--- title: "Blitz rating in chess" url: "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/blitz-rating.md" canonical_url: "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/blitz-rating" last_updated: "2026-11-07" type: "reference" summary: "A blitz rating is a rating earned in blitz games, kept on a separate list from standard and rapid ratings, because fast play measures a different skill." related: ["https://georgelichess.com/glossary/rapid-rating.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/blitz-chess.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/bullet-chess.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/time-control.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/fide-rating.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/category/tournaments-ratings-titles.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary.md"] --- # Blitz rating in chess > **For AI agents:** the complete index of GeorgeLiChess pages is [llms.txt](https://georgelichess.com/llms.txt). Every page is also served as markdown at its URL plus .md. A blitz rating is a rating earned in blitz games, kept on a separate list from standard and rapid ratings, because fast play measures a different skill. A blitz rating is a rating earned in blitz games, kept on a separate list from standard and rapid ratings, because fast play measures a different skill. Blitz is rated on its own list because five minutes of thinking time rewards a different mix of qualities than three hours do: quick [pattern recognition](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pattern-recognition.md), steady nerves and good clock handling count for more, while deep [calculation](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/calculation.md) counts for less. FIDE's Rapid and Blitz Rating Regulations apply the same sum, base time plus sixty [increments](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/increment.md), and call the game blitz when the total is above three minutes and no more than ten. A 3 minute game with a 2 second increment totals 5 minutes, so it is blitz. The same regulations carry a cap on the rating difference used in a calculation and, from 1 December 2024, do not rate a game when the two ratings differ by 600 points or more and one player is above 2600. Because of the pace, blitz results are noisier game to game, so a blitz number is best read over many games. Related entries cover [rapid rating](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/rapid-rating.md), [bullet chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/bullet-chess.md) and [blitz chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/blitz-chess.md). Also worth reading is [Online rating](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/online-rating.md). An online rating is the number a website or app computes from games played on that platform; it belongs to that site's player pool and is separate from FIDE and national over-the-board ratings. How "Blitz rating" applies to your own results depends on where you stand now, and the [improvement plans by rating band](https://georgelichess.com/improve.md) show what players near your rating work on. ## Related terms - [Rapid rating](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/rapid-rating.md) - [Blitz chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/blitz-chess.md) - [Bullet chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/bullet-chess.md) - [Time control](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/time-control.md) - [FIDE rating](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/fide-rating.md) ## Guides that go further - [Chess ratings explained](https://georgelichess.com/chess-ratings-explained.md): What a rating measures, how FIDE, Lichess, US Chess and chess.com compute theirs, and why the numbers differ. - [Average chess rating and a good chess rating](https://georgelichess.com/chess-rating-percentiles.md): What share of active Lichess players are rated above 800, 1200, 1500, 1800 or 2000, by time control. - [Chess rating calculator](https://georgelichess.com/tools/rating-calculator.md): Work out how a FIDE rating changes after a run of games. ## Sources - FIDE Handbook B.02 FIDE Rapid and Blitz Rating Regulations, effective 1 March 2024 (Clause 1.1.2), read 2026-10-21: https://handbook.fide.com/chapter/B02RBRegulations2024 - FIDE Handbook B.02 FIDE Rapid and Blitz Rating Regulations, effective 1 March 2024 (Clause 7.3.1), read 2026-10-21: https://handbook.fide.com/chapter/B02RBRegulations2024 [Book your first lesson](https://georgelichess.com/book.md) and George Li reviews your games and builds a study plan around them. Questions about lessons: write to hello@georgelichess.com. ## Related - [Rapid rating in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/rapid-rating.md) - [Blitz chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/blitz-chess.md) - [Bullet chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/bullet-chess.md) - [Time control in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/time-control.md) - [FIDE rating in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/fide-rating.md) - [Chess terms: Tournaments, ratings and titles](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/category/tournaments-ratings-titles.md) - [Chess terms glossary: plain definitions](https://georgelichess.com/glossary.md)