About ChessDir
Find the right chess app - without the listicle fluff.
Why this exists
Every chess app "best of" listicle out there recycles the same five apps with different wrapping. That's useful once; after that it's noise. ChessDir is a directory - structured, filterable, and kept fresh - because finding the right chess app should take five minutes, not five listicles.
Who runs this
ChessDir is edited by Antoine - a 2250 Lichess player. Active in club chess for a decade, with a daily puzzle habit and a working repertoire on both sides. Every app on the directory is installed and used personally before being written up - no second-hand reviews, no scraped App Store blurbs.
Reach out: spot something stale, contest a verdict, suggest an app worth covering. Use the submission formor the "suggest an update" button on any review.
Methodology
- Every app is installed. No second-hand reviews. Each entry is written after a meaningful session - typically a week of daily use minimum.
- Pros and cons are opinionated. Useful beats balanced. If an app is great at tactics and terrible for beginners, the page says so explicitly.
- Pricing is kept current. Every app page shows the date it was last reviewed. Stale data is flagged.
- No pay-to-rank. Sponsored placements - if and when added - will be clearly labeled and separated from rankings. Rankings themselves are never for sale.
How we make money
Some outbound links are affiliate links. When a reader signs up to a paid plan after clicking, the directory earns a small commission at no extra cost to them. This funds the time spent keeping pages fresh and ad-free.
An app only gets an affiliate link when it would already be the editorial recommendation on its own merits. The list of apps, the ranking logic, and the reviews are not influenced by which apps have affiliate programs.
Where to start
The guides below distill the editorial framework - pick the one closest to where you are right now.
- The Best Chess Apps, Sorted by What You Actually Need- Offline, beginner, tactics, free: the best chess apps for each situation, every one installed and tested. One …
- Which Chess App for Which Kind of Training- Tactics, endgames, openings, game review: which chess app does each job best, a three-app stack that works, an…
- Chess Apps for Beginners- Five chess apps for beginners, installed and tested, sorted by starting point: learning the moves, first games…
- Chess Apps That Work Offline- Lichess, Stockfish, SCID vs PC and more: the offline chess apps that still play, analyze and drill with no Wi-…
Get involved
Spot an error? Built an app worth covering? Send it.