The complete rules of chess

Board setup and the first move

The chessboard has 64 squares arranged in eight ranks and eight files. Place it so that each player has a light square at the lower-right corner. A useful reminder is “light on right.” White's pieces occupy ranks 1 and 2; Black's occupy ranks 8 and 7.

On each back rank, place the pieces from left to right as rook, knight, bishop, queen, king, bishop, knight, rook. The queen begins on a square matching her color: the White queen on a light square and the Black queen on a dark square. Put all eight pawns on the rank directly in front of the other pieces.

White always moves first. Players then alternate turns, moving one piece per turn except when castling, which moves the king and a rook together. A player may not skip a turn.

How every chess piece moves

The king

The king moves one square in any direction: horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. It may capture an opposing piece on its destination square, but it may never move onto a square attacked by an enemy piece. The two kings therefore can never stand next to each other.

The queen

The queen moves any number of unobstructed squares horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. She combines the movement of a rook and bishop, making her the most mobile piece. She cannot jump over another piece.

The rook

A rook moves any number of unobstructed squares along a rank or file. Rooks are especially powerful on open files and participate with the king in castling.

The bishop

A bishop moves any number of unobstructed squares diagonally. Because it always remains on the same square color, each side begins with one light-squared bishop and one dark-squared bishop.

The knight

A knight moves in an L shape: two squares in one horizontal or vertical direction, then one square perpendicular to that line. It is the only piece that can jump over other pieces. A knight captures only the piece on its destination square.

The pawn

Pawns move forward one square into an empty square. From its starting square, a pawn may instead advance two squares if both squares are empty. Pawns capture one square diagonally forward and never capture straight ahead. White pawns move toward rank 8; Black pawns move toward rank 1.

No piece except a knight may pass through an occupied square. You cannot move onto a square occupied by one of your own pieces. Moving onto a square occupied by an opponent's piece captures and removes it.

Special chess moves

Castling

Castling is a single move involving the king and one rook. The king moves two squares toward the rook, and that rook crosses over to the square immediately beside the king. Kingside castling uses the nearer rook; queenside castling uses the farther rook.

Castling is legal only when the king has never moved, the chosen rook has never moved, every square between them is empty, and the king is not in check. The king also may not cross or land on a square attacked by an opponent. An attacked rook or an attacked square the rook crosses does not, by itself, prevent castling. See how castling works for examples and common mistakes.

En passant

En passant is a special pawn capture. When an opposing pawn advances two squares from its starting position and lands beside your pawn, your pawn may capture it as though it had advanced only one square. Your pawn moves diagonally into the square the opposing pawn passed over, and the opposing pawn is removed.

The option exists only on the immediately following move. If you make another move first, the right to that en passant capture disappears. Our en passant guide walks through the timing in detail.

Pawn promotion

When a pawn reaches the farthest rank, it must immediately be replaced by a queen, rook, bishop, or knight of the same color. Promotion is part of that move. A player may choose any of those pieces even if the original one remains on the board; promotion is not limited to captured pieces. Choosing a knight, rook, or bishop instead of a queen is called underpromotion.

Check, legal replies, and checkmate

A king is in check when an opposing piece attacks its square. The checked player must end the threat immediately by moving the king to a safe square, capturing the attacking piece, or blocking the attack when the attacking piece is a sliding piece and a block is possible.

You may not make a move that leaves your own king in check. This includes moving a pinned piece that was shielding the king. The king is never physically captured in a legal game.

Checkmate occurs when a king is in check and no legal move removes the threat. The game ends immediately, and the player delivering checkmate wins. Saying “check” aloud is customary in casual play but is not required by the rules.

Stalemate and other draws

Stalemate occurs when the player to move is not in check but has no legal move. Stalemate is a draw, not a win for the side with more material.

Players may also agree to a draw. In formal chess, a player can claim a draw when the same position is about to appear for the third time, or has appeared three times, with the same player to move and the same legal possibilities. A draw can also be claimed after 50 moves by each player without a pawn move or capture. Tournament rules additionally provide automatic draws after fivefold repetition or 75 such moves, unless the final move delivered checkmate.

A game is drawn by dead position when no possible sequence of legal moves can result in checkmate. Familiar examples include king versus king, king and bishop versus king, and king and knight versus king. Insufficient material should be judged by whether mate is possible, not merely by counting pieces.

Ready to start?

Remember the essentials: White moves first, protect your king, and make only legal moves. If a less common situation appears, return to the special-move sections or browse the frequently asked questions. For practical advice on presentation and play, read our guide to choosing a good 3D chess game.