Where do these chess puzzles come from?

From the Lichess puzzle database, which Lichess publishes under CC0. This page uses the first 5,000 rows of the export updated on 2026-09-10, retrieved on 2026-09-21, so it is a fixed set rather than a random sample of the whole database, and it does not change from day to day. The source rating and themes shown for each puzzle are the database's own values from that date. The position, the moves and the solution line all come from that file; the board, the piece drawings and the wording on this page are this site's own.

Why is a move already played when the puzzle opens?

Because that is how the source is written: the first move in every Lichess puzzle row is the opponent's move that creates the position, and the solver's line starts at the second. The page plays that first move for the other side before showing you the board, highlights it, and lists it in the move log as the setup. In puzzle 02c59, for example, Black's 80... Rxe5 is the setup and you play White. The board is always drawn from the side you play.

What happens if I play a different move from the solution?

It depends on the move. An illegal move is refused with a message naming the piece and the square it cannot reach, and the board does not change. A checkmate is always accepted, so in puzzle 02c59 the stored a7# and the alternative Nd7# both solve it. Any other legal move is marked outside this solution and taken back, and it counts as a try outside the line for that attempt. That label is not a claim that your move loses: the puzzle stores one line and there is no chess engine on the page to judge anything else.

Do hints or showing the answer change my score?

Each puzzle counts once, by your first attempt at it. Finishing with no hint, no shown move and no try outside the line counts as solved unaided. A hint, which marks the square the stored move starts from, or a try outside the line makes the attempt assisted, and Show move plays the stored move for you and marks the attempt as moves shown. Taking back and retrying never add a second count. Puzzles whose first attempt was not unaided go on a review list, and solving one unaided on a retry takes it off the list without changing how it counted. No rating of your play is calculated.

How do I choose easier or harder puzzles?

Pick a source rating band and a theme, then press Next puzzle. The bands hold 1,188 puzzles under 1000, 1,599 from 1000 to 1499, 1,269 from 1500 to 1999, 763 from 2000 to 2499 and 181 at 2500 and up, and the theme list covers the 72 tags in the set, from Mate in 1 and Fork to Back rank mate, each with its count. Next puzzle takes the next one in the set that you have not tried yet, and comes round to tried ones again once every match has been tried. You can also type a puzzle ID to open one directly. The ratings are Lichess estimates from the snapshot date, so treat them as a rough guide to difficulty.

Can I solve puzzles with the keyboard or by typing moves?

Yes, both. Tab to the board, move between squares with the arrow keys, press Enter or Space on a piece and then on the square it goes to, and Escape to let go. Or type the move: SAN such as Nf3, exd5, O-O or e8=Q, or from and to squares such as g1f3 and e7e8q. A pawn that promotes has to name its piece, typed or picked from the four choices, because the page never guesses it.

Is my progress saved, and can I export it?

Your filters, the puzzle you are on, including any hints and tries, and a record of every puzzle you finished or left part way are saved in this browser, so after a reload Continue puts you back where you were, hints included. Export history downloads a CSV with one row per puzzle: its ID, source rating and themes (filled in once the puzzles are loaded), your first and latest result with their times, the hints, tries and shown moves of the first attempt, and the number of attempts. The moves you typed are not in it. Nothing is uploaded and there is no account.

Does this page analyse positions with a chess engine?

No. There is no engine here, so nothing on the page is an evaluation, a best-move claim or opening advice. chess.js checks legality, writes the notation and detects checkmate, and the solution line is the one stored in the Lichess file. Copy FEN copies the position on the board if you want to study it elsewhere.

Chess Puzzles

Solve tactics from a fixed set of 5,000 puzzles from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0, updated 2026-09-10), on a board you can play by mouse, touch or keyboard, or by typing moves in algebraic notation. Each puzzle opens after the other side's setup move, exactly as the source records it, and chess.js checks every move you try: an illegal move is refused and the board does not change, any checkmate you find is accepted even when it is not the stored move, and any other legal move off the stored line is marked outside this solution rather than called a blunder. Filter by source rating band and by theme, ask for a hint or have the next move shown, replay the stored line in SAN once you finish, and come back to the puzzles you needed help with. The 1.8 MB puzzle file downloads when you start and is checked against its pinned SHA-256 fingerprint before any puzzle is shown, and your progress stays in this browser.

5,000 chess puzzles, checked move by move

The set is 1.8 MB and downloads when you start.

5,000 Lichess puzzles, CC0 1.0Every move checked by chess.jsProgress kept in this browserNo account

Pick a piece, then its square, or type the move. The board is drawn from the side you play. The first move of each Lichess puzzle is the other side's, and it is already played when the board appears; the move log shows it as the setup. A legal move that is not the stored one is marked outside this solution and taken back, and any checkmate you find solves the puzzle.

Your puzzles

Progress stays in this browser.

