The 10 Best Chess Websites to Improve Your Game in 2023

The game of chess has always captivated people with its intricate strategies and timeless appeal. With the advent of technology, it has seamlessly transitioned onto the digital stage, with a plethora of websites now dedicated to nurturing this beloved game. If you're part of the 800 million people playing chess worldwide, then you probably use some chess websites already. However, there are surely more resources you can use to up your skills regardless of your chess level and goal.

In this blog, we explore the top chess websites you should be using in 2023. These platforms offer a wealth of resources, from in-depth lessons and puzzles to powerful game engines and live tournament broadcasts. So let's go through these ten popular chess websites and see how you can benefit from each of them.

10. The Week in Chess (TWIC)

An essential resource for keeping up to date with global chess happenings, The Week in Chess is a free weekly digest that covers chess news and games. Since 1994, TWIC has been providing downloadable game databases and comprehensive reports on tournaments from around the world. Many professional chess players and grandmasters keep their databases up to date by complementing them with the weekly PGNs provided by TWIC. Even the online Mega Database of Chessify is updated by these PGN databases every week.

TWIC has a loyal global following thanks to its consistency and commitment to providing free, timely, and detailed chess content. It's an excellent resource if you want to study the games of the world's top players and learn about the latest chess news.

9. Chess Tempo

A go-to platform for tactics training, Chess Tempo offers a vast selection of chess puzzles tailored to different skill levels. What’s great about ChessTempo's puzzles is that they are taken from real games, helping users to apply their tactical knowledge in practical game situations. Apart from 80,000 tactical puzzles, ChessTempo also offers endgame training with 10,000 problems taken from actual games as well. It also provides a playing area, digital books, and even a chess database, which, however, is not as big as the ones provided by some of the other websites in this list, namely ChessBase and Chessify.

8. Chessable

The chess player's Udemy, Chessable offers a rich and diverse collection of online courses. Users can find a vast array of video courses on various topics, ranging from openings to specific strategies. These courses have been created by a broad range of creators, from enthusiastic community members to top-ranking Grandmasters like Anish Giri and Vladimir Kramnik. It's a great platform for people eager to learn from the world's best coaches and players. Apart from video courses, Chessable is also known for utilizing innovative learning methods. Its distinctive 'MoveTrainer' technology incorporates the principle of spaced repetition, ensuring the reinforcement and efficient memorization of chess patterns, openings, and endgames.

7. ChessBase

While ChessBase's reputation as a premier database software provider is well-established, the company's online presence is also impressive. The ChessBase website features various chess content including up-to-date news coverage, insightful feature articles, and valuable instructional videos. Importantly, however, it also offers a training area which is basically the web version of its popular software. Available at openings.chessbase.com, it gives players the opportunity to use their key feature, the database of historical and annotated games, online (although a premium account is required), analyze with an engine at basic 1-2 MN/s speed, as well as solve tactics and watch video courses. Of course, it is not as complex as the software but still is a helpful resource for chess enthusiasts.

6. Chess Puzzle Net

An interactive way to boost your tactical prowess, Chess Puzzle Net stands out with its extensive collection of chess puzzles. These exercises, sourced from actual games, are categorized under the player names, facilitating a deep dive into different playing styles. The website invites users to solve puzzles by making moves on an interactive board, simulating the feel of an actual game. If you continue to make the correct moves, the computer responds on behalf of the opponent, uplifting your experience. What makes Chess Puzzle Net even more fun, is that it assigns you a rating based on the puzzles you solve and allows you to compete against other users in their leaderboard. The website also has some videos and blogs to help you improve as a puzzle solver.

5. ChessMood

ChessMood is a comprehensive online chess learning platform offering more than 300 hours of detailed video courses, designed and delivered by Grandmasters. These courses cover a broad range of topics, including opening theory, middlegame strategy, and endgame technique. Additionally, ChessMood conducts regular live streams where the platform's coaches play and demonstrate the concepts taught in the courses. This offers students the opportunity to see the theory in practice and deepen their understanding of various positions. The platform also maintains an active forum and hosts frequent interactive streams, allowing learners to interact directly with the Grandmaster team to ask questions and clarify doubts. Thus, ChessMood provides a multifaceted approach to chess learning, combining theoretical lessons, practical demonstrations, and interactive engagement.

4. Chess24

Chess24 distinguishes itself with a particular focus on its user-friendly live tournament broadcasting. Users can stay up-to-date with chess news and tournament coverages, and most importantly, follow the major chess events in real-time. What helped Chess24 become the most popular game broadcasting website was its intuitive design. Within a single tab, users can easily navigate between current standings, round results, forum discussions, live video coverage, and the games themselves, making it an incredibly convenient platform for chess enthusiasts. Adding to the allure of Chess24 is its array of interactive lessons and video series helmed by chess professionals. Additionally, it provides a Playzone, where users can pit their skills against other players or computer opponents.

3. Chessify

Having begun its journey as a cloud engine analysis platform catering mainly to professional chess players, Chessify has since augmented its offerings with several advanced features, making it an all-encompassing training platform for chess enthusiasts of various levels. Today Chessify provides all the crucial features of GUI chess programs like ChessBase, yet with a contemporary twist. It includes a 9+ Million game mega database which is updated every week automatically, opening references, full-game analysis, and even cloud storage for saving your own games and databases. 

The heart of Chessify, however, lies in its cloud services for engine analysis. The platform offers server speeds of up to 1 BN/s (1,000,000 kN/s) for Stockfish, clocking in at approximately three times faster than other market-available cloud servers. This distinctive feature, alongside access to LCZero and other engines, has catapulted Chessify into the limelight, earning the trust of numerous Grandmasters, with Anish Giri and Levon Aronian endorsing the service as brand ambassadors.

2. Chess.com

With over 100 Million users, chess.com is undoubtedly the most visited chess website in the world. It offers a wide range of resources, including lessons, drills, puzzles, and articles, to help people learn chess from zero or improve at different parts of the game. The standout feature of chess.com, however, is its play zone, which is highly active and can match players with closely-rated opponents quickly and easily. Chess.com's online platform is where the world's top Grandmasters play their online games, giving users a chance to watch high-level chess in action. In addition to its educational resources and gameplay, chess.com also provides live-streaming coverage of major chess events, keeping its users connected to the international chess scene. Another useful aspect of the website is its large forum where you can find answers and discussions about various chess-related topics.

1. Lichess

Founded in 2010, Lichess.org has quickly emerged as a favored platform for chess enthusiasts, due to its commitment to remaining a free and ad-free site. You can find nearly any chess feature on Lichess, from online play and puzzles to analysis and editing tools. Its playing zone may only be second to chess.com's in terms of active daily players, but that difference can easily change given Lichess' vibrant community of supporters. Despite the site's no-cost policy, a large group of patrons choose to financially support Lichess, enabling the platform to constantly improve and offering more tournaments, simuls, team matches, and event 'Lichess TV', where users can watch real-time games played by the site's top-rated players. This unwavering dedication to providing an excellent, cost-free user experience, coupled with its unique features and strong community support, sets Lichess apart in the world of online chess.

Each of these sites offers a unique set of features that can assist you in different aspects of chess playing and learning, so don't limit yourself to just one. Mix and match these resources for a holistic and well-rounded chess experience.