{"toolCopy":{"pgn-viewer":{"seoTitle":"PGN Viewer – Open and Replay PGN Files Online, Free","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Online PGN Viewer","intro":"Paste a PGN (Portable Game Notation) file or open a .pgn to step through the game on an interactive board. Every position can be copied as FEN, opened in the board editor, or shared with a link. Everything runs in your browser — nothing is uploaded. New to the format? See what is PGN for tags, movetext, and how .pgn files open.","features":[{"title":"Multi-game files","body":"Load a tournament file with dozens of games and switch between them from a list."},{"title":"Tap or keyboard navigation","body":"Tap any move to jump to it. On a desktop, ← → step through the game and Home/End jump to the start or the final position."},{"title":"Position tools","body":"Copy the FEN of any position, open it in the board editor, or analyze it on Lichess in one click."},{"title":"Forgiving parser","body":"Comments, variations, NAGs and even scoresheet shorthand like 0-0 or dc are understood. Illegal moves are flagged, not silently dropped."}],"howToTitle":"How to use the PGN viewer","howTo":["Paste PGN text into the box, or use Choose file to pick a .pgn — on a desktop you can also drag one onto the box.","Tap Load. The board shows the starting position, with the move list beside it on a wide screen and below it on a phone.","Tap any move to jump to that position; on a desktop the arrow keys work too.","Use Copy FEN, Open in editor or Share to take the position elsewhere."],"faq":[{"question":"What is a PGN file?","answer":"PGN (Portable Game Notation) is the standard plain-text format for recording chess games. It contains a header with tags such as Event, White, Black and Result, followed by the moves in algebraic notation. Chess.com, Lichess and every chess database can import and export PGN."},{"question":"Is my PGN uploaded to a server?","answer":"No. The viewer parses and replays the game entirely in your browser. Nothing you paste or open here leaves your device."},{"question":"Can I view a PGN with several games?","answer":"Yes. When the file contains more than one game a selector appears above the board so you can switch between them."},{"question":"What if the PGN has an illegal move?","answer":"The viewer replays every legal move up to the problem and highlights the move it could not play. Use the PGN validator to see the legal alternatives and produce a cleaned file."},{"question":"How do I get a PGN from a paper scoresheet?","answer":"Photograph the scoresheet and run it through ScanChess. The AI reads the handwriting, validates the moves and gives you a downloadable PGN you can open in this viewer."},{"question":"How is this different from viewing a PGN on Lichess or Chess.com?","answer":"Both sites show a game once it is imported into an account or a study. This viewer needs no account and no import, keeps the game on your device, and gives you an embed code to show the game on your own website."}],"cta":{"title":"Have a handwritten scoresheet instead?","body":"ScanChess turns a photo of your scoresheet into a validated PGN in seconds. New accounts get free credits — no card required.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"board-editor":{"seoTitle":"Chess Board Editor & FEN Generator – Free, No Sign-up","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Chess Board Editor","intro":"Use this chess board editor like a lightweight alternative to a Lichess board editor: tap or drag pieces, paste a FEN, or drop a screenshot above the board to continue in image-to-FEN scanning. The FEN updates as you edit. When the position is playable, the panel shows whether the side to move is in check, checkmated, or stalemated. Copy the FEN, share a link, download a PNG, or open the position for analysis.","features":[{"title":"Live FEN","body":"The FEN string updates with every change, and a paste box lets you load one to start from."},{"title":"Position checks","body":"Castling rights, side to move and en passant are set from the panel; the tool warns when a position is not playable."},{"title":"Board to image","body":"Download the diagram as a crisp PNG for a blog, worksheet or social post."},{"title":"Touch friendly","body":"Tap a piece in the tray, then tap squares to place it. Tap the eraser to clear squares."}],"howToTitle":"How to use the board editor","howTo":["Start from the initial position, an empty board, or paste a FEN.","Tap a piece in the tray, then tap a square to place it — or drag it across on a desktop. Tap the eraser, or drag a piece off the board, to remove it.","Choose the side to move and castling rights in the panel.","Copy the FEN, download the PNG, share the link or open the position for analysis."],"faq":[{"question":"What is FEN and how does this chess board editor use it?","answer":"FEN (Forsyth–Edwards Notation) is a standard one-line description of a chess position. In this chess board editor, the FEN string updates live with every piece you move, and you can copy it or open it in analysis."},{"question":"Why does the tool say my position is not playable?","answer":"A legal position needs exactly one king per side, no pawns on the first or eighth rank, and the side that is not to move must not be in check. You can still copy the FEN, but engines and analysis boards may reject it."},{"question":"Can I edit a board from a photo or screenshot?","answer":"Yes — ScanChess includes an AI board recognizer that turns a photo or screenshot of a physical or digital chessboard into an editable position right inside this board editor."},{"question":"How do I tell if a FEN is checkmate?","answer":"Paste the FEN into this chess board editor. When the position is playable, the status line under the board shows check, checkmate, or stalemate for the side to move. There is no checkmate field in FEN itself—the rules follow from the pieces and whose turn it is."},{"question":"How do I turn a FEN into an image?","answer":"Paste the FEN into the editor and click Download PNG. The image is rendered locally at high resolution with coordinates. For more export options, open the same FEN in the FEN to Image tool."},{"question":"How is this different from the Lichess board editor?","answer":"The Lichess editor is free and good. This one also tells you why a position cannot be played, such as a pawn on the back rank or both kings in check, exports the board as a PNG diagram, and can start from a screenshot instead of an empty board."}],"cta":{"title":"Snap a real board instead","body":"ScanChess reads a photo of a physical chessboard and gives you the FEN, ready to edit here or analyze. Free credits on sign-up.","button":"Recognize a board photo"}},"pgn-validator":{"seoTitle":"PGN Validator – Check and Fix a Chess PGN Online","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"PGN Validator & Cleaner","intro":"Paste a PGN or a bare list of moves. The validator plays them out on a real board, points at the first move that does not work and lists the legal alternatives, then rewrites the game as a clean seven-tag PGN. Shorthand such as 0-0, dc or e8Q is normalized automatically. For what each header tag means, see what is PGN.","features":[{"title":"Exact error location","body":"See the move number, the token that failed, and every legal move in that position."},{"title":"Notation clean-up","body":"Castling with zeros, missing check marks, lowercase pieces and promotion shorthand are corrected to standard SAN."},{"title":"Standard output","body":"The result is a Seven Tag Roster PGN wrapped at 80 columns that Chess.com, Lichess and ChessBase accept."},{"title":"Nothing leaves your browser","body":"Validation runs locally with chess.js. Paste tournament games without worrying about privacy."}],"howToTitle":"How to validate a PGN","howTo":["Paste the PGN, or just the moves, into the box.","Click Validate. Green means every move is legal; red points at the first problem.","Fix the move in your source (or in the PGN viewer) and validate again.","Copy or download the cleaned PGN."],"faq":[{"question":"What does the validator check?","answer":"It parses the header tags, strips comments and variations, then plays each move on a board that enforces the rules of chess. Any move that is illegal, ambiguous or malformed is reported with its move number and the legal moves in that position."},{"question":"Does it fix errors automatically?","answer":"It fixes notation errors — 0-0 for O-O, dc for dxc5, e8Q for e8=Q, missing + and # signs. It cannot guess what a genuinely illegal move was meant to be; that is why it shows the legal alternatives for you to choose from."},{"question":"Can I paste moves without headers?","answer":"Yes. A bare move list such as \"1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6\" is enough. The cleaned output adds placeholder headers you can fill in."},{"question":"Why do handwritten scoresheets produce invalid PGN?","answer":"Players skip a move, write the wrong file, or forget to mark a capture. If you are typing up a scoresheet, ScanChess can read the photo, apply the same validation and let you correct moves on the board."}],"cta":{"title":"Typing up scoresheets by hand?","body":"Skip the typing. ScanChess reads handwritten scoresheets, validates every move the same way and lets you fix mistakes on the board. Free credits on sign-up.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"printable-scoresheets":{"seoTitle":"Printable Chess Score Sheet (PDF) – Free Notation Sheets","kicker":"Free PDF · A4 and US Letter","h1":"Free Chess Notation Sheets","intro":"A chess score sheet (also called a notation sheet, or a scorebook page) is where both players write every move of a tournament game. Choose from four layouts: a 60-move sheet in the two-column tournament format, an 80-move sheet for long classical games, a 40-move sheet with large rows for kids and beginners, and a rapid page that fits two 30-move games. Add the event, round and club, check the live preview, then print it or save it as a PDF. Write moves in algebraic notation—White in the left column, Black in the right—as covered in how to fill out a chess scoresheet. When the game is over, photograph the filled-in sheet and ScanChess turns the handwriting into a validated PGN.","features":[{"title":"Four layouts","body":"60 moves for club and tournament games, 80 moves for classical time controls, 40 large rows for juniors, and two 30-move games on one page for rapid events."