Chess is a game of intelligence and patience. A person who wants to excel in playing chess must have a strong opponent to practice with. Previously, players had to search for players who can play chess at least for an opponent.
But to solve this issue, technology has blessed all the chess lovers like us with a variety of chess learning and practice apps.
Here are some best apps from which you can learn chess:
Table of Contents
1. Chess For Kids – Play And Learn
It is said that when we learn something from a very young age, we ensure maximum time to excel for us. This app allows even the toddler to learn chess from it. Don’t get confused with the name of the app, it is not made for only kids. But it is made for chess enthusiasts of every age group.
If you are searching for an app that is attractive and provides authentic information about chess, then you can count on ‘chess for kids’. This app teaches you in all the funny and enjoyable ways. To make the session more involved and interesting, they provide the kids with a lot of video lectures.
Teaching a kid in a competitive environment is what every parent wants. So the platform is best for a competitive environment as the kids across the globe can play together and learn together.
You may also like to check out my article on how to teach kids to play chess
Some pros and cons of the app are:
Pros:
- Puzzles and video lectures
- Suitable for all age groups
- Guardians can take over and check their child’s account
Cons:
- Cannot analyze a game repeatedly
- Puzzles for gold members only
2. Lichess – Free Online Chess
This game app, Lichess, practices both online and offline modes of gaming and practicing. Here in the game, you can choose who you want as your opponent.
To mention the physical appearance of the game, it is designed for mobile phones and tablets and you can play this in landscape mode as well. This app alone catches one lakh fifty thousand players from all the countries.
The best part of the learning chess app is that you don’t need to practice in one form of chess only.
This app includes Bullet chess, Classical chess, and Correspondence chess and Blitz chess so that no player is bored playing one board. If you are practicing for a tournament and want to master the use of a clock while playing the game, then you must try this app.
This has an inbuilt clock in it which can be used by the players to keep track of the time they are taking for one move.
Mentioned below are some pros and cons of this app which will help you choose between apps:
Pros:
- You get to choose your opponent
- You can follow your opponent too to see when he is online and can have a match with you.
- The game application updates itself on a regular interval and also fixes the bugs automatically.
Cons:
- Graphics are relatively boring, or rather simple
- Anyone can check your live match
- Players checking your live matches may copy or note your strategies and game.
(If you are looking only for chess clocks apps then I recommend you to check out my article on the best chess clock apps)
3. DroidFish Chess:
This app is made and undertaken by stockfish engine, which is one of the best and topmost chess engine companies in the world.
It is a totally free chess program for all the players around the world. The best part of this app is that you can save a game and tally and analyse it later on with the annotations written.
This app includes a two player system which allows players to just not stick to the online computer practicing mode. Imports and analysis of the game makes it more unique than other apps.
Pros :
- Totally free app and a friendly app
- It has a built-in chess engine that is the best one.
- It auto saves the games whenever you are playing it
- It analysis and tallies every position and move of the armature player
Cons:
- Moves are delayed
4. Chess Genius
This app can be called one of the best chess learning and playing apps because of a lot of features that it possesses. This was made by Richanr Lang which has created history long back. This app was recognized by world chess championships a lot of times.
The most unique and the best feature of this app is that it shows what is the best move or what an expert will move after your move has been acknowledged by the system of the app.
It keeps recording the game in the written format along with the expert’s move side by side. Also, it will show a blink message, before a blunder or unacknowledged move.
I also highly recommend you to check out this article where I share some of the best places where you can play chess online.
Pros:
- Very fast and immediate move and notations
- Saves the game automatically
- Gives written update of the game along with power moves
Cons:
- Can be distracting due to the game notation popup
5. Arkon: Chess Opening Explorer
This is a free downloading app for the players using iOS. Arkon is a chess engine which mainly focuses on the opening game of the board.
Opening must be strong enough to tell your opponent what you have prepared to play further. If you want to make your opening strong then you must opt for this app, which will not only enhance your open game skills but will also help you in practicing chess with notations and advice.
Below are some pros and cons mentioned:
Pros:
- Very simple and sober board
- Makes your open game very strong
- Fixes the bugs with updates on a regular interval
Cons:
- Made only for ioS and iPad users
6. Chess Tactics Pro
As the name suggests, this app tells it’s users to apply the tactics on time through various online and offline puzzles. It keeps the notations of your game that you played previously and shows the result of how you have improved. All the puzzles that it offers have a unique solution to its best. As an add on, you can change the board theme and game font too. Going through a lot of tests and puzzles you will find a huge improvement in your game.
