Which Chessboard Should I Buy? – Which Way Does It Go?

I’m going to put together a series of videos to teach the absolute beginner about how to play chess. I’m not going to assume any chess knowledge, so I’ll be covering all the basics, with some tips and advice I’ve gathered from 50 years of playing chess.

I hope to answer two questions in this article: what chessboad should I buy? How do I orient the board for a game?

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Which way do I set up the board?

The last question is easy … remember this rule: white on the right. Orient the board so that the corner nearest to you and on your right is white (or light-colored).

Notice that the board in the image above has a light-colored square in the lower right corner.

Also, if you have a board that has the labels along the edges for the ranks and files, the a1 square (which is a black or dark square) is at the lower-left hand corner of the player of the White pieces.

If you want to know how to set up the pieces, I’ll show you how to do that in my next article, entitled “How to Play Chess, How to Set Up the Pieces.”

What chessboard should I buy?

First here’s what NOT to do … DON’T get the cheap department store sets. What’s wrong with the department store set, I hear you ask?

1. The board is cheap cardboard … too flimsy for young players.
2. The squares are too small … not good for older players or tournament chess.
3. They are usually red and black … that’s a Checkerboard, not a chessboard.
4. You don’t save much money. For $5.00 at a department store, you get a small checkerboard with hollow plastic pieces, when for only $2.00 or $3.00 more you can get a good, durable, properly-sized chess set that is the most common chess set you’ll see at tournaments. Don’t cheap out on this. (Get a good tournament chess set here.)

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What color squares?

Almost anything will do. The squares are often referred to as black squares or white squares, (though “dark” squares and “light” squares is probably better), but you can use black and white, green and buff (which is what I prefer), maroon and white, red and white, green and white; you just need a good contrast between the dark and light squares. DON’T use a black and red checkerboard! 🙂

Some wood chess sets use dark and light colored woods for the chess board, and that works very well. (If you’re looking for a high quality chess set, there are some very good ones available that should satisfy your up-scale chess playing friend or loved one.

For only a couple dollars more, you can get a much better set that would actually be useful for playing casual games at home, with friends, at a chess club, or even a chess tournament. Believe it or not, the vinyl chess board and set that you can find for under ten dollars at this link is the most common set and board used at chess tournaments. Spend the little bit more to get the right set for yourself or your young chess player.

How big should the board be?

Generally, most chess boards have 2 1/4-inch squares. One problem with the department store chess sets is that the boards are too small. Even 2-inch squares are slightly too small.

How much money should I spend?

It depends. If you’re buying a first chess set for a young player, get an inexpensive vinyl roll-up board with plastic pieces. This set and board will last a long time, stands up to the worst abuse, and is very commonly used in chess clubs and tournaments.

Please note that the links on this page are affiliate links and any purchases you may make through those links will support Chess Strategies Blog.

The best place to get the right chessboard now is to shop online. The boards and sets you can get at most department stores are often not suitable, and usually too expensive for what you get.

Look for my next video on how to set up the pieces!