},{"title":"Event details printed in","body":"Fill in the tournament, date, round, table, players and club before printing, or leave any field blank for players to write by hand."},{"title":"Sharp on A4 and US Letter","body":"The sheets are drawn as vectors in black and white, so lines and move numbers stay crisp on any office printer and use little toner."},{"title":"Ready to scan afterwards","body":"The grid keeps White and Black moves in separate, numbered columns, which is the layout a scoresheet scanner reads most reliably."}],"howToTitle":"How to print a chess score sheet","howTo":["Choose a layout: 60 moves, 80 moves, 40 moves for kids, or two rapid games on one page.","Optionally type the tournament, round, club or player names to print them on every sheet.","Click \"Print Scoresheet\" and print, or choose \"Save as PDF\" in the print dialog to keep a file.","After the game, photograph the completed sheet and let ScanChess turn the handwriting into a PGN."],"faq":[{"question":"What is a chess notation sheet?","answer":"It is the same thing as a score sheet: a form with numbered rows where both players record each move in algebraic notation, plus boxes for the event, round, players and result. A scorebook is simply many of these sheets bound together."},{"question":"Do these sheets follow FIDE conventions?","answer":"The 60-move and 80-move sheets use the usual tournament layout: a header for White, Black, event, date, round, table and result, numbered move rows with White and Black columns, and signature lines for both players. An arbiter can still require the official sheet of a particular event."},{"question":"How do I fill out a chess score sheet?","answer":"Write the move number once per row, White's move in the left column and Black's in the right, using algebraic notation such as Nf3 or exd5. Under FIDE rules you make the move on the board first and then write it down. See the related guide below, How to Fill Out a Chess Scoresheet, for a full worked example."},{"question":"How can I save the sheet as a PDF file?","answer":"Click \"Print Scoresheet\" (or press Ctrl+P / Cmd+P) and pick \"Save as PDF\" as the print destination instead of a printer."},{"question":"What paper size should I use?","answer":"Choose A4 (210 x 297 mm) or US Letter (8.5 x 11 in) in the paper setting. Both print with standard margins."},{"question":"How do I turn a filled-in score sheet into a PGN?","answer":"Take a clear, flat photo of the sheet and upload it to ScanChess. It reads the handwriting, replays every move on a board to check it is legal, and lets you correct anything before you download the PGN."}],"cta":{"title":"Already filled out your score sheet?","body":"Skip the typing. ScanChess reads the handwritten moves, checks each one against the rules, and gives you a PGN for replay and analysis.","button":"Scan a score sheet"}},"game-analysis":{"seoTitle":"Free Chess Game Analysis – Stockfish in Your Browser","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Free Chess Game Analysis","intro":"Load a PGN and Stockfish runs in this tab, not on a server. Switch the engine on, analyze the whole game, and the move list fills with the verdict on each move: an accuracy figure per side, and a mark against every inaccuracy, mistake and blunder. Step through any position to see the engine’s lines and the move it preferred.","features":[{"title":"The engine runs on your device","body":"Stockfish 18 is downloaded once and searches in your browser. Your games are never sent anywhere, and there is no queue and no daily limit."},{"title":"A verdict on every move","body":"The whole-game analysis walks each position and scores the move that was played against the one the engine wanted, in winning chances rather than raw centipawns."},{"title":"Accuracy for both sides","body":"Each side gets a single accuracy figure, plus counts of inaccuracies, mistakes and blunders, so a post-mortem has somewhere to start."},{"title":"Lines you can walk into","body":"Any variation the engine suggests can be played out on the board and stepped through move by move, then dropped to return to the game."}],"howToTitle":"How to analyze a game","howTo":["Paste the PGN into the box, or open a .pgn file. The example game loads with one tap if you just want to see how it works.","Flip the Turn on the engine switch. The engine is about seven megabytes and is fetched once, so the first run takes a moment.","Press Analyze the whole game. Progress runs along the move list as each position is searched.","Tap any move to see its verdict, the engine’s preferred move, and the lines from that position."],"faq":[{"question":"Is the analysis really free, with no account?","answer":"Yes. The engine runs in your browser, so there is nothing to meter. No sign-up, no credits, no daily cap on how many games you analyze."},{"question":"Which engine is this, and how strong is the analysis?","answer":"Stockfish 18, the lite single-threaded WebAssembly build. The whole-game analysis gives every position the same fixed amount of search from a clean start, so the same game always gets the same marks, and every move about to be marked a mistake or blunder is searched again, deeper, before the mark is shown. Stepping to a single position searches it deeper still. For serious opening preparation a desktop engine given minutes per move will always see further."},{"question":"Does my game get uploaded?","answer":"No. The PGN is parsed in the page and the engine searches on your own processor. Nothing about the game leaves your device."},{"question":"What do the accuracy numbers mean?","answer":"Each move is scored by how much winning chance it gave away compared with the engine’s choice, and the accuracy figure is the average across a side’s moves. It is a summary, not a rating: a quiet game with few decisions will score higher than a sharp one played just as well."},{"question":"Why is the first analysis slow?","answer":"The WebAssembly engine has to be downloaded before it can search. After that it is cached, and later visits start immediately."},{"question":"How is this different from Chess.com Game Review or Lichess analysis?","answer":"Chess.com limits how many full Game Reviews a free account can run, and Lichess analyzes a game once it has been imported into the site. This tool needs neither an account nor an import: paste any PGN, including one scanned from a paper scoresheet, and Stockfish reviews it in your browser with no daily limit."},{"question":"How do I analyze a game I played on paper?","answer":"Photograph the scoresheet and run it through the ScanChess scanner first. It reads the handwriting, checks every move against the rules and gives you a PGN you can paste straight in here."}],"cta":{"title":"The game you want to analyze is on paper","body":"ScanChess reads a photographed scoresheet into a validated PGN, ready to analyze. New accounts start with free credits.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"missed-tactics":{"seoTitle":"Missed Chess Tactics from Your Own Games – Free Trainer","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Missed Tactics from Your Own Games","intro":"A public tactics trainer drills someone else's combinations. This one drills yours. Load a PGN — paste one, or scan a scoresheet first — run the same Stockfish analysis the game analysis tool uses, and ScanChess keeps only the misses that were actually tactics: a capture, a check, a mate or a promotion the engine wanted and you did not play. Quiet positional slips stay out. Save a set in this browser to come back to tomorrow.","features":[{"title":"From your scoresheet, not a bank","body":"The positions are the ones you played. Scan the paper, analyze the game, and the forcing shots you missed become the set. Lichess cannot do this, because it never saw the sheet."},{"title":"Only forcing shots","body":"A 20-point squeeze that wanted a quiet king move is not a puzzle. The extractor keeps captures, checks, mates and promotions, and drops near-duplicate collapses so a lost game does not dump the same wreck twice."},{"title":"Solve it on the board","body":"Play the first move of the solution; the opponent's reply from the engine line appears on its own. Two wrong tries unlock the answer, and the move you played in the game is shown only after."},{"title":"Kept where you practice","body":"Keep a set to practice later. Signed out, the list stays in this browser and nothing is uploaded. Signed in, the shots go straight into Daily practice and come back on a schedule."}],"howToTitle":"How to train missed tactics","howTo":["Paste a PGN, or scan a scoresheet first and export the game here.","Press Find my missed tactics. The engine switches itself on and Stockfish analyzes every position in this tab; the first run fetches about seven megabytes.","The result appears right under the button: practice the forcing shots on the board, or save them and come back tomorrow.","On each position, find the move that was missed. The line continues until the shot is complete."],"faq":[{"question":"Is this a tactics puzzle trainer like Lichess?","answer":"No. There is no public puzzle database. Every position comes from a game you load — typically one you played over the board and scanned from a scoresheet."},{"question":"Which mistakes become puzzles?","answer":"Mistakes and blunders whose engine move is a capture, a check, a mate or a promotion. Quiet inaccuracies and opening book moves are left out, and two shots a ply or two apart on the same side keep only the larger one."},{"question":"Do I need an account?","answer":"No. The engine runs in your browser, and signed out, saved tactics stay in this browser. Signed in, they become Daily practice cards that follow you to any device, and scanned games go into your library."},{"question":"How do I get a PGN from a paper scoresheet?","answer":"Photograph the scoresheet and run it through ScanChess. After the moves are checked, analyze the game here and the missed shots become the set."