Play a friend, challenge a bot, or share a board.
A calm opponent. Favors development and quieter positions.
Your current local game will be replaced.
Loading Classic Lichess samples…
Resize the board by dragging its lower-right corner, or use Board size in Preferences. Double-click the handle to maximize. With the handle focused, use arrow keys to resize.
Drag pieces with a mouse or finger, or select a piece and its destination. Only legal moves are allowed.
During your opponent’s turn, drag or click your own pieces to queue up to five premoves. Red squares and numbered badges show your plan. Moves play in order when your turn arrives; an illegal move cancels the remaining queue. Right-click, tap a queued piece, use Cancel, or press Escape to clear it. Premoves use at least 0.1 seconds; online latency can add time. Toggle premoves in Preferences.
Right-drag to draw an arrow. Right-click to circle a square. Draw the same mark again to remove it. On a phone, enable Draw, then drag or tap a square.
Arrow colors: green by default, Shift for red, Ctrl for blue, Alt for gold. Your annotations stay on your device.
For online play, create a match and copy its invitation. Your friend opens the link and chooses Join. Return in the same browser to keep your seat. Draws, takebacks, and rematches need your opponent’s agreement. Takebacks remove the last move without restoring elapsed time. Clocks start after the first move and continue while you’re away.
Classic sounds: Lichess Standard recordings, loaded from the official repository. An internet connection is needed for Classic; Soft wood and Warm keys work offline.
Interface inspiration: Lichess & Chess.com.
Choose a queen, rook, bishop, or knight.
Your opponent wins. You can start another game anytime.