The Best Chess Openings for White for Beginners
Learning how to play the opening can be a great way to get better results, but it also demands time and effort. While there are many openings you can play as White, some may not be the best option for beginners. That's why it's so important to pick the right opening for you to play, especially when you're just starting out.
In this article, we'll go over great White openings for beginners. This list includes reputable openings that are easier to learn and understand, while also avoiding tricky lines and heavy memorization.
- Focus On Learning The Fundamental Opening Principles
- How Many Openings Should Beginners Learn?
- The Best Two Starting Moves For Beginners As White
- Best 1.e4 Openings For Beginners
- Best 1.d4 Openings For Beginners
- Conclusion
Focus On Learning The Fundamental Opening Principles
Especially as a beginner, it's not a good idea to focus on memorizing specific opening moves. Instead, you should learn the basic opening principles that will guide you through the opening. This way, you'll have a good idea of what to play even if you can't remember the exact move of a variation, or if your opponent plays a move not covered in this article.
Opening principles suggest controlling the center, actively developing your pieces to fight for premium squares, and castling your king to safety. Generally speaking, you want to move every one of your pieces only once until you've developed all of your army and castled to keep your king safe—unless there's a direct threat against you, of course.
Here's a "dream scenario" in the opening that highlights rapid development and king safety.
We have a great lesson on this theme, and you should internalize these concepts before moving on to more in-depth opening training.
How Many Openings Should Beginners Learn?
When starting out on your chess journey, it’s desirable to have a simple, reliable opening companion that can grow with you. Focusing on playing one opening will deepen your understanding of it and boost your confidence in knowing where your pieces belong, setting the stage for a good game.
That's why it's a good idea to learn a single opening for each of Black's responses and stick with it until you've mastered it.
The Best Two Starting Moves For Beginners As White
There are many possible ways to open a chess game, but it's usually a good idea to narrow it down to two. The moves 1.e4 and 1.d4 are your best choices as a beginner, and are also the top two moves played by grandmasters. And while these two pawns are next-door neighbors, the one you choose to move forward first can determine the nature of the entire game!
Starting out with 1.e4 will typically lead to more open games, where you must be vigilant for tactics and sharp play. This move is usually a good choice for the more aggressive players. For this reason, it's also more challenging to learn, and you'll need to study considerably more opening theory.
Starting with 1.d4 will usually lead to slower, more positional games, where you can get away with memorizing fewer opening moves. However, this also means you'll have to dedicate yourself more to learning how to conduct the middlegame.
Both of these moves have been tried and tested for hundreds of years. They are equally good, so choosing one comes down to personal taste.
Best 1.e4 Openings For Beginners
1.e4 is the most popular opening move in chess. It immediately controls the center, and it opens up the diagonal for your light-squared bishop and queen.
This allows White to rapidly develop and castle the king. When opening with 1.e4, you need to be ready to face the "big four" defenses: 1...e5, the Sicilian, the French, and the Caro-Kann. You'll find the easiest responses to each of them below:
Italian Game
Black often wants to achieve the same benefits of White's 1.e4 by responding in kind with 1…e5, leading us to our first recommendation, the Italian Game:
The Italian Game promises easy, straightforward development for beginners. White can castle the king to safety on the next move. Notice the light-squared bishop eyes the weakest point in the opponent's camp, the f7-pawn, which is only defended by the black king. So, easy development and applying immediate pressure against the black kingside in only three moves—what's not to love?
Recommended course: Short and Sweet: Kalyan's Italian Game
The Sicilian Defense, which starts with the moves 1.e4 c5, is one of Black's most popular defenses. The Sicilian uses a wing pawn to fight for control over the center of the board and can lead to sharp and dangerous games.
A great way for beginners to counter the Sicilian is by playing 2. c3, known as the Alapin Variation. White is ready to build a solid two-pawn center with 3.d4 to grab more space, develop the kingside pieces, and castle the king.
Recommended Course: c3 Sicil for the Kill
French Defense Exchange Variation
Black can respond to White's 1.e4 with 1...e6, the French Defense, preparing to challenge White's central pawn with d7-d5. Whenever your pawn on e4 is attacked, a simple and good way to respond is to simply capture the attacking pawn. The French Defense Exchange Variation might not be the most challenging response to Black's play, but it is a reliable choice and a great way to keep things simple.
Recommended Guide: French Defense: Exchange Variation
Caro-Kann Exchange Variation
The Caro-Kann follows a similar concept to the French Defense. Black plays 1...c6, letting White build a two-pawn center, to immediately attack it with d7-d5.
Just like against the French Defense, White may advance the e4-pawn, support it by developing a knight, or, as we recommend, keep the game simple by capturing the attacking pawn. Once again, this keeps the center open, maintaining clear and comfortable lines for development while preparing to castle the king.
Recommended course: GM Neiksans Boot Camp #10: Exchange Caro-Kann
Best 1.d4 Openings For Beginners
1.d4 is another great first move White can play to occupy the center. Just like after 1.e4, White will happily claim more central space after 1.d4, if allowed to, by placing the e-pawn in the center with 2.e4. To counter this plan, Black will often play 1...d5, inviting the legendary Queen's Gambit.
The Queen's Gambit
The Queen's Gambit starts after 1.d4 d5 2.c4, and it rivals 1.e4 as one of the most classical, reliable ways to start the game. Black cannot both safely capture and hold onto the c4-pawn, so White fights for additional central space before focusing on completing development and castling.
This can lead to more strategic, slower-paced games compared to 1.e4 openings, but the Queen's Gambit can also light the board up with tactical fireworks if both players are so inclined.
Recommended course: Short & Sweet: Finegold's 1.d4
The London System: Building a House
If you'd prefer to avoid immediate central tension like the Queen's Gambit, the London System is a solid option that requires very little opening study. The London System typically offers a reliable pawn structure with predictable and comfortable piece development. This is a good way to build a solid "opening house" to make your way through the initial phase of the game and get ready to embrace middlegame adventures.
Recommended course: Short & Sweet: Banzea's London
Conclusion
Now that you have taken your first steps in exploring opening ideas with the white pieces, you can also round out your initial opening journey by checking out the best openings for Black for beginners.
While these openings are good for beginners, it's important to remember that learning the basic opening principles is the best way to improve your opening play. Check out this lesson by our team of master players to learn everything you need to know to play the opening well!
