Chess notation: how to read and write chess moves
Chess notation records every move with the letter of the piece and the name of the square it goes to: Nf3 means knight to f3. It lets you write down a game and play it through later, and follow the moves in books and on websites. This system of piece letters and square names is also called algebraic notation.
The squares: from a1 to h8
The name of a square is a letter followed by a number. The letter gives the file and the number the rank: e4 is the square where the e-file crosses the fourth rank. Ranks are counted from White's side, so rank 1 is White's and rank 8 is Black's. That gives each of the 64 squares its own name, from a1 in White's bottom left corner to h8 in the top right. White starts on ranks 1 and 2, Black on ranks 7 and 8. For Black the files run from right to left: the a-file is on his right.
Which letter stands for which chess piece?
Every piece is written as a capital letter. A pawn has no letter, so a move without a letter is always a pawn move.
| Piece | Letter |
|---|---|
| King | K |
| Queen | Q |
| Rook | R |
| Bishop | B |
| Knight | N |
| Pawn | no letter |
Books for an international audience often print small pictures of the pieces instead of letters, so that anyone can read the moves, whatever language they play chess in.
How to write down a move
Write the letter of the piece and the square it moves to, with no space in between. Nf3 means a knight moves to f3. Bc4 is a bishop to c4. For a pawn you only write the square: e4 means a pawn to e4.
Moves are numbered in pairs: first White's move, then Black's. So 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 means White plays e4, Black e5, White Nf3 and Black Nc6. To mention only a move by Black, put three dots where White's move would be: 2. ... Nc6.
What if two pieces can go to the same square?
Then you add which of the two it is. If they stand on the same rank, add the file the piece comes from: with knights on g1 and e1, Ngf3 is the knight from g1 and Nef3 the knight from e1. If they stand on the same file, add the number of the rank: with knights on g5 and g1 you write N5f3 or N1f3.
Captures, check and checkmate
| Symbol | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| x | capture | Bxe5: the bishop captures on e5 |
| x after a small letter | a pawn captures, with the file it comes from | dxe5: the pawn from the d-file captures on e5 |
| + | check | Qe3+ |
| # or ++ | checkmate | Qxf7# |
| e.p. | en passant capture | exd6 e.p. |
| (=) | draw offered | Kb1 (=) |
The x, +, # and e.p. are optional: Bxe5 may also be written Be5. When a pawn captures, the file it comes from is required. Mind the difference between Bxe5 and bxe5: with a capital letter the bishop captures, with a small letter a pawn from the b-file.
Castling, promotion and the result
Castling is written with zeros: 0-0 is castling kingside, with the rook from h1 or h8, and 0-0-0 is castling queenside, with the rook from a1 or a8. How castling works is explained in our chess rules.
For a promotion you write the pawn move followed straight away by the letter of the new piece: d8Q is a pawn that becomes a queen on d8, exf8N a pawn that captures on f8 and becomes a knight.
At the end you write the result: 1-0 if White wins, 0-1 if Black wins and ½-½ for a draw.
Example: scholar's mate in notation
This is what a short game looks like on paper: 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nc6 3. Qh5 Nf6 4. Qxf7# 1-0. Move by move:
| Move | White | Black | What happens |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | e4 | e5 | Both sides push a pawn two squares, to e4 and e5. |
| 2 | Bc4 | Nc6 | White's bishop goes from f1 to c4, Black's knight from b8 to c6. |
| 3 | Qh5 | Nf6 | White's queen goes to h5, Black's other knight to f6. |
| 4 | Qxf7# | The queen takes the pawn on f7 and gives checkmate. White wins: 1-0. |
Why this is checkmate and how to stop it is explained under checkmate in 4 moves: scholar's mate.
Short and long notation
What you see above is short notation: only the square a piece moves to. Long notation also gives the square it comes from, for example e2e4 or Ng1f3, often with a hyphen: e2-e4. That shows at a glance which piece is moving. Both are allowed.
In older English-language chess books you may find moves like P-K4. That is descriptive notation. In today's notation White's P-K4 is simply e4; for Black, P-K4 means e5, because each player counts the ranks from his own side.
Chess notation in Dutch
Dutch players use the same system with Dutch letters: K for koning (king), D for dame (queen), T for toren (rook), L for loper (bishop) and P for paard (knight). So Nf3 becomes Pf3 and Qh5 becomes Dh5. Chess programs and websites store games as PGN, a plain text file that always uses the English letters.
What do ! and ? after a move mean?
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ! | good move |
| !! | brilliant move |
| !? | interesting move |
| ?! | dubious move |
| ? | bad move |
| ?? | blunder |
These marks are the opinion of whoever comments on the game, not part of the move itself. You mostly see them in books and in annotated games.
Do you have to write your moves down in a tournament?
In a tournament game with a long time control, yes: each player writes down his own moves and his opponent's, move by move, in this notation. Only a player with less than 5 minutes on the clock who does not get at least 30 seconds added per move may stop for the rest of that period. In rapid and blitz games you do not have to, and at home you do not have to either. It is still useful, though: it lets you replay a good game later.
Practise reading notation
Read a game with a board in front of you: set up the pieces as in our chess rules and play every move. The short games in how to checkmate make a good first exercise. A board and pieces to practise with is our chess board with 32 pieces, 3D printed in The Hague.