},{"question":"Why was a blunder I remember not turned into a puzzle?","answer":"If the better move was a quiet improvement — a retreat, a prophylactic king move — it is not a tactic. The analysis still marks it on the move list; this trainer is only for shots."}],"cta":{"title":"The shots you missed are still on paper","body":"Scan the scoresheet, analyze the game, and practice the tactics that actually cost you the point. New accounts start with free credits.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"rating-calculator":{"seoTitle":"FIDE Rating Calculator – Elo Change & Performance Rating","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"FIDE Rating Calculator","intro":"Enter your published rating, add a row per game with your opponent’s rating and the result. This free online FIDE calculator applies the official FIDE Rating Regulations as written: the expected score for each game comes from Table 8.1.2, the development coefficient follows the rules in article 8.3.3, and the total is rounded according to article 8.3.4, alongside tournament performance rating.","features":[{"title":"The official table, not the formula","body":"FIDE converts a rating difference into an expected score with a lookup table whose steps round to two decimals. Calculators that use the logistic curve instead disagree by a point or more over a long event."},{"title":"The 2650 rule","body":"On the standard list, since 1 October 2025 the 400-point cap on the rating difference applies only below 2650. Above it the real gap is used, which changes what a draw against a much weaker opponent costs. Rapid and blitz keep the cap for everyone."},{"title":"Every K-factor case","body":"Forty while you are completing your first thirty games, forty for juniors under 2300, ten once 2400 has been reached, twenty otherwise, and the ceiling that keeps K times the number of games at 700 or less."},{"title":"Performance rating too","body":"The opponents’ average plus the rating difference for your fractional score, from table 8.1.1 — the number tournament reports print."}],"howToTitle":"How to work out your rating change","howTo":["Type in the rating you are published at. If you are still completing your first thirty rated games, or you are a junior, tick the box that applies.","Add one row per game: the opponent’s rating, and whether you won, drew or lost.","Read the expected score beside each row; the number in brackets is the rating difference actually used after the cap.","The panel shows your new rating, the change, and the event’s performance rating."],"faq":[{"question":"How does this FIDE rating calculator determine Elo changes?","answer":"For each game it takes the rating difference, reads the expected score from table 8.1.2, and subtracts it from what you actually scored. Those differences are added up across the event and multiplied by your development coefficient K. The result is rounded to a whole number, with a half rounding away from zero."},{"question":"What K-factor applies to me?","answer":"K is 40 while you are completing events totalling your first 30 rated games, and 40 for a player until the end of the year of their 18th birthday as long as their rating is under 2300. It is 10 once a published rating has reached 2400, and stays there even if the rating later drops. Otherwise it is 20."},{"question":"Why is the difference capped at 400 points?","answer":"To stop a single result against a far weaker or far stronger opponent from moving a rating too far. Since 1 October 2025 the cap only applies to players rated below 2650; from 2650 up the true difference is used in every case."},{"question":"Does this work for rapid and blitz ratings?","answer":"Yes, with the rapid or blitz list selected. The FIDE Rapid and Blitz Rating Regulations use the same probability table and the same K rules as the standard list (K = 40, 20 or 10 on the same conditions). Two things differ: the 400-point cap applies to every player, with no 2650 exception, and since 1 December 2024 a game is not rated when the players are 600 or more points apart and either is rated above 2600. The selector applies both."},{"question":"Is this an official FIDE calculator?","answer":"No. It implements the published FIDE Rating Regulations and Table 8.1.2 directly in your browser, matching published rating lists. The official FIDE rating list remains the ultimate authority, and your national federation may use different rules."},{"question":"Where do I get my opponents’ ratings from?","answer":"The pairing sheet or the tournament’s published start list carries them, and they are the ratings used for the calculation, not whatever the opponent is rated by the time the list is published."},{"question":"Can I use it for a Chess.com or Lichess rating?","answer":"Only as a rough guide. Chess.com uses the Glicko system and Lichess uses Glicko-2, where the change also depends on how settled each rating is, so the same result moves an online rating by a different amount. This calculator follows FIDE's Elo rules for over-the-board ratings."}],"cta":{"title":"The scoresheets from that event are still in your bag","body":"ScanChess turns a photographed scoresheet into a validated PGN, so the games behind the rating change are searchable instead of stacked in a drawer.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"fen-to-image":{"seoTitle":"FEN to Image – Free Chess Diagram Maker (PNG, SVG)","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"FEN to Image","intro":"Paste a FEN and the position is drawn as a board you can download. Pick a size up to 1600 pixels, choose the square colors, turn the board round or drop the coordinates, then take it as a PNG for a post or as an SVG that stays sharp at any size. The board is drawn from vector pieces in the page, so the file has no external images in it and nothing is uploaded to make one.","features":[{"title":"PNG or vector SVG","body":"PNG for anywhere that wants a picture; SVG for print, slides and anything that will be resized later."},{"title":"Sizes up to 1600 pixels","body":"Small enough for a forum post, large enough for a printed page or a lesson handout."},{"title":"Five board colors","body":"Classic brown, tournament green, blue, walnut and slate, with coordinates you can switch off."},{"title":"Any position, not just legal ones","body":"A study fragment with no kings, or a puzzle with pieces on half the board, renders the same way. Only the placement field is needed."}],"howToTitle":"How to turn a FEN into an image","howTo":["Paste the FEN into the box. Only the first field, the piece placement, is used for the picture.","Choose a size, a board color and which side is at the bottom.","Download the PNG, or take the SVG if the diagram will be printed or resized.","Need to change the position first? Open it in the board editor, drag the pieces and come back."],"faq":[{"question":"What is a FEN?","answer":"FEN (Forsyth-Edwards Notation) is a single line of text that describes one chess position: where the pieces stand, whose turn it is, the castling rights, the en passant square, and the two move counters. It is how a single position travels between programs, the way PGN carries a whole game."},{"question":"Should I download the PNG or the SVG?","answer":"PNG if it is going into a post, a chat or a document that wants a picture. SVG if it will be printed, projected, or scaled up later, because a vector stays sharp at any size."},{"question":"Is the image uploaded or watermarked?","answer":"Neither. The board is drawn in your browser and the file is written on your device. There is no watermark and no attribution requirement."},{"question":"Can I use these diagrams in a book or a course?","answer":"Yes. The pieces are drawn from our own vector set and the images carry no restrictions, so they can go into lessons, articles and printed material."},{"question":"How do I get a FEN from a photo of a board?","answer":"Photograph the position and let the ScanChess board reader work it out. It returns the FEN, which you can paste straight in here to make a clean diagram."}],"cta":{"title":"The position is on a real board in front of you","body":"Photograph it and ScanChess reads the position into a FEN. Recognizing one board costs a single credit.","button":"Scan a board"}},"pgn-to-gif":{"seoTitle":"PGN to GIF – Free Animated Chess Game Maker","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Chess GIF Maker","intro":"Load a game and the tool draws every position, encodes them into an animated GIF and hands you the file. Pick the size and speed, choose the board colors, highlight the squares each move touched, and trim the animation to the part of the game worth showing. The frames are drawn and the GIF is encoded in this page, so a game never leaves your device to become a picture.","features":[{"title":"Encoded in your browser","body":"No upload, no queue and no watermark. The GIF is written on your device from the first frame to the last."},{"title":"Only the moves that matter","body":"Set a first and last move to animate just the combination, rather than eighty plies of manoeuvring nobody will watch."},{"title":"Three sizes and three speeds","body":"480, 640 or 800 pixels square, sharp enough for a phone screen or a chat window, at roughly half a second to a second and a half per move, with a longer hold on the first and last frames so a loop reads."},{"title":"The move is easy to follow","body":"The squares a piece left and arrived on are tinted, so the eye finds each move instead of hunting for what changed."}],"howToTitle":"How to make a chess GIF","howTo":["Paste the PGN, or open a .pgn file. The example game loads with one tap.","Trim the range if you only want part of the game, then pick a size, a speed and the board colors.","The GIF builds itself as you change the settings; the progress bar counts the frames as they are drawn.","Check the preview and press Download to save the GIF."],"faq":[{"question":"How large will the file be?","answer":"Each frame stores only the squares that changed, so a full forty-move game at 640 pixels is usually a few hundred kilobytes and stays well under the limits of chat apps and social networks. If a site still refuses it, trim the range or drop to 480 pixels."