Chess Opening Principles: 10 Rules for a Good Start

You do not need to memorise openings to play the first moves well. A handful of principles - most of them centuries old - will give you a sound, active position in almost any opening. Grandmasters break them sometimes, but only when they know exactly why.

1. Control the centre

The four centre squares - d4, e4, d5 and e5 - matter most, because pieces in the centre reach the most squares and can switch quickly to either side. Start with a centre pawn: 1. e4 or 1. d4 are the two most popular first moves in history for a reason.

Moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4

Open this position on the analysis board

You can also control the centre from a distance, with pieces rather than pawns - that is the idea behind openings such as the King's Indian Defence. But for most games, put a pawn in the middle early.

2. Develop your pieces

Development means bringing pieces off the back rank to squares where they do something. In the opening, a move that develops a new piece is almost always better than one that does not.

• Knights before bishops is a good rule of thumb: you usually know where a knight belongs (f3, c3, f6, c6) before you know the bishop's best square.
• Develop towards the centre. "A knight on the rim is dim": a knight on a3 or h3 controls half the squares it would in the middle.

3. Do not move the same piece twice

Every move spent moving a piece again is a move not spent bringing out another one. Unless you are winning material or answering a threat, touch each piece once in the opening.

4. Do not bring the queen out early

The queen is strong, but early in the game it is a target: every time the opponent develops a piece and attacks your queen, they gain time. That is exactly why Scholar's Mate tends to backfire against a player who knows how to defend.

5. Castle early

The king is safest tucked in a corner, behind pawns, while the centre opens. Castling also connects your rooks. Most strong players castle within the first ten moves; there is rarely a good reason to wait.

Moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. O-O O-O

Open this position on the analysis board

6. Connect your rooks

When your king has castled and your bishops, knights and queen have left the back rank, your two rooks see each other. That is a good sign that the opening is over and your development is complete. Then put the rooks on open or half-open files.

7. Do not grab pawns at the cost of development

Winning a pawn is good - unless it costs you several moves while your opponent develops. Gambits are built on exactly that trade: a pawn for time and open lines. If you take a gambit pawn, be ready to give it back to finish developing.

8. Do not make too many pawn moves

One or two pawn moves are needed to free your pieces. More than that, early on, usually wastes time and leaves weak squares behind. The pawns on f2 and f7, next to the king, are the most dangerous to push.

9. Have a reason for every move

Ask what each move does. Does it develop? Control the centre? Make the king safer? Stop a threat? A move that does none of these is probably a wasted move.

10. Watch your opponent's threats

The most important principle of all. Before every move, ask what your opponent's last move attacks. Most openings between beginners and club players are decided not by deep theory but by a piece left hanging or a threat ignored. Our tactics guide shows what to look for.

Principles first, then openings

With these principles you can play any opening reasonably. When you want to choose one, see the best chess openings for beginners - each one is these same ideas, organised into a plan.

And when you have a decent position out of the opening, the game is usually decided by tactics. Practise them in the puzzle feed, matched to your level.