3,163 names
Every opening and variation in Lichess’s open dataset, with its ECO code and moves. Search by name, code, or the moves you played, then replay the line on the board.
A list tells you what an opening is called. Chessmate teaches the moves themselves: each line on the board, the idea behind every move, and spaced review that brings it back before you forget.
There is no fixed number. The open Lichess dataset behind this list names 3,163 openings and variations, grouped under 140 main openings and 500 ECO codes. Books and other sites name more or fewer lines, because a line usually gets its own name only after players have reached it often enough to study it.
Possible games multiply with every move, so opening names cover only the paths players actually take.
ECO stands for the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings, a reference series first published by Chess Informant in Belgrade in the 1970s. Each code is a letter from A to E plus a number from 00 to 99, which makes 500 codes. A code marks a family of related lines rather than one opening: the Sicilian Defense alone spans B20 to B99.
| Codes | What it covers | Main openings |
|---|---|---|
| A00–A99Flank openings | Openings that start with a move other than 1. e4 or 1. d4, such as 1. c4, 1. Nf3, or 1. b3. The volume also holds 1. d4 openings where Black avoids 1...d5 and the Indian setups of volume E, such as the Dutch and the Benoni. | English Opening (A10–A39), Benko Gambit (A57–A59), Benoni Defense (A60–A79), Dutch Defense (A80–A99) |
| B00–B99Semi-open games | 1. e4 openings where Black answers with anything except 1...e5 or 1...e6. | Scandinavian Defense (B01), Alekhine Defense (B02–B05), Pirc Defense (B07–B09), Caro-Kann Defense (B10–B19), Sicilian Defense (B20–B99) |
| C00–C99Open games and the French Defense | 1. e4 e5, the open games, and 1. e4 e6, the French Defense. | French Defense (C00–C19), King’s Gambit (C30–C39), Petrov’s Defense (C42–C43), Scotch Game (C44–C45), Italian Game (C50–C59), Ruy Lopez (C60–C99) |
| D00–D99Closed and semi-closed games | 1. d4 d5 openings, including the Queen’s Gambit and its main defenses, plus the Grünfeld Defense. | Slav Defense (D10–D19), Queen’s Gambit Accepted (D20–D29), Queen’s Gambit Declined (D30–D69), Semi-Slav Defense (D43–D49), Grünfeld Defense (D80–D99) |
| E00–E99Indian defenses | 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 openings where Black sets up with ...e6 or ...g6, apart from the Grünfeld. | Catalan Opening (E00–E09), Bogo-Indian Defense (E11), Queen’s Indian Defense (E12–E19), Nimzo-Indian Defense (E20–E59), King’s Indian Defense (E60–E99) |
Type a name such as Najdorf, an ECO code such as B90, or moves such as 1. e4 c5. Paste the moves of a game and the deepest named line it reached comes first.
Without a search, the list runs from A to Z by opening, with its variations inside. Switch to ECO codes to go through volumes A to E code by code.
Pick a name to see its moves on the board and step through them. Then open the position in the Opening Explorer to see what players chose next, or read the Chessmate guide when the opening has one.
An ECO code is a letter from A to E followed by two digits, from the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings. B90, for example, is the Najdorf Sicilian. A code groups related lines rather than naming one exact move order, so many names in this list share a code.
Type or paste your game’s first moves, such as 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6, into the search. The deepest named line your moves reached comes first. To name the opening of a whole game, paste its PGN into the PGN Viewer & Opening Identifier.
Many openings have more than one name: the Ruy Lopez is also the Spanish Game, and Petrov’s Defense is also the Russian Game. This list uses the names in the Lichess dataset, and searching for Spanish or Petroff still finds the line.
Start with one opening for White and one answer each to 1. e4 and 1. d4 as Black. Learn the ideas behind the first moves before memorizing long lines. The Opening Quiz suggests openings that fit your style, and Chessmate teaches each line move by move.
The names, ECO codes, and moves come from the lichess-org/chess-openings dataset, which is released under CC0. Every line is replayed with a chess rules library before it is published here, so each move on the board is legal.
Opening names, ECO codes, and moves come from lichess-org/chess-openings (CC0 1.0).
Answer five questions to find which openings to play with White and Black.
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