},{"question":"Why is there a limit on the number of moves?","answer":"Beyond a couple of hundred frames a GIF stops being shareable: it grows past what most sites accept and nobody watches it to the end. The range is clamped rather than refusing the game."},{"question":"Is my game uploaded to make the GIF?","answer":"No. The board is drawn and the GIF is encoded in your browser, which is also why the work happens on your device rather than instantly."},{"question":"Can I use the GIF commercially?","answer":"Yes. The pieces are our own vector set, there is no watermark, and nothing about the output is restricted."},{"question":"Can I make a GIF from a game I played over the board?","answer":"Scan the scoresheet with ScanChess first. Once the game is a PGN, paste it in here and animate whichever part of it you want to show."}],"cta":{"title":"The game worth animating is on a scoresheet","body":"ScanChess reads a photographed scoresheet into a PGN in seconds, and the PGN is all this tool needs.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"pgn-to-pdf":{"seoTitle":"PGN to PDF – Print a Chess Game with Diagrams","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"PGN to PDF","intro":"Paste a PGN and the game is set as a printed game score: the players and event across the top, the moves in columns, and board diagrams at the points you choose. Print it, or pick Save as PDF in the print dialog to keep the file. Because it goes through the browser’s own printer, the moves stay as selectable text and the diagrams stay as vectors, so the PDF is sharp at any zoom and small enough to email. PGN is the plain-text chess game format—see what is PGN if you need a primer before you paste.","features":[{"title":"A game score, not a screenshot","body":"The moves are text and the diagrams are vector drawings, so the file prints cleanly and can be searched and copied from."},{"title":"Diagrams where you want them","body":"Final position only, every ten moves, every twenty, or none at all. Each diagram tints the squares the move touched."},{"title":"A4 or Letter","body":"The page is set for either, with margins that keep the columns off the edge on a home printer."},{"title":"Two or three columns","body":"Two columns for a game with notes to add by hand, three to fit a long game on a single sheet."}],"howToTitle":"How to save a game as a PDF","howTo":["Paste the PGN, or open a .pgn file.","Choose two or three columns, where diagrams should appear, and the paper size.","Press Print. In the dialog that opens, set the destination to Save as PDF.","Everything except the page itself is left out of the print, so the file starts at the game score."],"faq":[{"question":"Where is the download button?","answer":"There is no separate download: the print dialog is the download. Choose Save as PDF as the destination and pick where the file goes. This produces a smaller, sharper file than generating a PDF in the page would."},{"question":"Will the moves be selectable in the PDF?","answer":"Yes. The game score is real text, so it can be searched, copied and read by a screen reader. A PDF made from a screenshot cannot do any of that."},{"question":"Can I print several games at once?","answer":"One game per sheet, and a multi-game PGN puts a selector above the box so you can move between them. Print each one in turn."},{"question":"Does it print the comments and variations in my PGN?","answer":"No. The layout is the game score: the moves that were played, with the tags and the result. Comments, variations and annotation symbols are left out to keep the sheet readable on paper."},{"question":"Can I print a blank scoresheet instead?","answer":"Yes, the printable scoresheets tool has layouts for different time controls, with space for the event, round and player names."}],"cta":{"title":"Going the other way, from paper to PGN","body":"ScanChess reads a photographed scoresheet into a validated PGN. New accounts get free credits, no card required.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"best-move":{"seoTitle":"Best Chess Move Finder – Free Next Move Calculator","kicker":"Free tool · Stockfish 18","h1":"Find the Best Chess Move","privacyNote":"The engine and the screenshot reader run in your browser. Photos of real boards, AI explanations and saving need a free account and send the picture or position to our server.","intro":"Give the finder a position and Stockfish 18 searches it in this tab, then names the best move, its evaluation and the next two candidates. A position can come from a FEN, from the board editor, or from a picture: drop in a screenshot and the position is read in your browser, with no account and nothing uploaded. Photos of real boards are read by our server recognizer, free once you sign in. You choose the side to move right beside the answer; when the picture shows the last move, it is set for you.","features":[{"title":"From a screenshot or photo","body":"Drop in a screenshot of an online game or a digital diagram and your browser reads it into a FEN, with any doubtful squares outlined. Photos of real boards go to our server recognizer, free with a verified free account."},{"title":"Stockfish 18 on your device","body":"The engine is downloaded once and searches in your browser. Positions you type in stay on your device unless you ask for an AI explanation or save them, and there is no daily limit."},{"title":"Three lines, not one","body":"The best move comes with its evaluation and the next two candidates, each with the line the engine expects, so you can see how close the alternatives are."},{"title":"Play it and keep going","body":"Play the best move on the board and the engine looks at the new position, or open the position in the analysis board to try your own ideas."}],"howToTitle":"How to find the best move","howTo":["Paste a FEN into the box, or drop in a screenshot of the position. Signed in, you can also upload a photo of a real board.","Check the board. If a square is outlined, the reader was unsure about it; fix it in the board editor if needed.","Choose who is to move: White or Black.","Press Find the best move. The engine is about seven megabytes and is fetched once; the answer and the top three lines appear as it searches."],"faq":[{"question":"Is the best move finder free?","answer":"Yes. Pasting a FEN or reading a screenshot is free, needs no account and has no daily limit. Photos of real boards, and pictures your browser cannot read, use our server recognizer: free with no credits, but it needs an account with a verified email and has a limit based on attempts in the past 24 hours, including failed reads."},{"question":"How does it read a position from a screenshot?","answer":"A small model running in your browser finds the board, looks at each of the 64 squares and builds the FEN; the picture never leaves your device. If the last move is highlighted, it also tells whose move it is. Squares it was unsure about are outlined on the board. When it cannot read a picture with confidence, such as a photo of a real board, the picture can go to the same recognizer the ScanChess scanner uses. That needs a free account; take board photos from above, with all 64 squares in the frame."},{"question":"Why do I have to choose whose move it is?","answer":"A picture shows where the pieces are, not always whose turn it is. When a screenshot highlights the last move, the reader sets the side to move from it; otherwise it assumes the side at the bottom of the picture is to move. Either way the choice sits right next to the answer, because the best move for the wrong side is a confident wrong answer."},{"question":"Which engine is this, and how strong is it?","answer":"Stockfish 18, the single-threaded WebAssembly build, searching up to depth 18 or four seconds per position. That is far stronger than any human, though a desktop engine given minutes will see further in sharp positions."},{"question":"How is this different from the Lichess analysis board?","answer":"Lichess's analysis board is free and excellent, but you set the position up by hand or paste a FEN. Here a screenshot or photo does that step, and the answer is shown as one clear best move with its alternatives."},{"question":"Can I use it during a game?","answer":"No. Engine help during a game you are playing is cheating under the fair-play rules of Chess.com, Lichess and FIDE, and gets accounts closed. Use it afterwards, to understand what you missed."}],"cta":{"title":"Keep the positions you find","body":"In the ScanChess workspace a board photo becomes a saved position you can edit, share and come back to later.","button":"Open the board scanner"}},"analysis-board":{"seoTitle":"Free Chess Analysis Board – Stockfish 18 Online","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Chess Analysis Board","intro":"Play moves for both sides from the starting position, or paste a FEN or a PGN to start somewhere else. At your first move Stockfish 18 switches on in this tab and evaluates every position you reach, with its three best lines. Step back through the moves, try a different one, and the rest of the line is replaced. When you are done, copy the FEN or the PGN, or analyze the whole line for mistakes.","features":[{"title":"Play any line","body":"Drag or tap pieces for either side. Go back to any move and play something else; the new move replaces what came after, the way you would on a real board."},{"title":"An evaluation for every position","body":"Stockfish 18 runs in your browser and follows the board: an evaluation bar, the best move as an arrow, and three lines you can step through."},{"title":"Start from any FEN or PGN","body":"Paste a position or a whole game. A PGN is played up to its last legal move, so one typo does not throw the game away."},{"title":"Copy it back out","body":"Copy the current FEN or the line as a PGN, open the position in the board editor, or send it to the best move finder."