.
White always moves first, and players alternate one move at a time.
How the pieces move
Each piece moves in its own way. You can learn them all in a few minutes with our interactive lessons:
- Rook: any number of squares in a straight line. Rook lesson
- Bishop: any number of squares diagonally. Bishop lesson
- Queen: combines the rook and bishop. Queen lesson
- King: one square in any direction. King lesson
- Knight: an L shape, and it can jump over pieces. Knight lesson
- Pawn: forward one square (two on its first move), and captures diagonally. Pawn lesson
For the full details and the value of each piece, read how chess pieces move.
Check and checkmate
When a king is attacked, it is in check. The player in check must get out of it at once, in one of three ways: move the king, block the attack, or capture the attacking piece.
If there is no way out, it is checkmate and the game is over. Checkmate is the only way to win the game on the board; you never actually capture the king.
Special moves
Castling
Once per game, you can move the king two squares toward a rook, and the rook jumps to the other side of the king. It keeps your king safe and brings the rook into play. You can't castle if the king or rook has already moved, if you are in check, or if the king would pass through an attacked square. Castling lesson
En passant
If a pawn moves two squares and lands beside an enemy pawn, that enemy pawn may capture it as if it had moved only one square, but only on the very next move. En passant lesson
Promotion
A pawn that reaches the last rank becomes a queen, rook, bishop or knight. Almost everyone picks a queen.
How a game can be drawn
Not every game has a winner. A game is a draw when:
- Stalemate: the player to move has no legal move but is not in check. Stalemate lesson
- Neither side has enough pieces left to checkmate (for example, king against king).
- The same position appears three times.
- Fifty moves pass with no capture and no pawn move.
- Both players agree to a draw.
Your first game plan
- Move a centre pawn (e4 or d4).
- Bring out your knights and bishops.
- Castle to protect your king.
- Look for checks, captures and threats on every move.
When you are ready, play a game against a friendly bot: the coach explains every move, yours and the bot's.
FAQ
How long does it take to learn chess?
You can learn the rules in under an hour. Playing well takes practice: 15 minutes of puzzles a day makes a visible difference within a few weeks.
Who moves first in chess?
White always moves first. Then the players take turns, one move each.
Can the king capture?
Yes. The king can capture any undefended piece next to it, but it can never move into check.
What is the best way to learn chess for free?
Learn the rules with short interactive lessons, then solve puzzles at your level every day, and play slow games you review afterwards. Everything on Chessizi is free.