How to get into chess
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So i’ve recently developed an interest in chess, which led to me downloading this app. I’ve been learning the basic moves and all of that, but I don’t know what to do next. Do I have to watch games, study openings or play against bots? What’s the best way to improve? Any tips/schedule?
Also is there any age where it’s ‘too late’ to learn chess?
Feb 18, 2021
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#3
May I suggest: when starting, do what's fun for you. Presuming that you don't have intentions on trying to win championships and making a living at this, then it's a pastime, and it should be enjoyable. It's sort of a smorgasbord here with puzzles, lessons, games against real people with varying time, against bots, etc. Sample them and see what you like.
Then, if you find an urge to want to get better, there are great resources around here, and lots of folks that will offer advice.
Welcome aboard and enjoy your journey!
And as for your last question: if you have enough cognitive skills to download the app, learn basic moves, post here . . . then it's not 'too late' to learn!
Dear Veryextremebeginner,
I am a certified, full-time chess coach, so I hope I can help you. 
Everybody is different, so that's why there isn't only one general way to learn. First of all, you have to discover your biggest weaknesses in the game and start working on them. The most effective way for that is analysing your own games. Of course, if you are a beginner, you can't do it efficiently because you don't know too much about the game yet. There is a built-in engine on chess.com which can show you if a move is good or bad but the only problem that it can't explain you the plans, ideas behind the moves, so you won't know why is it so good or bad.
You can learn from books or Youtube channels as well, and maybe you can find a lot of useful information there but these sources are mostly general things and not personalized at all. That's why you need a good coach sooner or later if you really want to be better at chess. A good coach can help you with identifying your biggest weaknesses and explain everything, so you can leave your mistakes behind you. Of course, you won't apply everything immediately, this is a learning process (like learning languages), but if you are persistent and enthusiastic, you will achieve your goals.
In my opinion, chess has 4 main territories (openings, strategies, tactics/combinations and endgames). If you want to improve efficiently, you should improve all of these skills almost at the same time. That's what my training program is based on. My students really like it because the lessons are not boring (because we talk about more than one areas within one lesson) and they feel the improvement on the longer run. Of course, there are always ups and downs but this is completely normal in everyone's career.
I hope this is helpful for you. Good luck for your chess games!
Start here...
Improving Your Chess - Resources for Beginners and Beyond...
https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/improving-your-chess-resources-for-beginners-and-beyond
Feb 18, 2021
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#6
I was recently in your shoes. After going through that, this is what I did to improve:
https://www.chess.com/blog/nklristic/the-beginners-tale-first-steps-to-chess-improvement
Generally, studying exact opening lines will not get you far as a beginner, your opponents will rarely play main lines. So do tactical puzzles, play longer games (at least 15|10, longer if possible) and try analyzing your games afterwards - at least check the games for blunders, and generally study chess... if you have the time, read that article, I explained everything in greater detail there. And playing weak bots is not that helpful, because bots will make weird mistakes and moves humans rarely make. It can be fun thought.
Bgabor91 when would you say a good time to find a coach would be?
Dear Juanknakamine,
The sooner you get a coach, the faster you improve. Moreover, it's like learning lenguages. If you learn and use something on the wrong way, it's more difficult to remove it from your mind and it becomes a bad habit for you. A coach can guide you from the beginning.
veryextremebeginner wrote:
Also is there any age where it’s ‘too late’ to learn chess?
I'm a chess newbie at 75 and really enjoying it. If you want to become the world champion, then an early start is certainly necessary, but if just you want to enjoy the game and practice stretching your brain cells then it's never too late.
Feb 19, 2021
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#11
I started 3 weeks ago at the age of 46, never have had a person that inspired me in chess but now I have the fun of my life, trying every button on this funny site...be here for hours every day...perhaps I will getting better in a few years...so try your best! here is my board I’m playing on offline 😂
Feb 19, 2021
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#12
I'm so glad that you are getting into chess. It's not too late to get into something new!
My name is Lauren Goodkind and I'm a chess teacher based in California. To help you improve, you are welcome to download my free eBook for beginners. In this eBook, I teach beginners how to win a chess game: www.ChessByLauren.com.
Learning basic tactics, such as forks, pins, discovered checks, and more will help you win chess games.
Also, before each move, ask, "If I move here, is it safe?" to avoid loosing pieces for no good reason. I hope that this helps.
Heyy ! You should join my facebook group " Chess Passion", i'm building a community for making new friends and share about Chess in general, i'm sure you'll learn something or at least have a good time ! See you soon ! Thanks ❤
https://www.facebook.com/groups/728026458137919