}],"howToTitle":"How to use the analysis board","howTo":["Move a piece. The engine loads at your first move, about seven megabytes, fetched once.","Read the evaluation and the three lines. Tap a line to play it out on the board.","Use the arrows or the move list to go back, then try another move.","Paste a FEN or PGN to start from a different position, and copy the FEN or PGN when you are done."],"faq":[{"question":"Is the analysis board free?","answer":"Yes, with no account and no daily limit. The engine runs on your own device, so there is nothing to meter. The optional AI explanation of a position needs a free account with a verified email: one a day is free, then 1 credit."},{"question":"How is this different from the Lichess analysis board?","answer":"Lichess's board is free too, and better for opening study with its explorer and cloud evaluations. This one is lighter: the engine runs on your device, so the moves you play stay in your browser unless you ask for an explanation or save the position; it links straight to the best move finder and the scanner, and a PGN with a typo still loads up to the mistake."},{"question":"Does it keep variations?","answer":"No, it keeps one line. Playing a different move from an earlier position replaces the moves after it. To keep variations in a game, use the PGN viewer, which reads and writes them."},{"question":"How strong is the engine?","answer":"Stockfish 18, the single-threaded WebAssembly build, searching each position up to depth 18 or four seconds. A desktop engine given minutes per move will see further in sharp positions."},{"question":"Is my analysis saved?","answer":"Only if you choose to. Signed in, \"Save to my positions\" keeps the position in your account; otherwise copy the FEN or PGN, or share a link: /tools/analysis-board?fen= followed by the position opens it directly."}],"cta":{"title":"Start from a photo instead","body":"Photograph a board or screenshot a diagram, and ScanChess sets the position up for you, ready to analyze.","button":"Scan a board image"},"privacyNote":"The engine runs in your browser. Optional AI explanations and saving need a free account and send the position to our server."},"chess-wrapped":{"seoTitle":"Chess Wrapped {{year}} – Chess.com & Lichess Year in Review","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Chess Wrapped: Your Year in Chess","privacyNote":"Runs in your browser. Games come straight from Chess.com or Lichess.","intro":"Chess Wrapped reads a player's games for the year from the Chess.com or Lichess public archive and turns them into a year in review: how many games, the win rate, how the rating moved in each time control, the openings played most, the best win, the longest winning streak and the busiest month. It works for any public username, yours or a friend's, and ends with a card you can download or share.","features":[{"title":"Chess.com and Lichess","body":"Both sites publish game archives for every public account. Pick the site, type the username and choose the year."},{"title":"Rating, per time control","body":"Where the rating started, where it peaked and where it ended, separately for bullet, blitz, rapid and daily or classical."},{"title":"Openings, best win and streaks","body":"The openings played most as White and as Black, the highest-rated opponent beaten, the longest run of wins and the most-played opponent."},{"title":"A card to share","body":"Download your summary as an image, copy a link that rebuilds it, or share it straight from your phone."}],"howToTitle":"How to make your Chess Wrapped","howTo":["Choose Chess.com or Lichess.","Type the username and pick the year.","Press Build my Wrapped. Large accounts take a little longer while each month is fetched.","Scroll through the cards, then download or share the summary."],"faq":[{"question":"Is Chess Wrapped free, and do I need an account?","answer":"It is free and needs no account, here or on the chess site. It reads the public game archive, so it works for any public username."},{"question":"Is this made by Chess.com or Lichess?","answer":"No. It is an independent tool that reads the public APIs both sites provide, and it is not affiliated with either."},{"question":"Is my data stored anywhere?","answer":"Building the page stores nothing: your browser fetches the games from Chess.com or Lichess and works out the numbers itself. If you share a link, ScanChess reads the same public games to draw the link's preview card and keeps that year's totals (never the moves). To have the card for a username removed, email support@scanchess.com."},{"question":"Why are some games missing?","answer":"The archives only include finished games; aborted games are left out. Lichess sends games at about 20 a second, so an account with thousands of games in a year takes several minutes. The progress bar shows roughly how many games to expect and how long is left, and you can show the results so far at any time; those are marked as partial."},{"question":"Can I see a previous year?","answer":"Yes. Choose the year before building it. The current year covers the games played so far."},{"question":"What about my over-the-board games?","answer":"Tournament games played on paper are not in any online archive. Scan the scoresheets with ScanChess and they become PGN files you can analyze and keep."}],"cta":{"title":"Your over-the-board games count too","body":"Tournament games on paper are in no online archive. Scan the scoresheets and they become PGN you can analyze and keep.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"pgn-to-fen":{"seoTitle":"PGN to FEN Converter – Free, Every Ply, in Your Browser","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"PGN to FEN Converter","intro":"Paste a game and this page replays it in your browser, one ply at a time. Pick any move and copy the FEN of the position after it, or copy a FEN for every ply in one list. Use it to check a game you typed from a book you own, to lift the position before a combination, or to hand a diagram tool the FEN it expects. It only replays the moves you already have. It does not suggest a move in a game you are playing.","features":[{"title":"A FEN for every ply","body":"The list runs from the position before the first move through the position after the last legal one. Pick a row, or copy the whole list."},{"title":"Stops at the first illegal move","body":"A typo ends the replay there and names the move. Every FEN before it is still valid, and the PGN validator lists the legal moves at that point."},{"title":"Several games in one file","body":"Paste a file of games and choose which one to convert. A PGN that already has a FEN header starts from that position, not from the opening array."},{"title":"Converted on your device","body":"The replay happens in the page. The PGN is not uploaded, and you do not need an account."}],"howToTitle":"How to turn a PGN into FEN","howTo":["Paste a PGN or a plain move list, drop a .pgn file, or load the example.","Pick a move in the list. The board shows the position after that move, and the FEN sits under the board.","Copy that FEN, or copy and download the FEN of every ply.","Have a diagram instead of a game? Scan the board image to a FEN, then open FEN to PGN if you want a file that starts there."],"faq":[{"question":"What is the difference between PGN and FEN?","answer":"PGN is the whole game: the players, the moves and the result. FEN is one position: where the pieces stand, whose turn it is, the castling rights, the en passant square and the two move counters. This page walks a PGN and writes the FEN after each ply."},{"question":"Which position does the FEN describe?","answer":"The FEN is the position after the move you select. The first row, before any move, is the opening array, or the position in the PGN's FEN header if it has one."},{"question":"What happens if a move is illegal?","answer":"Replay stops at that move. The FENs before it stay. Open the same game in the PGN validator to see the moves that were legal there."},{"question":"Can I convert a game from a chess book?","answer":"Yes, a game you type out from a book you own, for your own study. This page does not host book text and it does not download books."},{"question":"Does it work on a phone?","answer":"Yes. The PGN field, the board and the move list stack on a narrow screen, and each row is a tap target."}],"cta":{"title":"The position is a diagram in a book you own","body":"Photograph the diagram and ScanChess reads it into a FEN you can correct. One board image costs one credit.","button":"Scan a board image"}},"fen-to-pgn":{"seoTitle":"FEN to PGN Converter – Free SetUp Header, in Your Browser","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"FEN to PGN Converter","intro":"Paste a position and this page writes a PGN with [SetUp \"1\"] and a [FEN] tag, the standard way to store a game that does not start from the opening array. Play further moves on the board and they are added to that PGN, numbered from the position's move number, including when Black is to move. A FEN that is missing a rank, has no side to move, or leaves a king in check is refused with the reason. Use it for a diagram you scanned from a book you own, or for a position you set up yourself. It does not suggest a move in a game you are playing.","features":[{"title":"SetUp and FEN on every file","body":"The header is written even for the opening array, so the file states where it starts instead of leaving a reader to assume the initial position."},{"title":"Add the moves that follow","body":"Drag pieces on the board. The movetext is appended to the same PGN. Undo removes the last move."},{"title":"A reason for a bad FEN","body":"Eight ranks, a side to move of w or b, one king each, no pawn on the first or eighth rank, and the side that has just moved must not be left in check."},{"title":"Nothing is uploaded","body":"Validation and the PGN are produced in the browser. No account is required."}],"howToTitle":"How to turn a FEN into a PGN","howTo":["Paste a FEN. When the position is legal, the board shows it.","Copy the PGN. It starts with the seven-tag roster, then SetUp and FEN.","Optional: play the moves that follow on the board. A Black-to-move position is numbered as Black's move.","Replay the file in the PGN viewer, or check a move that will not play in the PGN validator."],"faq":[{"question":"Why does the PGN contain SetUp and FEN?","answer":"A PGN without them is assumed to start from the initial array. SetUp \"1\" plus a FEN tag tells a database, Lichess, ChessBase or the PGN viewer that the game starts at your position."