What Is a Good Chess Rating? Beginner to 1600+ Explained

Gulshan Kumar
Gulshan Kumar
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6 min read

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Last updated: Feb 24, 2026

What Is a Good Chess Rating? Beginner to 1600+ Explained

What is a good chess rating? This is the question that ultimately confuses any player, a total beginner trying to grasp the specifics of the game in his/her hands or a casual shark who is already pinching his/her friends at the nearby park.

The fact that chess is a game of infinite depth means that the definition of good is all relative. To an amateur, 1000 is a gigantic success. To a long-time tournament veteran, 1600 is the minimum of respect.

This guide will further subdivide the levels from amateur to professional, allowing you to determine your position on the world ladder, and if you keep playing chess online, you might increase your level there, too.
 

FAQs

  • Numerical rating (the number) is more accurate in tracking personal progress, whereas rating (your percentile) is used to determine how well you are doing in comparison with the existing pool of players.
  • The general opinion is that 1200 is a good rating for a club player who happens to be a hobby player.
  • Yes, but only the absolute top players do. Online in blitz or bullet, GMs like Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura have topped 3000.
  • In classical chess, Magnus's peak is 2882, the all-time record. He hasn't reached 2900 in his official FIDE classical rating yet.

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