Chess Sets: What to Look For and How Chess Plays

What a chess set is

A chess set is a board of 64 squares, 8 by 8, in alternating light and dark colors, plus 32 pieces: 16 light and 16 dark. Each side has a king, a queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights and eight pawns. That's the whole kit for the game itself.

Everything else about a set is how it's built. Wood or plastic. Big or small. Folding, with storage inside, or flat. Magnetic for travel. A board that also plays checkers or backgammon on the other side. Pieces themed after a licensed line. Learning aids printed on the board for beginners.

I teach middle-school math, and 64 is my favorite number in this whole section. It's 8 squared, it's 2 to the sixth power, and it's the only board in my closet that comes up in an exponents lesson. My seventh graders have heard this more than once.

This page covers how to choose a set, the sub-kinds on the market, and how chess plays under the FIDE Laws of Chess.

What to look at in a chess set

Board size

The board size field is the measurement of the board itself, in inches. The Regal Games reversible board lists 10.5 inches. That's a tabletop size: big enough for two people across a kitchen table, small enough to put away on a shelf. The other listings in our data don't state a board size, so check the full listing.

Board size and piece size go together. Pieces should fit inside their squares with a little room around them. A small travel board with big pieces is crowded, and you'll knock pieces over every time you reach across.

Board and piece material

Wood shows up the most in our data. The Spin Master Legacy Deluxe Chess & Checkers Set lists wood pieces and a wood board. The Regal Games board and the Color Classics Chess Set list a wood board. The listings don't state a piece material for those two, so I won't guess.

Wood feels heavier and looks nicer on a shelf. Plastic is lighter and easier to replace. Either plays the same game. If the set is for a young child who'll drop pieces on a hard floor, that's worth a thought.

Folding and storage

The Legacy Deluxe set lists folding storage: the board folds and the pieces go inside. Folding storage is the difference between a set that lives on the table and a set you can put away in one motion. For a family closet, I'd count it as half the reason to buy a set.

A set with no storage needs a bag or a box. Pieces wander. A lost pawn can be replaced by a coin; a lost knight can't be replaced by anything that doesn't start an argument.

What else it plays

Three sets in our data play more than chess:

• Regal Games Reversible Chess, Checkers & Tic-Tac-Toe Board: also checkers, per the listing
• Spin Master Legacy Deluxe Chess & Checkers Set: also checkers
• Spin Master Cardinal Classics Chess, Checkers, Backgammon Set: the name lists three games; our data holds no other specs for it

Chess and checkers share a board, so a combo set makes sense for a family that plays both. Checkers needs 24 more pieces, so check that the combo includes them.

Magnetic sets

The AMEROUS Magnetic Wooden Chess and Checkers Set (2 in 1) has no specs in our data beyond its name, which says magnetic and wooden, and that it plays chess and checkers. Magnetic sets hold the pieces in place on a moving surface: a car, a train, a lap. That makes them the usual pick for a travel chess set.

Swallowed magnets can cause serious internal injuries. Keep loose or broken magnetic pieces away from young children.

Age label and licensed lines

The age field matters most on a learning set. Three listings in our data say 8+: the Cardinal Classics Chess Teacher, the Color Classics Chess Set and the Disney Villains Chess Set. The others don't state an age.

The Disney Villains Chess Set is the one licensed set in our data. Its listing names Disney Villains as the theme. The rules are the same as any other set; the pieces carry the theme.

Check the age label on the listing. Chess pieces are small parts, and toys with small parts are a choking hazard for children under 3.

Kinds of chess sets, and when to choose which

• Tabletop boards. A flat or reversible board around 10.5 inches, like the Regal Games board. For a family that plays at the kitchen table.
• Folding deluxe sets. Board, pieces and storage in one case, like the Legacy Deluxe. For a set that gets put away and brought out.
• Learning sets. Sets named for teaching, like Chess Made Simple and the Cardinal Classics Chess Teacher. For a first-time player; the 8+ label on the Chess Teacher is the one stated age.
• Multi-game sets. Chess plus checkers, sometimes backgammon. For a house that wants three classics in one box.
• Magnetic travel sets. For cars and trips, with the magnets kept away from small kids.
• Themed sets. Licensed or color-themed, like Disney Villains or Color Classics. For a gift where looks matter as much as play.

