About Your Chess Level

Below is a chart to help you understand what ratings mean in determining your skill level.

This is based on the current United States Chess Federation's Rating System.

Class J 100–199 Level 1

Players in these categories range from just learning the names of the pieces and how they move to being able to move the pieces in a game properly and to make basic captures.

They lack any strategy and do not yet, understand Checkmate and how to achieve it intentionally.

Many of these games are simply won and lost through random moves being played and a result coming about...kind of accidentally.

Players in these categories have an understanding of what checkmate is and how to achieve it.

They are not beginning to apply concious strategic ideas in the beginning, middle and end of the game.

Their ideas are still shallow and are often unsound.

They have not learned to calculate and assess accurately the cause and effect of their moves and are stll leaving their pieces unprotected and making careless mistakes or blunders ( unforced errors) in their games.

Players at these levels are beginning to have confidence in the ideas they are familiar with and have some firm strategic ideas and plans they look for when playing.

They are starting to use more tactical ideas to bring about an advantage or a checkmate. They are starting to yearn for more depth in their game.

Players are making less blunders winning consistently against lower class players and losing consistently to more skilled players with better strategic ideas, resolve and technique.

Players at these levels ar better than the majority of perople who play chess. They are working toward mastering the game and need more development of skill with tactics, technique, positional understanding and over all chess IQ

If you want to improvey ourchess, it is vital that you are paying attention to your numbers month to month and consciously striving for the next level.