Does the rating system actually work?

Sort:
chessgenius756813

It's all in the title.

ponz111

Which rating system??

chessgenius756813

chess.com's.

u0110001101101000

I see you're new.

New players (and inactive players) get a multiplier put on their rating change. So you may gain (or lose) 100s of points in the first few games. Not quite as many the next 5 or so, and so on, until you're considered an active player. Then your rating change is normal (usually 5 to 15 points per game).

This is the Glicko rating system in a nutshell.