How Chess Pieces Move
Complete guide to chess piece movements
The six pieces at a glance
Each side starts with a king, a queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights and eight pawns (if you need a reminder of where they go, see how to set up a chess board). The rook moves in straight lines, the bishop along diagonals and the queen both ways. The king moves one square in any direction, the knight jumps in an L-shape, and the pawn moves straight forward but captures diagonally. Only the knight can jump over other pieces. Green squares in the diagrams below show where each piece can go, and red outlines show where the pawn can capture.
King
One square in any direction
The King is the most important piece. If your King is checkmated, you lose the game. The King can move one square in any direction: horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.
Special: Can perform castling with a Rook (moving two squares toward a Rook).
Tips:
- Keep your King safe, especially in the opening
- Castle early to protect your King
- In the endgame, the King becomes an active piece
Queen
Any number of squares in any direction
The Queen is the most powerful piece. She combines the movement of the Rook and Bishop, moving any number of squares horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.
Special: Cannot jump over other pieces.
Tips:
- Don't bring your Queen out too early
- The Queen is worth about 9 pawns
- Use the Queen for attacking and controlling key squares
Rook
Any number of squares horizontally or vertically
The Rook moves in straight lines, any number of squares along a rank (row) or file (column). Rooks are powerful in open positions.
Special: Can castle with the King. Two Rooks can control an entire rank or file.
Tips:
- Rooks are worth about 5 pawns
- Put Rooks on open files
- Connect your Rooks (place them on the same rank)
Bishop
Any number of squares diagonally
The Bishop moves diagonally any number of squares. Each player starts with two Bishops: one on light squares and one on dark squares.
Special: A Bishop always stays on the same color squares throughout the game.
Tips:
- Bishops are worth about 3 pawns
- The Bishop pair is very strong
- Bishops are better in open positions
Knight
L-shape: 2 squares + 1 square
The Knight moves in an L-shape: two squares in one direction and then one square perpendicular to that. It's the only piece that can jump over other pieces.
Special: Can jump over pieces. Always lands on a different color square.
Tips:
- Knights are worth about 3 pawns
- Knights are better in closed positions
- A Knight on the rim is dim (keep Knights centralized)
Pawn
Forward one square (or two from starting position)
Pawns move forward one square, but capture diagonally. On their first move, pawns can advance two squares. Pawns cannot move backward.
Special: En passant capture. Promotion to any piece when reaching the last rank.
Tips:
- Pawns are worth 1 point
- Control the center with pawns
- Passed pawns (no enemy pawns blocking) are very strong
The special moves
Three rules go beyond the basic movements, and each has its own lesson. Castling moves the king two squares with a rook in one go. En passant lets a pawn capture an enemy pawn that has just jumped past it. Pawn promotion turns a pawn that reaches the last rank into a queen, rook, bishop or knight. To see how the pieces work together in a real position, set one up on the chess calculator and look at the moves Stockfish suggests.
Frequently asked questions
Which chess piece is the most powerful?
The queen. She moves like a rook and a bishop combined, and from the centre of an empty board she controls 27 squares. She is worth about nine pawns.
Which piece can jump over other pieces?
Only the knight. Every other piece is blocked by the first piece in its path. The one exception is castling, where the rook passes over the king.
How do pawns capture?
Diagonally, one square forward to the left or right. A pawn cannot capture straight ahead, so a piece directly in front of it blocks it completely.
Can the king capture pieces?
Yes, the king captures by moving onto an adjacent square, like any other piece. It may not capture a piece that is protected, because that would put it in check.
What are the chess piece values?
The usual guide is pawn 1, knight 3, bishop 3, rook 5 and queen 9. The king has no point value because losing it loses the game.
Can pawns move backwards?
No. Pawns are the only pieces that can never retreat. When one reaches the far end of the board it must be promoted to a queen, rook, bishop or knight.
Related lessons
- How to set up a chess boardLight square on the right, queen on her colour, and where all 32 pieces start.
- How the knight movesThe L-shaped jump, why knights belong in the centre, and the knight fork.
- Castling rulesEvery condition for O-O and O-O-O, the squares that must be safe, and when to castle.
- The en passant ruleThe pawn capture that exists for one move only, with examples from real games.
- Pawn promotion and underpromotionTurning a pawn into a queen, and the rare times a knight or rook is the better choice.
Or browse all free chess lessons.
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