---
title: "Buchholz in chess"
url: "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/buchholz.md"
canonical_url: "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/buchholz"
last_updated: "2026-11-07"
type: "reference"
summary: "Buchholz is a tiebreak that totals the final scores of every opponent a player met. Imagine two players who both finish a Swiss on 6 points."
related: ["https://georgelichess.com/glossary/tiebreak.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/sonneborn-berger.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/swiss-system.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pairing.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/round-robin.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/category/tournaments-ratings-titles.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary.md"]
---

# Buchholz in chess

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Buchholz is a tiebreak that totals the final scores of every opponent a player met. Imagine two players who both finish a Swiss on 6 points.

Buchholz is a tiebreak that totals the final scores of every opponent a player met, so that between two players on equal points the one who faced stronger opposition ranks higher.

Imagine two players who both finish a Swiss on 6 points. One collected them against opponents who ended near the bottom, the other against people who finished near the top. Buchholz separates them by adding up the final tournament score of each person they played. The larger total belongs to the player whose path was harder.

Those opponent scores are not fixed until the last round ends, so the number can only be completed after the event. FIDE's [tie-break](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/tiebreak.md) regulations list several versions. Fore Buchholz treats every game still being played in the final round as a draw, which lets organizers state a value before the last results arrive. Cut-1 leaves out the lowest opponent score, so a single weak opponent distorts the figure less. The regulations also say how to count rounds that were not played, such as byes and [forfeits](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/forfeit.md), so the total reflects what really happened.

One firm limit applies: Buchholz and its relatives must not be used in [round robins](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/round-robin.md). Everyone there meets the same field, so the sums would be identical and separate nobody. Check the announcement for the version your event uses. See tiebreak, [Sonneborn-Berger](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/sonneborn-berger.md) and [swiss system](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/swiss-system.md).

Also called: Buchholz score.

How "Buchholz" 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

- [Tiebreak](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/tiebreak.md)
- [Sonneborn-Berger](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/sonneborn-berger.md)
- [Swiss system](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/swiss-system.md)
- [Pairing](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pairing.md)
- [Round robin](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/round-robin.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.
- [FIDE chess titles](https://georgelichess.com/titles.md): How the Candidate Master, FIDE Master, International Master and Grandmaster titles are earned, with every Handbook clause.
- [How to get a FIDE rating](https://georgelichess.com/how-to-get-a-fide-rating.md): The Handbook rules for a first FIDE rating: five rated games, the 1400 floor, the two 1800 draws and a worked example.

## Sources

- FIDE Handbook C.07 Play-Off and Tie-Break Regulations, effective 1 March 2026 (Articles 8.1 to 8.3, 14.1 and 16), read 2026-10-21: https://handbook.fide.com/chapter/TieBreakRegulations032026

[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

- [Tiebreak in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/tiebreak.md)
- [Sonneborn-Berger in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/sonneborn-berger.md)
- [Swiss system in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/swiss-system.md)
- [Pairing in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pairing.md)
- [Round robin in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/round-robin.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)