Sources. Puzzles: the first 5,000 rows of the Lichess puzzle database, updated 2026-09-10 and retrieved 2026-09-21, released under CC0 1.0. Theme names are the source's tags, shown in plain words. Move rules: chess.js 1.4.0 by Jeff Hlywa, BSD-2-Clause. The piece drawings are this site's own. Notices: Puzzle source notice, chess.js licence.

Accuracy. Puzzles are the first 5,000 rows of the Lichess puzzle database as updated on 2026-09-10, released under CC0, each shown after its first source move is played for the other side, and every move is checked by chess.js 1.4.0; ratings and themes are that source's dated estimates, not a measure of your strength. Any legal checkmate solves a puzzle, so every mating move counts in a mate in one, and any other legal move off the stored line is marked outside this solution, which is not a claim that it loses. There is no chess engine here, so nothing on the page is an engine evaluation, opening advice or a rating of your play.

Common questions

Where do these chess puzzles come from?: From the Lichess puzzle database, which Lichess publishes under CC0. This page uses the first 5,000 rows of the export updated on 2026-09-10, retrieved on 2026-09-21, so it is a fixed set rather than a random sample of the whole database, and it does not change from day to day. The source rating and themes shown for each puzzle are the database's own values from that date. The position, the moves and the solution line all come from that file; the board, the piece drawings and the wording on this page are this site's own.
Why is a move already played when the puzzle opens?: Because that is how the source is written: the first move in every Lichess puzzle row is the opponent's move that creates the position, and the solver's line starts at the second. The page plays that first move for the other side before showing you the board, highlights it, and lists it in the move log as the setup. In puzzle 02c59, for example, Black's 80... Rxe5 is the setup and you play White. The board is always drawn from the side you play.
What happens if I play a different move from the solution?: It depends on the move. An illegal move is refused with a message naming the piece and the square it cannot reach, and the board does not change. A checkmate is always accepted, so in puzzle 02c59 the stored a7# and the alternative Nd7# both solve it. Any other legal move is marked outside this solution and taken back, and it counts as a try outside the line for that attempt. That label is not a claim that your move loses: the puzzle stores one line and there is no chess engine on the page to judge anything else.
Do hints or showing the answer change my score?: Each puzzle counts once, by your first attempt at it. Finishing with no hint, no shown move and no try outside the line counts as solved unaided. A hint, which marks the square the stored move starts from, or a try outside the line makes the attempt assisted, and Show move plays the stored move for you and marks the attempt as moves shown. Taking back and retrying never add a second count. Puzzles whose first attempt was not unaided go on a review list, and solving one unaided on a retry takes it off the list without changing how it counted. No rating of your play is calculated.
How do I choose easier or harder puzzles?: Pick a source rating band and a theme, then press Next puzzle. The bands hold 1,188 puzzles under 1000, 1,599 from 1000 to 1499, 1,269 from 1500 to 1999, 763 from 2000 to 2499 and 181 at 2500 and up, and the theme list covers the 72 tags in the set, from Mate in 1 and Fork to Back rank mate, each with its count. Next puzzle takes the next one in the set that you have not tried yet, and comes round to tried ones again once every match has been tried. You can also type a puzzle ID to open one directly. The ratings are Lichess estimates from the snapshot date, so treat them as a rough guide to difficulty.
Can I solve puzzles with the keyboard or by typing moves?: Yes, both. Tab to the board, move between squares with the arrow keys, press Enter or Space on a piece and then on the square it goes to, and Escape to let go. Or type the move: SAN such as Nf3, exd5, O-O or e8=Q, or from and to squares such as g1f3 and e7e8q. A pawn that promotes has to name its piece, typed or picked from the four choices, because the page never guesses it.
Is my progress saved, and can I export it?: Your filters, the puzzle you are on, including any hints and tries, and a record of every puzzle you finished or left part way are saved in this browser, so after a reload Continue puts you back where you were, hints included. Export history downloads a CSV with one row per puzzle: its ID, source rating and themes (filled in once the puzzles are loaded), your first and latest result with their times, the hints, tries and shown moves of the first attempt, and the number of attempts. The moves you typed are not in it. Nothing is uploaded and there is no account.
Does this page analyse positions with a chess engine?: No. There is no engine here, so nothing on the page is an evaluation, a best-move claim or opening advice. chess.js checks legality, writes the notation and detects checkmate, and the solution line is the one stored in the Lichess file. Copy FEN copies the position on the board if you want to study it elsewhere.

Puzzles are the first 5,000 rows of the Lichess puzzle database as updated on 2026-09-10, released under CC0, each shown after its first source move is played for the other side, and every move is checked by chess.js 1.4.0; ratings and themes are that source's dated estimates, not a measure of your strength. Any legal checkmate solves a puzzle, so every mating move counts in a mate in one, and any other legal move off the stored line is marked outside this solution, which is not a claim that it loses. There is no chess engine here, so nothing on the page is an engine evaluation, opening advice or a rating of your play.