Does Chess.com Work Offline?
The Chess.com app plays the computer and analyses games offline once signed in. Puzzles, lessons, Game Review and online play need a connection, and the website needs one for everything.
The short answer: partly. The Chess.com mobile app, once installed and signed in, plays games against the computer with a clock and analyses games with its engine, both without a connection. Two people can also share one phone in Pass and Play. Everything else, puzzles, lessons, Game Review, Insights and any online game against a human, needs the network. The website needs a connection for everything, because it is a website.
That is more than many players expect and less than they want. The table below separates the two, and the rest of the page says where the information comes from, because Chess.com has no help-centre article on offline use.
| Feature | Offline? | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Play against the computer, with clock | Yes, on the app | App Store listing, October 2026 |
| Analyse a game with the engine | Yes, on the app | App Store listing, October 2026 |
| Pass and Play, two people on one phone | Yes, on the app | Chess.com Help Center and App Store listing |
| Puzzles, Puzzle Rush, Puzzle Battle | No | Served from the server; free accounts get 3 puzzles a day |
| Lessons and videos | No | Streamed |
| Game Review and coach explanations | No | Server-side analysis |
| Online games, daily games, tournaments | No | By definition |
| The website, chess.com | No | Staff forum reply: there is no offline option for a website |
What the app does offline
The App Store description is explicit on two points: "play chess games offline against the computer and the clock" and "analyze your chess games offline." Both hold once the app is installed and an account is signed in. Users report that the app will not start a computer game from a signed-out state, so sign in before the signal goes. The bots are the same engine levels as online, and the clock works as a normal chess clock.
What needs a connection
Puzzles are served one at a time from the server, which is also how the free tier's limit of three a day is enforced. Lessons stream. Game Review, the feature that explains mistakes in plain English, is computed server-side, as are Insights. And no version of the website works offline; a staff member put it plainly in the forum: since it is a website, there is no offline option.
If offline matters, use Lichess for that part
Nothing here is a reason to leave Chess.com, whose strengths, the matchmaking pool, Game Review, lessons, are online by nature. It is a reason to carry a second app for flights. Lichess's mobile app plays the computer offline with Stockfish levels and human-like Maia opponents, pre-loads a batch of puzzles that work with no signal, and analyses games on the device, all free and without ads. The full set of apps that genuinely work without a connection, for iPhone, Android and desktop, is in the guide to chess apps that work offline. Keep Chess.com for the connected half of the week; the Chess.com listing covers what the paid tiers add.
FAQ
- Does Chess.com need Wi-Fi?
- The website does, for everything. The mobile app plays against the computer and analyses games without a connection once installed and signed in; puzzles, lessons, Game Review and online play need one.
- Can I do Chess.com puzzles offline?
- No. Puzzles are served from the server, and free accounts get three a day. For offline puzzles, the Lichess app pre-loads a batch that works with no signal.
- Does Game Review work offline?
- No. Game Review and the coach explanations run server-side. The app's offline analysis is the plain engine board, which the store listing describes as analysing games offline.
- Which chess app is best for a flight?
- Lichess. It plays the computer with Stockfish or human-like Maia opponents, solves pre-loaded puzzles and analyses games, all offline and free. The full comparison is in the offline chess apps guide.
See also
← Back to Chess Apps That Work Offline