I always loved chess, but I was never very good at it. No matter how many games I played against friends or opponents online, I was stuck at the same mediocre skill level. So I looked for ways to improve and here is what I found.

Chess.com (website and app)

Chess.com is one of the largest chess platforms on the market. At its core, it uses a matchmaking system that matches you with opponents of your skill level. Each game feels like a learning experience rather than a lopsided beatdown – at least that’s my experience.

If you’re not quite ready for the unpredictability of human opponents, or just want to practice specific strategies, the Play Bots feature lets you practice against practice bots ranging from absolute beginner level to master level.

There is a wide variety of tools available on the platform. The “Analysis” function, for example, gives a detailed analysis of my moves after each game, shows where I went wrong and, above all, why. The engine would recommend better moves, helping me understand strategic concepts like positioning, development, and even tactics that I had never considered before.

Chess.com offers a huge library of lessons for all levels (which unfortunately requires a premium subscription for more than three lessons per week). As someone who barely scraped by opening traps I half-remembered from my childhood, these lessons saved my life.

They’re interactive and cover everything from how to open a game efficiently to tricky endgames that had my head spinning. I really enjoyed the learning process, which was a big change from the frustration I felt when I kept losing.

Then there’s Community (under the Social tab). Chess.com has a thriving community of players from all over the world. You can join clubs, read blogs written by seasoned chess players, find a coach to help you improve, and even participate in forums where chess enthusiasts discuss everything from grandmaster games to mistakes daily. It’s a great way to stay motivated and realize that even the pros were beginners too.

But I think the real magic of Chess.com lies in its convenience. Before, I felt like I didn’t have time to sit down and study chess for hours. But with the app, I could play a quick game during my lunch break or solve some tactical puzzles while waiting in line at the grocery store. It fits perfectly into my life, which has kept me consistent, and consistency is key if you want to get better at chess.

Download the Chess.com app to Android Or iOS iPadOS.

Lichess (website and app)

The main thing that attracted me to Lichesse is its simplicity. The website and app are incredibly user-friendly, so I didn’t have to spend hours researching how to navigate the platform. There’s no clutter, no annoying ads, just pure failures and that’s what I love about it.

Lichess isn’t just about playing games; it’s packed with tools that address every aspect of chess improvement. There is an in-depth analysis chart where you can review your plays, identify errors, and get computer-generated suggestions on how to improve your moves. After each match, I could go back and see exactly where I had gone wrong, sometimes embarrassingly early in the match, and learn from my mistakes.

One feature that really helped me improve was the vast library of community-created chess studies and lessons. I found this particularly useful for understanding complex openings and endgames, which have always been the trickiest parts of the game for me.

Another underrated feature of Lichess is the video library under the “Watch” tab. You’ll find a curated collection of over 1,700 educational and entertaining chess videos on everything from opening theory, midgame strategy, and endgame techniques to in-depth analysis of famous games and to the details of modern tournament play.

Like Chess.com, Lichess has an entire section dedicated to chess puzzles, which are ideal for honing tactical skills. I would often spend an hour or two solving these problems on the mobile app, and over time I noticed that my ability to spot key tactical opportunities during matches had improved significantly.

Download Lichess for Android Or iOS and iPadOS.

Next Chess Move (Website and App)

Next chess move is a chess calculator. You plug in your current position on the board either by dragging pieces onto a virtual board or by entering a FEN (ForsythEdwards Notation) or PGN (Portable Game Notation) and it tells you the best move according to a powerful chess engine like Stockfish.

At first I was a little hesitant to use it. I thought it might look like cheating, especially against human opponents. But then I realized that it was actually a fantastic learning tool. Now I mainly use it when practicing playing against the computer. If I’m losing a lot, I’ll check Next Chess Move to see what the computer saw that I didn’t see. It’s amazing how often the engine detects long-term tactics or strategies that are completely beyond me.

The mobile app is more convenient for scanning on the go than the website version, which is more cumbersome and contains ads. On both versions you can access many different chess engines besides Stockfish, some running on very powerful hardware. There is a professional version that gives you even more computing power, but so far I’m happy with the free version.

One thing to keep in mind, however, is that the movement recommended by the engine may not always make sense if you don’t follow the entire calculated line of play. Sometimes the best long-term decision can seem strange or even falter in isolation.

Download the next chess move for Android Or iOS.

Chessable (website and app)

One of my favorite features of Chessable is the variety of courses it offers. While there are several excellent paid courses, there are also many good free courses on everything from openings to endgames, taught by top players like Magnus Carlsen and Judit Polgar.

The interactive experience sets Chessable apart. Instead of just passively watching videos or reading chapters, you’re constantly asked to solve puzzles, play through positions, and perform moves on a virtual board based on what you’ve just learned.

It’s much more engaging and, because you’re actively participating, you end up absorbing the information better. Plus, it feels more like a game than a study, which means I’m more likely to stick with it for longer sessions.

One of the features that I didn’t expect to love as much as I do is the classroom. It’s a space where you can connect with coaches or even friends and study in real time. Think of it as an interactive online classroom, where you can be guided through lessons, ask questions, or challenge yourself to practice positions.

For me, that was a huge plus. Learning chess can feel isolating when you’re studying alone, but with Chessable Classroom you can get live feedback and interact with others, making the entire experience much more dynamic and engaging.

I find Chessable very user-friendly, the interface is intuitive and easy to navigate. Unfortunately, the mobile app is only available on iPhone and iPad.

Download Chessable for iOS or iPadOS.

DecodeChess (website)

While it doesn’t offer much beyond the other tools I’ve looked at, what sets DecodeChess apart from others is the way it explains why certain moves work. Instead of just giving you the best move like most chess engines, DecodeChess breaks down the reasoning behind it. It analyzes the board and provides detailed, human explanations for every move, yours and that of your opponents.

For example, in a tricky mid-game position, I would often see a suggestion like Bishop to F4 from other engines. But without any explanation, I scratch my head: why G4 and not G5? What is the long term plan here? DecodeChess breaks it down step by step.

This will tell you things like this move escapes capture by the Dark Knight, or this opens up space for your turn to control a critical file. Suddenly everything makes sense.

These five tools have been a game-changer in my chess journey, and while I’m still not ready to face Magnus Carlsen anytime soon, I can confidently say that I’m no longer the easy winner in my friends’ group. So if you’ve been stuck in a failure rut like me, try these tools.

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