},{"question":"What counts as an invalid FEN?","answer":"The placement needs eight ranks of eight squares, the side to move must be w or b, each side needs one king, a pawn cannot stand on the first or eighth rank, and the side that has just moved cannot be in check. The message names which of these failed."},{"question":"Can I add moves from the position?","answer":"Yes. Drag a piece, or tap a piece and then its destination. Promotions ask which piece. The moves are written into the same PGN. This records the line you enter. It does not look up a move for you."},{"question":"Where do I get a FEN from a picture?","answer":"From the board image scanner, including a diagram in a chess book you own. One board image costs one credit. Correct the position, set the side to move, then paste the FEN here."},{"question":"Does the opening position work?","answer":"Yes. You still get SetUp and FEN, so the file states the start position explicitly. An en passant square that is not legal is dropped when the FEN is normalized."}],"cta":{"title":"The FEN is a diagram in a book you own","body":"Photograph the diagram and ScanChess reads the position into a FEN. One board image costs one credit. Then bring it back here for a PGN.","button":"Scan a board image"}},"fen-validator":{"seoTitle":"FEN Validator: Check a Chess FEN String Online","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"FEN Validator","intro":"A FEN describes one chess position in a single line: where the pieces stand, whose move it is, the castling rights, the en passant square and two move counters. One wrong character is enough for a chess program to refuse it, usually with a message like “invalid FEN” and nothing more. This page checks every part of the string and lists each problem in plain words, with what to change. A FEN that passes shows its board, the side to move, and whether that side is in check, checkmated or stalemated.","features":[{"title":"Every problem, not just the first","body":"Ranks that do not add up to eight squares, stray characters, a missing king, nine pawns, castling rights the pieces do not allow, a wrong en passant square, bad move counters: all are listed at once, each with its own fix."},{"title":"Checks the rules, not only the syntax","body":"A FEN can be well formed and still impossible: the side that has just moved left in check, a pawn on the back rank, more queens than promotions could explain. These are caught too."},{"title":"A corrected FEN when the fix is certain","body":"If only the castling, en passant or counter fields are wrong, the page offers the FEN with those fields fixed. A wrong king count or piece placement is left for you to decide."},{"title":"Checked on your device","body":"The FEN is checked in the page. Nothing is uploaded, and you do not need an account."}],"howToTitle":"How to check a FEN","howTo":["Paste the FEN into the box, or open this page from a link that ends in ?fen= and the FEN.","Press Check FEN. A green result means the position is legal; a red one lists each problem.","Apply the fix shown under each problem, or use the corrected FEN when one is offered.","Once it is valid, copy the full FEN or open it in the board editor, FEN to Image or FEN to PGN."],"faq":[{"question":"What makes a FEN valid?","answer":"Six fields separated by spaces: the piece placement (eight ranks from the eighth to the first, separated by slashes), the side to move (w or b), the castling rights (for example KQkq, or -), the en passant square (for example e3, or -), the halfmove clock and the move number. The position must also be possible: one king each, no pawn on the first or eighth rank, and the side that has just moved not in check."},{"question":"Why are my castling rights reported as wrong?","answer":"A castling letter is only possible while that king and rook stand on their starting squares: K needs the white king on e1 and a rook on h1, Q needs e1 and a1, k needs the black king on e8 and a rook on h8, q needs e8 and a8. Remove the letter for any pair that has moved."},{"question":"Which en passant square should a FEN have?","answer":"The square a pawn skipped over on the last move, and only right after a two-square pawn move: on the sixth rank with White to move, on the third with Black to move. Otherwise write -. Some programs write it only when an en passant capture is actually possible; both forms are valid."},{"question":"Is a FEN with only the placement and side to move valid?","answer":"Many programs accept it and assume no castling rights, no en passant square and move 1. The validator accepts it too, with a warning, and shows the full six-field FEN."},{"question":"Can a valid FEN still be a position no game could reach?","answer":"Yes. The validator checks the rules every position must obey, not whether a real game could have led to it. A few positions pass every check and still could not arise from the starting position."}],"cta":{"title":"The position is in a screenshot or a book diagram","body":"Scan the image and ScanChess sets up the board and writes the FEN for you to check. Free credits on sign-up.","button":"Scan a board image"}},"flip-fen":{"seoTitle":"Flip or Mirror a Chess Position (FEN)","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Flip or Mirror a Chess Position","intro":"Turning a position around is useful more often than it sounds. A diagram printed from Black's side gets typed in upside down; a study is easier to compare once the colors are swapped; an engine test wants the same position mirrored to check that the evaluation is symmetric. This page applies three transforms to any FEN and rewrites everything that depends on them: the piece placement, the side to move, the castling rights and the en passant square. Rights that a transform makes impossible are dropped and named, so other tools accept the new FEN.","features":[{"title":"Rotate 180 degrees","body":"Turns the board around and keeps the colors, as if seen from Black's side. Use it when a diagram printed with Black at the bottom was entered as if White were at the bottom."},{"title":"Mirror the files","body":"Swaps the a-file and the h-file and keeps the colors. Castling rights go, because the kings leave their starting squares."},{"title":"Swap colors","body":"Mirrors the ranks and gives every piece the other color, with the side to move, castling rights and en passant square following. The result is the same position for the other player."},{"title":"Copy, download or open","body":"Copy the new FEN, save the board as a PNG, or open it in FEN to Image, the board editor or the FEN validator."}],"howToTitle":"How to flip a FEN","howTo":["Paste a FEN, or load the example.","Switch on rotate, mirror or swap colors. They can be combined, and switching one off undoes it.","Check the new board, and read the note about any castling right or en passant square that was dropped.","Copy the new FEN or download the image."],"faq":[{"question":"How do I view a FEN from Black's side?","answer":"If you only want to look at the position from Black's side, use Flip board under the diagram. The FEN does not change, because a FEN does not store which way the board faces. Rotating the FEN moves the pieces themselves, which is only right when the position was entered upside down."},{"question":"What is the difference between rotating and swapping colors?","answer":"Rotating turns the board 180 degrees and keeps every piece's color, so White's pawns end up moving the wrong way. Swapping colors mirrors the ranks and changes the colors, so the pieces still move the right way and the other side is to move: the same position seen from the other player's chair."},{"question":"Why were the castling rights removed?","answer":"A castling right needs the king and the rook on their starting squares. After a rotation or a mirror they are not, so the right cannot stand. Swapping colors keeps the rights, with White's and Black's exchanged."},{"question":"Does the move number change?","answer":"No. The halfmove clock and the move number stay as they were. Only the side to move changes, and only when the colors are swapped."}],"cta":{"title":"Is the position in a screenshot or a book?","body":"Scan a screenshot, a diagram or a photo of a board, and ScanChess writes the FEN for you, the right way up. Free credits on sign-up.","button":"Scan a board image"}},"chess-notation-translator":{"seoTitle":"Chess Notation Translator: Any Language to English","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Chess Notation Translator","intro":"Algebraic notation is the same everywhere except for the piece letters. A German scoresheet writes Sf3 for the knight move, a Spanish or French one Cf3, a Russian one Кf3, and most chess programs only read Nf3. Swapping letters one for one gets it wrong: R is the king in Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese but a rook in English, and К is a knight in Russian while Кр is the king. This page reads each move with one language's letters and replays it on a board, so every move is checked against the position it was played in. The result is standard English SAN and a PGN any chess program opens.","features":[{"title":"Eleven letter sets, detected for you","body":"English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Russian, Polish, Czech and Turkish, plus figurines such as ♘f3. The set that replays the most moves is chosen, or you pick it yourself."},{"title":"Every move checked","body":"The game is replayed from the starting position, or from a FEN you give. The first move that is not legal is named, so a misread letter or a slip on the scoresheet is easy to find."},{"title":"Short and long notation","body":"Reads Sf3, Sg1-f3 and g1-f3, captures written with x or a colon, promotions such as e8D or e8=Ф, and castling written with zeros or with the letter O."},{"title":"Both directions","body":"Turn English SAN into German, Spanish, Russian or any of the other letter sets, for a club bulletin or a scoresheet in your own language."