How chess plays

The rules below are in my own words, from the FIDE Laws of Chess that took effect on 1 January 2023. FIDE is the international chess federation. Home games follow the same basic rules; tournaments add clocks and a lot more paperwork.

Setting up

1. Turn the board so each player has a light square in the near right-hand corner.
2. Put the rooks in the corners, then the knights next to them, then the bishops.
3. The queen goes on the middle square of her own color. The king takes the last square.
4. Fill the second row with pawns.

Light on the right, queen on her color. Those two checks fix most setup mistakes.

How each piece moves

• King: one square in any direction
• Queen: any distance in a straight line or diagonal
• Rook: any distance along a row or column
• Bishop: any distance along a diagonal
• Knight: an L-shape, two squares one way and one square sideways; it jumps over pieces
• Pawn: one square forward, or two on its first move; captures one square diagonally forward

No piece except the knight can jump over another piece. You capture by moving onto a square an opponent's piece occupies, and you can't move onto your own pieces. The knight is the only piece in the box that ignores traffic, which is why beginners lose track of it.

Three special moves

• Castling. The king moves two squares toward a rook, and that rook hops to the square the king crossed. Not allowed if the king or that rook has moved, if the king is in check, if a square between them is occupied, or if the king would cross or land on an attacked square.
• En passant. If an opponent's pawn moves two squares and lands beside your pawn, you can capture it as if it had moved one square. Only on your very next move.
• Promotion. A pawn that reaches the far row becomes a queen, rook, bishop or knight of your color. You don't need a captured piece to do it.

Check, checkmate and stalemate

A king under attack is in check. You can't make a move that leaves your own king in check. Checkmate is check with no way out, and it wins the game. Nobody ever captures the king.

If the player to move has no legal move and isn't in check, that's stalemate, and the game is a draw. It's the rule that saves the most games for the player who's losing, and the one beginners most often haven't heard of.

Mix-ups the FIDE Laws settle

• Pawns don't capture straight ahead. They move straight and capture diagonally. A pawn facing another pawn head-on is stuck.
• You can't castle out of check. You also can't castle through an attacked square.
• The king never gets taken. The game ends at checkmate, one move before anyone could capture it.
• Two queens are legal. Promotion isn't limited to pieces that were captured. An upside-down rook makes a fine second queen at home.

Teaching a first game of chess

These are house rules for a beginner's table, not FIDE rules:

1. Start with pawns only. Each player gets 8 pawns. First to reach the far row wins. It teaches forward moves and diagonal captures in ten minutes.
2. Add one piece type per game. Rooks next, then bishops, then the queen, then knights.
3. Say "check" out loud. Tournament players don't have to. A beginner needs the warning.
4. Take-backs allowed in game one. Let the new player undo a move once a turn. Retire the rule by game three.
5. Give the beginner White. That way they always move first.

A set sold for learning may do some of this work for you; read its listing to see how. Without one, the five steps above get you there.

Who should skip a chess set

Skip a deluxe wooden set as a first purchase for a young beginner. A learning set listed for 8+, or a plain board, teaches the same moves, and a dropped plastic piece is no loss.

Skip a magnetic set in a house with toddlers. The magnet warning is the reason.

Skip chess entirely for a group game night. It's strictly two players. For a table of four, look at a party game or a family board game instead.

If you like chess, look at these

• Checkers: the other game on most chess boards
• Backgammon sets: a two-player classic that adds dice
• Strategy board games: planning games for bigger tables
• Travel games: small boxes for the road
• Stratego: two armies on a board, with hidden ranks

Six of the eight sets here are from Spin Master; its brand page has the rest of that lineup.

Light square on the right, queen on her color, and White moves first.