Chess notation is the shared language of the game. It lets you record your own games, follow puzzle solutions, read books and replay famous matches move by move. The system used almost everywhere today is called algebraic notation, and it is much simpler than it looks. Give it fifteen minutes and you will be able to read any game score.
Files, ranks and square names
Every square on the board has a unique name made of a letter and a number.
- Files are the vertical columns. They are labelled with the letters a to h, from left to right as seen from White’s side.
- Ranks are the horizontal rows. They are numbered 1 to 8, starting from White’s side of the board.
Put the two together and you get the square’s name: the file letter first, then the rank number. So the bottom-left corner from White’s view is a1, the bottom-right is h1, and the top-right is h8. The White king starts on e1, the Black king on e8. The White queen starts on d1, a light square, and the Black queen on d8, a dark square, which matches the old reminder that each queen starts on her own colour.
The names never change, even when you look at the board from Black’s side. From Black’s seat, a1 is in the top-right corner. It takes a little getting used to, so it is worth practising from both views.
Piece letters
Each piece except the pawn has a capital letter:
- K for king
- Q for queen
- R for rook
- B for bishop
- N for knight (K is already taken by the king)
Pawns get no letter at all. A move is written as the piece letter followed by the square it moves to. So Nf3 means a knight moves to f3, and Bc4 means a bishop moves to c4. A pawn move is just the destination square: e4 means a pawn moves to e4.
Some languages use different letters, and some books use small figurine symbols instead of letters, but the structure is always the same.
Captures
A capture is shown with an x between the piece and the square. Bxe5 means a bishop captures whatever stands on e5. You don’t write which piece was captured, because the square tells you.
Pawn captures are written with the file the pawn came from. So exd5 means the pawn on the e-file captures on d5. This is necessary because pawns capture diagonally, and two different pawns could otherwise reach the same square.
En passant is written like any other pawn capture, using the square where the capturing pawn lands, for example exd6. Some writers add “e.p.” at the end to make it clear.
Check and checkmate
- A plus sign marks a check: Qh5+ means the queen moves to h5 and gives check.
- A hash sign marks checkmate: Qf7# means the queen moves to f7 and it is mate.
You will sometimes see “++” used for mate in older material, but # is the modern standard.
Castling
Castling has its own symbols, written with the capital letter O (some sources use the digit zero):
- O-O is kingside castling, toward the h-file.
- O-O-O is queenside castling, toward the a-file.
A simple way to remember it: the queenside has one more square between the king and the rook, so it gets one more O.
Promotion
When a pawn reaches the last rank, write the destination square, then an equals sign and the letter of the new piece. So e8=Q means a pawn moves to e8 and becomes a queen. If it captures as it promotes, combine both: dxe8=N means the d-pawn captures on e8 and becomes a knight. Some sources leave out the equals sign and write e8Q.
Disambiguation: when two pieces can go to the same square
Sometimes two pieces of the same type can reach the same square, and a plain move like Nd2 would be unclear. In that case, you add just enough information to tell them apart:
- If the pieces are on different files, add the file letter. With knights on b1 and f3, both able to reach d2, you write Nbd2 or Nfd2.
- If they are on the same file, add the rank number instead. With rooks on a1 and a5, both able to reach a3, you write R1a3 or R5a3.
- In rare cases, such as three queens, you may need both, like Qh4e1.
You only add this extra detail when it is truly needed.
Move numbers and comments
Games are written in pairs: a move number, White’s move, then Black’s move. For example, 1. e4 e5 means White played e4 and Black replied e5 on move one. If a line starts with a Black move, three dots are used after the number, as in 3… Nc6.
Commentators also add symbols to judge moves: ! means a good move, !! a brilliant one, ? a mistake, ?? a serious blunder, !? an interesting try and ?! a dubious one. These are opinions, not part of the move itself.
A short sample sequence
Try playing this sequence on a board, reading each move carefully: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O f6 6. d4 exd4 7. Nxd4 c5 8. Nb3 Qxd1 9. Rxd1
Here is what happens. Both sides push their e-pawns, White develops the knight to f3 and Black the knight to c6. White’s bishop goes to b5, Black’s a-pawn attacks it, and the bishop captures the knight on c6. Black recaptures with the d-pawn, written dxc6 because a pawn captured. White castles kingside with O-O. After a pawn exchange in the centre, the White knight recaptures on d4, then retreats to b3 when attacked. Black’s queen captures White’s queen on d1, now possible because the d-file has opened, and White’s rook from f1 recaptures. If you finished with queens off the board and a White rook on d1, you read every move correctly.
The coordinate style
Computers and some apps also use a plain from-to format called coordinate notation. A move is just the starting square followed by the destination square, with no piece letters: e2e4, g1f3. Castling is written as the king’s move, such as e1g1, and promotion adds the piece in lower case, such as e7e8q. It is less pleasant to read, but it is completely unambiguous, which is why software likes it.
Wrapping up
Square names first, then piece letters, then the extra symbols for captures, checks, castling and promotion. That is all algebraic notation really is. Write down your next few games by hand and read through some puzzle solutions slowly. Within a week or two, reading notation will feel as natural as reading a sentence.
