Draw
A draw ends the game without a winner, with each player receiving half a point in standard scoring.
Draws can result from stalemate, a dead position, agreement, repetition, move-count rules, or time expiring when checkmate is impossible.
A draw gives each player half a point
A drawn game ends without a winner and is recorded as 1/2-1/2. The route to that result matters because some draws occur immediately, some require a claim, and some follow an agreement.
1/2-1/2- This is the standard game result recorded for a draw.
Common ways a game becomes drawn
FIDE rules include stalemate, dead positions where no possible legal sequence can produce checkmate, agreed draws, repetition, and move-count rules without pawn moves or captures.
A flag fall is normally a loss, but the result is a draw when the opponent cannot checkmate by any possible series of legal moves. The question is whether checkmate is legally possible from the position, not whether it looks likely in normal play.
| Draw route | How it takes effect |
|---|---|
| Stalemate | Automatic when the player to move has no legal move and is not in check |
| Dead position | Automatic when no legal sequence can produce checkmate |
| Agreement | One player offers and the other accepts |
| Threefold repetition | Normally requires a correct claim |
| Fivefold repetition | Automatic |
| Fifty-move rule | Normally requires a correct claim |
| Seventy-five-move rule | Automatic unless the final move checkmates |
Claims and automatic draws are not the same
Threefold repetition and the fifty-move rule normally require a correct claim. Fivefold repetition and seventy-five moves by each player without a pawn move or capture end the game automatically, unless the final move checkmates.