Pros:
- Very simple, easy but attractive
- Designed for the players of all the levels
- Fixes the bugs regularly
- Available for all the Smartphone users
Cons:
- Forced move feature is absent
- Quite distracting for beginners.
7. Stockfish Chess
This is considered to be the best app because of it’s direct association with the chess engine. To all the people who are pace loving and swift, this app is the best for you. As you will have a fast moving game along with styles like solid, passive, active, aggressive or suicidal. These formats are adjustable with increasing or decreasing levels of difficulties. It has the pre chess engine installed in it and has all the source of coding within itself.
Pros:
- Associated with the best chess engine of the world
- Graphical variations are available in all the levels.
- Auto saves all the games that you play but the connectivity must be apt
Cons:
- You are considered to lose if you minimize the game by any chance
- Bugs are annoying.
8. Play Magnus – Play Chess For Free
As the name says, magnus, it was developed by Magnus Carlsen. Magnus carlsen is considered to be the topmost player of chess. This app belongs to him. This contains his skills and techniques and lessons. All the lessons that this app contains is obtained from the experience of Magnus only. It has all the difficulty level and graphical variations too.
Pros:
- Developed by the topmost player of the world
- Both free downloading and premium edition is provided
- Regularly updated to make it bug free\
Cons:
- Does Not have much option to switch between
- Not so engaging for beginners
9. Learn Chess With Dr. Wolf
It is always preferred to learn from an expert. But it is not possible for everyone to afford a personal chess coach and continue it from the beginning to the time you become a master. So for those players, this app is designed.
Here you will learn from the master Dr Wolf himself. You will learn his tactics, strategies, gameplays, moves and thinking of a grandmaster. Through this app and the guidance of dr. wolf you will learn how to stop repeating mistakes and counter the moves if you have made any blunder.
After playing this game through the app you will understand why it is titled as one of the best supportive, friendly and gentle coaches for all the age groups.
Pros:
- Made for the players of all the age groups, beginner, intermediate and master.
- Explanations and feedback of each move and game is given
- You can connect with a master directly through the help of this app
Cons:
- Due to the popping commands it can feel like irritating at first
10. Hiarcs Chess
This app is regarded as one of the best apps for practicing chess and improving from your mistakes. Not every player is a born winner, so if you start losing from your very first game, it deteriorates a player’s motivation.
Hence to protect you from such instances this app is designed with weaker opponent playing style and less amount of chess algorithmic calculations.
But this is regarded as one of the best because the way it teaches from every move is commendable. The app is in short a human-like style player which helps the real player understand the strength, weakness, mistakes and blunders that a human player can make while playing the same game.
Players having iOS or iPad touch can get access to this app easily, as it is especially designed for such players.
Pros:
- It offers a multiplayer system, that means either to play with the computer or with your friends, teacher or partners.
- Very user friendly, as it possesses the moves like humans and makes it more realistic for the players.
- Moreover, it helps you with the theory of the moves you are playing which makes the player’s moves and thinking capacity deep and wide.
Cons:
- Looks dull due to the low quality of the graphics
- Made only for iOS users only.
11. Chess – tChess pro
The app Chess – tChess pro is an app designed especially for apple users or iOS users. This app is very user friendly for those using iOS.
It helps to connect with people around the globe with the help of it’s algorithm. Also the chess moves are visible to everyone, which makes it easy for the people to judge which side of the board is at advantage and is going to win.
This app keeps changing the looks to attract people, so that the regular practice doesn’t get boring
Pros:
- This app keeps updating itself to bring new features and attractions
- You can save the came for later analysis and check the maturity of a move through the analysis
- Doesn’t involve any payment system, so it is free for everyone
Cons:
- To understand the technology of the game, a player might need some time
- Limited to iOS users mostly
Conclusion
So mentioned above are some of the best apps for learning chess.
All these apps provide the best ways to enhance your game senses and tactics, in their own style. Some have brilliant graphics, some have extraordinary speed and some have perfect notations.
I hope after reading about all the apps you are able to choose which one to download. So that’s it! Thanks and if you found this article helpful then please share it with others.
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