Does chess increase your IQ or do you need IQ to play chess well?

Iq for Chess?

No

No. Take Nakamura, for example.

Despite these other uneducated answers, yes, chess increases your I.Q..   This has been proven.

This has been proven with countless studies over the course of decades from different researchers and facilities all over the world.

Google search it, you'll read about a lot of interesting results.

However, if they didn't play chess at all, they would be even dumber.

Sure, problem is so does almost any other "active" activity. You can find that physical exercise and activity are best for improving cognitive abilities, which IQ tries to show, as well as video games and probably any other activity. 

So the long answer to the first part of OPs question is "yeah, chess can increase IQ results, but so can almost any other activity and some are proven to do it better, like physical exercises".

The second part of the question should be obvious, since it doesn't define well. Cognitive abilities are need in most activities but spending time on chess > high iq for the results. 

And lastly, the true high iq, big brain move would be to search the forums because "chess and iq" is not a new, novel question.

EDIT: and of course, there is this whole debate if you even can increase your IQ beyond eating well, sleeping on time, being healthy and physically active as well as finding motivation. Most of studies show that brain games, like chess, just make you better at... brain games. 

Yea, lots of activities increase IQ.  Even playing some video games increases IQ.  But Chess is distinct.  It increases IQ almost more than any other activity you *could* be doing.  Up there with studying Calculus, and advanced sciences, such as engineering.  Yes Chess increases IQ by that much.  But I don't have to back up any of this, it's already been proven with numerous studies, which can be found through google.

Playing and studying chess doesn't just make you better at "brain games".  It's been proven to increase memory and focus to a high degree, as well as improving problem solving skills, and people's learning ability in general.

Or not.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5724589/#fn2-0963721417712760

Exactly, and here to articles about the findings since it can be easier to read a digested version: 

https://theconversation.com/is-it-possible-to-boost-your-intelligence-by-training-we-reviewed-three-decades-of-research-86554

https://www.learningscientists.org/blog/2017/12/14-1

So if anybody wants to get better at math, they probably would benefit more from any math related puzzles and games instead of trying to improve by chess. Nothing wrong with chess but this type of "it is known" type of factoids are so persistent.

Well, it depends how you look at it. Someone with a higher Iq will have a faster start at chess and they will understand chess quicker. But then again, someone with an average iq can work harder at learning and memorizing chess, and they can get very good as well. I would say someone with a very low iq will not be able to get to a very high level at chess.

So to conclude, an average iq has all the capabilities to learn chess very well and become a master. High iq does help, but is not necessary. You wont probably wouldnt find massive correlation between iq and chess elo if you ran a survey because hard work and ambition matter more, would be interesting to see tho.  This is how I look at it.

But guys what about the chess champions they all have it's of over 170 Like Bobby Fischer and Mangus Carlsen so they learn chess quicker and better and easier than lower iq?

Or are they just gone mad people who are out of this world smart?

Much is said about how chess is like some panacea that will wake up the genius in you , but no one mentions the countless lost blitz addicts

Does 1,000 push ups a day turn you in into a decathlete?

Do you need to be a decathlete to be able to do 1,000 push ups a day?

Same answer for Chess. It trains a very specific skill, but IQ tests are designed to measure generic, untrained, problem solving.

There is a correlation, but it's not that strong.

i agree. chess is like a sport, you must know theory and practise, IQ level isn't very important to enter in chess universe

1. While it is not 1 to 1 relation, usually higher IQ means higher learning speed as long as every other variable is equal/same (specially conscientiousness). So if having higher IQ implies that you learn faster and easier than you will have an edge in chess. Just like there are many tall people in basket- and volleyball but you don't become taller from either of those sports.
2. A lot of IQ claims are probably BS. Either it is some estimation or the test was done like half a century ago. No, I wouldn't be surprised if there are more >100 IQ in todays chess top 100 but that is expected in most activities, specially mental ones.