--- title: "Bye in chess" url: "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/bye.md" canonical_url: "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/bye" last_updated: "2026-11-07" type: "reference" summary: "A bye is a round in which a player has no opponent and still receives points; in a Swiss event it goes to one player when the field is odd." related: ["https://georgelichess.com/glossary/swiss-system.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pairing.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/tiebreak.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/board-number.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/team-event.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/category/tournaments-ratings-titles.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary.md"] --- # Bye 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 bye is a round in which a player has no opponent and still receives points; in a Swiss event it goes to one player when the field is odd. A bye is a round in which a player has no opponent and still receives points; in a Swiss event it goes to one player when the field is odd. Swiss [pairing](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pairing.md) needs an even number of players, so when the field is odd, one player sits out each round. FIDE's basic rules describe that as a pairing-allocated bye: no opponent, no color, and as many points as a win unless the tournament rules say otherwise. A player who has already had a pairing-allocated bye, or who has already scored a full point without playing, should not receive another. Byes are not always assigned by the pairing system. Players may request a bye for a round they cannot play, in which case organizers usually award a half point or nothing, according to the event's rules, and the [tiebreak](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/tiebreak.md) regulations take such rounds into account when they count the rounds a player elected to play. Because a bye gives a point for no game, it can matter in the final standings, and it affects color history: unplayed rounds are ignored when the pairing system looks at colors. In [team events](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/team-event.md) the same idea applies to teams: at the [Olympiad](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/chess-olympiad.md) the bye is worth one match point and two game points. See [swiss system](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/swiss-system.md), pairing and tiebreak. It sits close to [Board number](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/board-number.md). A board number identifies the table at which a game is played, and in a team match it also names a player's place in the team order, with board one for the first player. Rating and title terms like "Bye" matter once you know your next step, and the [improvement plans by rating band](https://georgelichess.com/improve.md) set out a weekly routine for each rating range. ## Related terms - [Swiss system](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/swiss-system.md) - [Pairing](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pairing.md) - [Tiebreak](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/tiebreak.md) - [Board number](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/board-number.md) - [Team event](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/team-event.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.04.1 Basic rules for Swiss Systems, effective 1 February 2026 (Rules 3 and 4), read 2026-10-21: https://handbook.fide.com/chapter/C0401202507 - FIDE Handbook C.04.2 General handling rules for Swiss Tournaments, effective 1 February 2026 (Clause 3.4), read 2026-10-21: https://handbook.fide.com/chapter/GeneralHandlingRulesForSwissTournaments202602 - FIDE Handbook C.07 Play-Off and Tie-Break Regulations, effective 1 March 2026 (Article 7.6), read 2026-10-21: https://handbook.fide.com/chapter/TieBreakRegulations032026 - FIDE Handbook Olympiad Pairing Rules, effective 1 January 2022 (Article 4.3), read 2026-10-21: https://handbook.fide.com/chapter/OlympiadPairingRules2022 [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 - [Swiss system in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/swiss-system.md) - [Pairing in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pairing.md) - [Tiebreak in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/tiebreak.md) - [Board number in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/board-number.md) - [Team event in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/team-event.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)