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Chess Endgames: The Essential Guide

You've won a pawn, traded down and the win should be easy. Then it slips away into a draw, or worse. Endgames are where good positions are turned into points, and they're far more learnable than most players think. This guide covers the endings that come up again and again, and how to practice them so you play them with confidence.

Why should you learn chess endgames?

Because every advantage you build in the opening and middlegame has to be converted, and that usually happens in the endgame. A small set of key positions and principles covers most of the endings you'll ever reach. Knowing them also changes how you play the middlegame, because you'll know which trades lead to a win.

On this page: Basic mates · King and pawn · Rook endgames · How to practice · FAQ

What changes in the endgame?

  • The king becomes a fighter. With fewer pieces left, mating attacks are rare. Bring your king towards the centre and use it
  • Pawns become more valuable. Every pawn is a potential queen. Passed pawns often decide the game
  • Activity beats material. An active rook or king is often worth more than an extra pawn
  • Calculation becomes concrete. Fewer pieces means you can count moves and races exactly. Do it

The basic checkmates

Before anything else, make sure you can deliver these without thinking: king and queen vs king, king and rook vs king, and king and two bishops vs king. The method is the same each time: use your pieces to box the enemy king in, shrink the box, and bring your own king up to help. Watch out for stalemate when the box gets small.

King and pawn endgames

These are the foundation of all endgames, because almost every ending can turn into one.

Opposition

When the kings face each other with one square between them, the side that doesn't have to move "has the opposition" and usually wins the fight for key squares. Read the full guide to opposition

Key squares

Each pawn has a set of key squares. If your king reaches one, the pawn promotes whatever the defender does. Know the key squares and you know whether a king and pawn ending is a win or a draw.

The rule of the square

A quick way to tell whether a king can catch a passed pawn without counting moves. Take the distance from the pawn to its promotion square and mark out a square of that size on the board, running from the pawn to the promotion rank. If the defending king can step into it, the pawn can be caught.

The outside passed pawn

A passed pawn far from the other pawns drags the enemy king away, letting your king feast on the pawns left behind.

Triangulation

A king manoeuvre that "loses" a move, so your opponent has to move first in a key position. It's how many tight king and pawn endings are won.

Passed pawns

A passed pawn has no enemy pawns in front of it or on the files beside it. Create one, support it, and push it. As the defender, blockade it with a piece (ideally a knight) and keep your king close. How to create, push and stop passed pawns

Turn more of your advantages into wins

The Chess Endgame Expertise Bundle brings together 3 endgame guides and 2,700 puzzles, so you learn the key positions and then practice them until they're automatic. One payment, no subscription.

See the Endgame Expertise Bundle

Rook endgames

Rook endgames are the most common endings in chess, so they're worth the most practice time. Three ideas cover a huge share of them:

The Lucena position (how to win)

Your pawn is on the seventh, your king is in front of it, and the enemy king is cut off. The winning method is "building a bridge": use your rook to shield your king from checks so the pawn can promote.

The Philidor position (how to draw)

The defender keeps their rook on the third rank to stop the attacking king coming forward. Once the pawn advances, the rook drops back to check from behind. Know this one and you'll save a lot of half points.

Rooks belong behind passed pawns

Whether it's your passed pawn or your opponent's, the rook is strongest behind it, where it gains scope as the pawn advances.

Minor piece endgames

  • Knight vs bishop: knights like closed positions with pawns on one side. Bishops prefer open positions with pawns on both wings
  • The wrong bishop: a bishop and a rook's pawn can't win if the bishop doesn't control the promotion square and the defending king gets there first
  • Opposite-coloured bishops: often drawn even a pawn or two down, because the defender's bishop can blockade on squares the attacker's bishop can never reach

Queen vs pawn on the seventh

A queen usually beats a pawn about to promote by checking until the enemy king blocks its own pawn, then bringing her king closer. The big exceptions are rook's pawns and bishop's pawns, where stalemate tricks can save the defender.

How should you practice endgames?

  1. Learn the key positions first. Basic mates, opposition, Lucena and Philidor. Set them up and play them out
  2. Solve endgame puzzles. They train precise calculation, which matters more in endings than anywhere else
  3. Play positions out against a friend or engine. Knowing the method isn't the same as executing it on the clock
  4. Review your own endings. Most players skip this. It's where the easiest rating points hide

Fifteen minutes of endgame work a few times a week adds up quickly.

Tools to train endgames

See all endgame training

Questions people ask about chess endgames

What endgames should every chess player know?

The basic checkmates, king and pawn endings (opposition, key squares, the rule of the square), and the Lucena and Philidor rook endings.

What is the opposition in chess?

When two kings face each other with one square between them, the side not to move has the opposition. It often decides king and pawn endings.

Are rook endgames always drawn?

No, but they're drawish. Many a pawn up are still drawn with good defence, which is why knowing the Philidor position is so valuable.

When should I start learning endgames?

As soon as you know the basic checkmates. Simple endgame knowledge improves your whole game, because it tells you which trades to make.

What's the best endgame book?

Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual is the classic for stronger players. Most club players get more from a practical guide plus puzzles first. See our endgame books roundup.

How do I stop drawing won endgames?

Activate your king early, push passed pawns with support, avoid stalemate traps, and calculate pawn races exactly rather than by feel.

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What's Your Weakness?

Pick the part of your game that costs you the most points. For many players that's tactics or endgames, with openings coming after.