}],"howToTitle":"How to translate chess notation","howTo":["Paste the moves, with or without move numbers. Comments and variations are skipped.","Leave the language on automatic, or pick the letters the moves were written with.","If the game did not start from the usual position, paste its FEN in the start position field.","Copy the English moves or the PGN, download the PGN, or open it in the PGN viewer."],"faq":[{"question":"What are the chess piece letters in other languages?","answer":"In the order king, queen, rook, bishop, knight, pawn: English K Q R B N P; German K D T L S B; Spanish and Italian R D T A C P; French R D T F C P; Portuguese R D T B C P; Dutch K D T L P, with no pawn letter; Russian Кр Ф Л С К п; Polish K H W G S P; Czech K D V S J P; Turkish Ş V K F A P, where K is the rook. Pawn moves are normally written without a letter."},{"question":"How does it know which language I used?","answer":"It replays the moves with every letter set and keeps the one that gets furthest without an illegal move. When several fit equally well, as in a game of only pawn moves, it prefers the set whose letters appear in the text. Spanish and Italian use the same letters, so either gives the same English moves."},{"question":"Why does it stop at a move?","answer":"Because that move is not legal in the position reached when it is read with the chosen letters. Often a letter was misread or the move was written down wrong. Check it against the scoresheet, or pick another language by hand."},{"question":"Can it read a handwritten scoresheet?","answer":"It translates typed moves. The ScanChess scoresheet scanner reads handwritten scoresheets written with English piece letters (K, Q, R, B, N) and checks every move; a scoresheet in other letters can be typed in and translated here."},{"question":"Does it handle descriptive notation such as P-K4?","answer":"No. Descriptive notation names squares from each player's side of the board. English descriptive such as P-K4 is converted by Descriptive to Algebraic. This tool reads algebraic notation, whatever the language of its piece letters."}],"cta":{"title":"Typing up a scoresheet by hand?","body":"If it is written with English piece letters, ScanChess reads the handwriting into a PGN and checks every move. Free credits on sign-up.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"time-control-calculator":{"seoTitle":"Chess Time Control Calculator: How Long a Game Lasts","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Chess Time Control Calculator","intro":"A time control such as 90+30 gives each player 90 minutes for the game plus 30 seconds after every move. How long the game takes then depends on how many moves are played and how much of the clock the players use. This page works out the longest the game can take for the number of moves you set, a typical length based on the 347,741 over-the-board games we measured, and how the control is classed: blitz, rapid or standard under the FIDE Laws of Chess, and its category on Lichess and Chess.com.","features":[{"title":"Any common notation","body":"90+30, 15|10, 3+2, 90/40+30+30 for a move control followed by a second period, or G/90;d5 with a delay."},{"title":"Longest and typical length","body":"The longest game is both clocks run down to zero over the moves you choose. The typical length is what a median 41-move game takes: about 85% of the time those moves allow."},{"title":"FIDE category","body":"Blitz is 10 minutes or less per player, rapid more than 10 and less than 60, standard 60 or more, counting the base time plus 60 times the increment."},{"title":"Online categories","body":"Lichess and Chess.com estimate a game as the base time plus 40 times the increment. On Chess.com, under 3 minutes is bullet, 3 to under 10 is blitz and 10 or more is rapid, as its Help Center sets out."}],"howToTitle":"How to work out how long a chess game lasts","howTo":["Type the time control, or pick one of the common ones.","Check the line under the box: it says how the control was read.","Set the number of moves for the longest game. 60 moves cover about 85% of classical games.","Read the longest and the typical length, each player's time and the categories."],"faq":[{"question":"How long does a 90+30 chess game last?","answer":"Each player has 90 minutes plus 30 seconds a move, so a 60-move game can take up to 4 hours on the two clocks together, and a 41-move game up to about 3 hours 41 minutes. In the over-the-board games we measured, the median game at 90+30 took 3 hours 3 minutes."},{"question":"Is 15+10 rapid or blitz?","answer":"Rapid. FIDE counts the base time plus 60 times the increment: 15 minutes plus 60 × 10 seconds is 25 minutes, which is more than 10 and less than 60. Blitz is 10 minutes or less, so 3+2 (5 minutes) and 5+3 (8 minutes) are blitz."},{"question":"What does 90/40+30+30 mean?","answer":"90 minutes for the first 40 moves, then 30 more minutes for the rest of the game, with 30 seconds added for every move from move 1. It is the classical control of many FIDE-rated events. Some write 40/90 instead of 90/40; the calculator takes the larger number as the minutes."},{"question":"Why do FIDE and Lichess class the same control differently?","answer":"They count the increment differently. FIDE adds 60 increments to the base time, Lichess and Chess.com add 40. So 10+0 is blitz for FIDE (10 minutes or less) but rapid on Lichess and Chess.com."},{"question":"Is 2|1 bullet or blitz on Chess.com?","answer":"Bullet. Chess.com estimates each player’s time as the base minutes plus 40 times the increment in seconds, so 2|1 comes to 2 min 40 s, short of the 3 minutes where blitz begins. Its Help Center puts bullet under 3 minutes, blitz from 3 to under 10 and rapid at 10 or more: 1|0 is bullet, 3|0, 5|0 and 4|4 are blitz, and 10|0, 2|12 and 15|10 are rapid. Daily chess, played in days per move, is a separate category."},{"question":"How is a delay counted?","answer":"A delay, as in G/90;d5, gives a few seconds each move before the clock starts running. Unused delay is not added to the clock, so the longest possible game is the same as with an equal increment, and the calculator counts it like one for the categories."}],"cta":{"title":"Playing a long game this weekend?","body":"Print a scoresheet for the round, and afterwards scan it: ScanChess reads the handwriting into a PGN you can replay and analyze.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"pgn-splitter":{"seoTitle":"PGN Splitter & Merger: Split or Combine PGN Files","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"PGN Splitter & Merger","intro":"A tournament download, a club database or a week of online games usually arrives as one PGN file with every game in it. This page cuts that file into one PGN per game, named after the players and the date, and lists each game's White, Black, Event, Date and result so you can find the one you want. It also works the other way: add several PGN files and get one file with every game, with repeated games left out if you want. Comments, variations, Windows line ends and a byte-order mark at the start of the file are all handled, and nothing leaves your browser.","features":[{"title":"Splits only between games","body":"A comment that spans lines or a variation in brackets never cuts a game in two. Games exported without tags are told apart by their result."},{"title":"Every game's tags at a glance","body":"The list shows White, Black, Event, Date, result and the number of moves, so a game can be found before it is saved."},{"title":"Copy, download or open","body":"Copy one game, save it as its own .pgn file, open it in the PGN viewer, or save every game as a separate file in one go."},{"title":"Merge with duplicates removed","body":"Add .pgn files or pasted games in the order you want them. A game that is already in the merged file can be left out."}],"howToTitle":"How to split or merge PGN files","howTo":["To split, paste a PGN with several games or choose a .pgn file. The games are listed as soon as they are read.","Copy a game, download it, open it in the PGN viewer, or download each game as its own file.","To merge, switch to Merge several files and add .pgn files or pasted games in the order you want.","Copy the merged PGN or download it as merged.pgn."],"faq":[{"question":"How do I split a PGN file with many games?","answer":"Paste the PGN or choose the .pgn file. Each game is listed with its players, event and date, and Download each game saves every game as its own .pgn file, named with its number, the players and the date."},{"question":"How do I combine several PGN files into one?","answer":"Choose Merge several files, add the files (or paste games), and copy or download the result. Games keep their tags and moves, separated by a blank line, in the order the files were added."},{"question":"Are comments and variations kept?","answer":"Yes. Each game is saved as written, with its comments, variations and annotation symbols. The splitter only decides where one game ends and the next begins."},{"question":"What if a game has no tags?","answer":"Games without tags are separated by their result (1-0, 0-1, 1/2-1/2 or *). When such a game is saved or merged, the seven standard tags are added with question marks, so other programs can read it."},{"question":"Is there a limit on file size?","answer":"There is no upload, so the limit is your device's memory. Files with thousands of games split fine; the list shows the first 200, and every game can still be downloaded."}],"cta":{"title":"Your games are on paper scoresheets","body":"Photograph a scoresheet and ScanChess reads the moves into a PGN you can check and add to your file. A scoresheet scan costs 2 credits; new accounts get 10 free.