Correspondence chess
Correspondence chess is played over a long period, with moves sent by post, email or a website, so each player has days to think about every move.
Also called: postal chess
In correspondence chess, the players are not at the same board. A move is sent to the opponent by post, email or a playing website, and then they have a number of days to reply. A game can last months, and a player may handle many games at the same time. The time limit is counted in days, often with an allowance of extra days for the whole game, which can be used for holidays or illness.
The slow pace changes the nature of the game. You can study the position, check opening books and analyze deeply. In modern play, many correspondence organizations allow the use of engines, while others ban them, so you must read the rules of the event. In events that allow engines, success depends on choosing plans, managing many games and finding useful improvements.
Correspondence chess began in the days of the postal service and still has its own international events and titles. It suits players with a busy schedule, and it is a good way to learn opening theory and long-term planning. The skills differ from quick over-the-board play, so many players use both.
It sits close to Blindfold chess. Blindfold chess is played without seeing the board or the pieces, so each player must hold the whole position in memory and name every move aloud or through notation.
A neighboring idea is Three-check chess. Three-check chess uses the normal rules with one added way to win: the first player to put the opposing king in check three times wins at once, in addition to winning by checkmate.
A neighboring idea is Premove. A premove is a move entered on an online board before the opponent has replied, which is played automatically as soon as it becomes your turn if it is still legal.
Time controls change what a player should practice, and the improvement plans by rating band show how the habits behind "Correspondence chess" differ across rating ranges.
Related terms
Blindfold chess is played without seeing the board or the pieces, so each player must hold the whole position in memory and name every move aloud or through notation.
A time control is the rule that sets how much thinking time each player gets in a game, and whether extra time is added per move, which decides what kind of chess is being played.
Classical chess is the slowest regular format, with long thinking time per player, usually more than an hour each, and it is the format used for most serious over the board events.
A chess engine is a computer program that searches positions and evaluates moves, usually playing and analyzing far stronger than any human, and it is used for analysis, preparation and play against a machine.
A chess clock is a pair of linked timers of which only one runs at a time; after each move a player presses their side to stop their own time and start the opponent's.
In a Swiss-system tournament the number of rounds is announced in advance, nobody is knocked out, and every round pairs players who have scored about the same so far, never matching the same two players twice.
Guides that go further
See whether a base time and increment counts as bullet, blitz, rapid or classical.
Average chess rating and a good chess rating
What share of active Lichess players are rated above 800, 1200, 1500, 1800 or 2000, by time control.
What a rating measures, how FIDE, Lichess, US Chess and chess.com compute theirs, and why the numbers differ.
Want to spot this in your own games?
A first lesson starts with your games: George reviews them and builds a study plan around what he finds.