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"opening-identifier":{"seoTitle":"Chess Opening Identifier: Find Opening Name & ECO","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Chess Opening Identifier","intro":"Paste a game, a bare move list or a FEN and this page names the opening: its ECO code (B90, C65…) and its full name, down to the variation. It replays the game and looks up every position, not the move order, so a game that reaches the Queen's Gambit Declined by 1. Nf3 and 2. c4 is still called the Queen's Gambit Declined. The answer is the deepest named position the game reached, with the move that reached it and every named position before it. The names and codes come from the Lichess chess-openings data set, which is in the public domain.","features":[{"title":"Matched by position","body":"Each position of the game is looked up, so transpositions are found and the name is the one the position deserves, whatever the move order."},{"title":"The deepest named line","body":"The result is the last named position the game passed through, with the move that reached it and the board as it stood."},{"title":"PGN, move list or FEN","body":"Paste a full PGN with tags and comments, a plain move list, or a single FEN. A file with several games lets you pick one."},{"title":"Thousands of named lines","body":"ECO codes A00 to E99 and the Lichess names for each line, matched in your browser. Nothing is uploaded."}],"howToTitle":"How to identify a chess opening","howTo":["Paste a PGN, a move list such as 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3, or a FEN. You can also choose a .pgn file.","Read the ECO code and the name of the deepest named position, and the move that reached it.","Check the list of named positions to see where the game went on the way.","Open the position in the analysis board, or analyze the whole game."],"faq":[{"question":"What is an ECO code?","answer":"The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings classifies openings into five volumes, A to E, with codes from A00 to E99. B90, for example, is the Najdorf Sicilian. Several named lines can share one code."},{"question":"Why does the name change as I add moves?","answer":"Each named line is a position. A game first reaches King's Pawn Game, then Sicilian Defense, then a variation of it. The page shows the deepest one, and lists the ones before it."},{"question":"Does it find transpositions?","answer":"Yes. Positions are compared, not move orders, so the same position reached by a different order of moves gets the same name."},{"question":"Can I paste a FEN instead of moves?","answer":"Yes. A FEN that is itself a named position gets its name. A position from the middlegame has no opening name of its own; paste the moves that led to it to see which opening the game came from."},{"question":"Where do the names come from?","answer":"From the Lichess chess-openings data set, which its authors dedicate to the public domain (CC0). The names are in English, as in the data set."}],"cta":{"title":"The game is on a paper scoresheet","body":"Photograph the scoresheet and ScanChess reads the moves into a PGN, opening name included. A scoresheet scan costs 2 credits; new accounts get 10 free.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}},"descriptive-to-algebraic":{"seoTitle":"Descriptive to Algebraic Notation Converter","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Descriptive to Algebraic Notation Converter","intro":"English and American chess books printed games in descriptive notation until the 1970s and 1980s: P-K4, N-KB3, PxP, QxN ch. Each square is named from the side of the player moving, so White's K4 is e4 and Black's K4 is e5, and a book leaves out whatever the position makes obvious. This converter replays every move on a board as it reads it, works out which piece moved and where, and writes algebraic notation (SAN) and a PGN you can open anywhere. When a move could mean two things, such as PxP with two pawns able to capture, it says so and names both instead of guessing.","features":[{"title":"Read from the side to move","body":"Ranks are counted from each player's side and files are named QR to KR, so P-K4 is e4 for White and e5 for Black."},{"title":"Short forms resolved on the board","body":"N-B3, B-N5 and PxP leave a file or a piece out. The legal moves in the position decide which one is meant, and a check sign breaks a tie."},{"title":"Ambiguity reported, not guessed","body":"If more than one legal move fits, conversion stops at that move and lists the candidates, so a wrong guess never runs on through the game."},{"title":"Castling, en passant, promotion","body":"O-O and O-O-O, PxP e.p., P-K8=Q or P-K8(Q), and the old Kt for a knight are all read. The result is a PGN for any viewer."}],"howToTitle":"How to convert descriptive notation to algebraic","howTo":["Type or paste the moves as the book prints them, for example 1. P-K4 P-K4 2. N-KB3 N-QB3.","Read the algebraic moves beside each descriptive one. The board shows the position after the last move.","If a move stops the conversion, add the missing file or piece (KPxP, QR-Q1) or fix the typo, and it continues.","Copy the PGN, download it, or open it in the PGN viewer to play through the game."],"faq":[{"question":"How is P-K4 for Black e5?","answer":"Descriptive notation counts ranks from the side of the player moving. Black's fourth rank is White's fifth, so Black's P-K4 is e5. The files are the same for both: the king file is the e-file."},{"question":"What do QB, KN and the other file names mean?","answer":"Each file is named after the piece that starts on it: QR is a, QN b, QB c, Q d, K e, KB f, KN g and KR h. A book often writes only B, N or R, and the position decides which side is meant."},{"question":"What happens with PxP when two pawns can capture?","answer":"The converter stops and lists both moves. A book of the time would write KPxP or BPxP, or rely on the reader; add that file and conversion goes on."},{"question":"Can it read promotions and en passant?","answer":"Yes. P-K8=Q, P-K8(Q) and P-K8/Q are read as promotions; a promotion with no piece named is read as a queen, and the page says so. Write en passant as PxP e.p."},{"question":"Does it work for Spanish, German or French descriptive notation?","answer":"No. It reads English descriptive notation, with the English piece letters K, Q, R, B, N (or Kt) and P. Algebraic moves that only change the piece letters, such as German Sf3 or Spanish Cf3, go in the Chess Notation Translator."}],"cta":{"title":"The game is in a chess book you own","body":"Photograph a diagram and ScanChess reads it into a FEN you can correct. One board image costs one credit.","button":"Scan a board image"}},"tiebreak-calculator":{"seoTitle":"Chess Tiebreak Calculator: Buchholz & Sonneborn-Berger","kicker":"Free tool · No account needed","h1":"Chess Tiebreak Calculator","intro":"When players finish on the same points, a Swiss tournament is ranked by tie-breaks. Enter each player's results round by round, or paste a crosstable, and this page works out points, Buchholz, Buchholz Cut-1, Median Buchholz, Sonneborn-Berger, direct encounter and the number of wins, then ranks the players in the order of tie-breaks you choose. Byes and forfeits follow Article 16 of the FIDE Tie-Break Regulations effective 1 March 2026: a player's own unplayed round counts as a game against a dummy opponent with the player's own score, and a requested bye at the end of the event counts as a draw for the opponents' Buchholz. The older virtual-opponent rule is available for events run under it.","features":[{"title":"The usual Swiss tie-breaks","body":"Buchholz, Buchholz Cut-1, Median Buchholz, Sonneborn-Berger, direct encounter and number of wins, side by side for every player."},{"title":"Byes and forfeits by the rules","body":"Pairing-allocated and requested byes, forfeit wins and losses and absences are valued as FIDE Article 16 says, with Cut-1 taking a voluntary unplayed round first."},{"title":"Your order of tie-breaks","body":"Switch tie-breaks on or off and move them up or down to match the tournament regulations. Ties left after all of them share a rank."},{"title":"Checks the crosstable","body":"A game entered differently for the two players, or an opponent missing from the table, is pointed out. Copy the standings as CSV for a spreadsheet."}],"howToTitle":"How to calculate chess tie-breaks","howTo":["Enter each player's name and one cell per round, such as 12w1 for a win with White against player 12, or paste a crosstable.","Mark byes and forfeits: + for a pairing bye, H for a half-point bye, - for an absence, 9+ or 9- for a forfeit.","Choose the tie-breaks and their order as the tournament regulations list them.","Read the ranked standings and copy or download them as CSV."],"faq":[{"question":"What is Buchholz in chess?","answer":"The sum of the final scores of a player's opponents. Buchholz Cut-1 leaves out the lowest of those scores; Median Buchholz leaves out the lowest and the highest. A higher Buchholz means stronger opposition."},{"question":"What is Sonneborn-Berger?","answer":"For each game, the opponent's final score multiplied by the points scored against them, added up: a full win counts the whole score, a draw half of it, a loss nothing. It rewards results against the players who finished high."},{"question":"How are byes and forfeits counted?","answer":"Under the FIDE rules effective 1 March 2026 (Article 16), a player's own unplayed round is valued as a game against a dummy opponent with the player's own score, capped for a forfeit at the scheduled opponent's score. For opponents' tie-breaks, unplayed rounds count with the points awarded, except a requested bye in the last round or followed only by absences, which counts as a draw."},{"question":"How does direct encounter work?","answer":"Among the players still tied, the points each scored in games against the others decide, if they all played each other. If not all of them met, it separates a player only when that player would be ahead whatever the missing games had been. Forfeits do not count."},{"question":"Can I use it for a round robin?","answer":"The FIDE regulations say Buchholz-type tie-breaks must not be used in round robins. There, use direct encounter, Sonneborn-Berger and number of wins, which this page also works out."}],"cta":{"title":"The round's games are on paper","body":"Photograph the scoresheets of a round and ScanChess reads each game into a PGN for the tournament archive. A scoresheet scan costs 2 credits; new accounts get 10 free.","button":"Scan a scoresheet"}}}}