The New Chess.com (v3): Now With Bughouse!

It's been a long time coming, but the new version of Chess.com is finally ready to take online chess to a new level—and take your game to new heights. 

This new version (v3) has been our top priority for two years, and enhances every aspect of the Chess.com experience.

Everything is new: 

• The latest web technologies let us add features we could only dream of in the past.
• Gorgeous, rich new graphics make the site, the boards, and the pieces beautiful in the highest definition.
• The user experience has been revised everywhere, with a focus on clarity, simplicity and relevance.

And despite all that, Chess.com v3 still feels like Chess.com—but evolved: easier, faster, more powerful. And more fun.

In addition to fantastic new features, our technology overhaul has allowed gains in other important areas. For instance, our mobile web experience is far better with v3. We've also greatly updated and enhanced our anti-abuse and anti-cheating technology site-wide.

(You can always switch back.)

Watch this introductory video for a quick look at the new Chess.com:

What are the best features of the new Chess.com? Decide for yourself.

More Value 
In addition to the technology and interface changes that went into v3, we also revisited the way features are accessed by membership level. The result is more value for users at every level.

Statistics, game archives, and messages are now unlimited for all members. We've also worked hard to minimize the impact of advertising for Basic members in v3 with fewer ads and better placement.

Diamond members will continue to enjoy ad-free and unlimited access to all of Chess.com, including the very best new features on the new site.

Computer Analysis
One of the most exciting innovations made possible by v3 is real-time computer analysis, which will empower you to understand your chess games (and tactics) like never before.

Simply request an analysis any time after a live or daily game. (It doesn't even have to be your game.)

Select an analysis strength. The computer will mark up the game's move list, showing the number of mistakes and blunders versus good and excellent moves, and revealing superior alternative lines. A bar graph shows at a glance how the battle unfolded, who was winning when, and where the big turning points occurred.

Want more control over computer analysis? We've also added access to Stockfish in our analysis board. Simply select the analysis tab to see an engine's take on the position.

Live Chess
The goal of our new interface was to create a beautiful real-time chess experience. As usual, you can play your own games or observe multiple games—now in an intuitive tabbed environment with huge, high-resolution boards (or smaller if you prefer). And grandmaster-level insight on your games is only a few clicks away. You don't even have to exit Live Chess to get computer analysis. 

There are lots of nice touches and new additions in Live Chess, including the time spent on each move in the move list (also visible in your games archive).

What else is new in Live Chess?

First, there's Guess the Move, a fun new feature that lets observers vote on which move they think is going to be played next in the game they are watching. Correct votes are tallied and at the end of the game, a winner is announced.

Tired of the same old chess? We now have chess variants. Match wits in real-time while playing interesting chess spin-offs, like 3 Check, Chess960, King of the Hill, Crazyhouse, and Bughouse.

Bughouse
If you haven't tried it, you are in for a treat. Four players pair into two teams and your opponent's captured pieces can be dropped by your teammate as a move on the board. Keep track of both games and enjoy the furious action while you can, because the first result on either board ends the match for both teams. Join the official Bughouse Club to coordinate matches and improve your game! 

Tactics
Enjoy honing your tactical vision in a cleaner arena! You don't even have to go to your personal stats to see your recent performance: a row of green and red tokens shows which of the last 10 puzzles you got right and wrong.

 Change your training mode with ease: Select rated, unrated, or thematic training, which allows you to choose tactical themes and train exclusively on puzzles that feature them. You can even focus solely on puzzles you failed in the past.

Themes
Personalize Chess.com to your own tastes with a wide array of different themes. Each high-quality theme includes carefully crafted chess pieces, board graphics, a background, and thematic sound effects. You can even mix and match element, or upload your own custom background to create something that's uniquely yours.

Board Settings

Now it's easier than ever to customize your chessboard exactly the way you want it. In addition to choosing the themes and piece sets above, you can resize your Chess.com board anywhere on the site to your desired proportions. 

Simply hover your mouse pointer over the top right of the board.

You will also find the flip board button and a quick board settings button in this convenient location. 

Clubs (Formerly Groups)
In v3, we've made it easier for admins to manage their clubs, matches, and members. Want to play a live tournament with just your club members? Now you can do that on the new Chess.com with club tournaments. 

Explorer
We built a brand-new openings guide and linked that to our powerful openings explorer, which has now been updated with the latest games from high-level events around the world.

On a more personal level, the explorer will now import all of your games (daily and live), so that you can get a comprehensive picture of which lines serve you best.

Lessons
In the new Chess.com, lessons are given a simplified, more elegant interface—soon to be complemented by amazing new content by renowned masters of the game.

Videos
So long, Flash. Bye-bye, plug-ins. Now you can enjoy ChessCenter and all of our other great instructional videos on a much-improved, modern video player—no matter which device you use to watch.

Messages
Messages are better organized and threaded to keep your conversations in one place. And messages are now available on all Chess.com platforms—web, Android, and iOS.

Languages 
The new Chess.com is available in 51 languages, with more on the way. 

Site Navigation
Our new navigation menu is streamlined to help you get where you want, quickly. You even have the option to tuck it off to the side, which allows for bigger boards on a cleaner, wide-open play area.

Choose the menu that's best for you: traditional top, expanded left, or compact left.

More Improvements 
We're continually adding features and benefits to the new Chess.com.

Here's a quick list of our newest features:

• An all-new vision trainer
• Better club management tools
• Variant live tournaments
• Premium-only tournaments
• Improved mobile web access
• Quick phrases (translated) and emoticons in chat

And coming soon:

• Club vs. club live matches
• Better support for older computers

We hope you love the new Chess.com—or grow to love it. It can be a lot to absorb at first, but it's still Chess.com at heart. And it's built to take us into the future. 

(You can always switch back.)

FAQ

How do I try the new Chess.com?
At the bottom of every page is a link to "Try the new Chess.com!" Or you can go to www.Chess.com/switch. You can always switch back if you want to. 

Why the change? I liked the old Chess.com.
We think you'll like the new Chess.com even more, with its modern design, updated features, better technology, and more seamless experience. We're excited to bring you the state-of-the-art in online chess.

I found a bug. How do I report it?
Thanks for your help! We appreciate bug reports as we add new features to the site. To report a bug, click on the insect icon located under the "help" menu. This will send our development team a screenshot of the page and your description of the error. 

How long will the old site be around?
We are going to leave the current (v2) version of the site available for several months to help everyone get used to the new site. We also have some bugs still in the new site, and a few features we want to deliver.

Basically, v2 will be around until v3 is overwhelmingly better for almost everyone. 

We hope you will take a few days to get used to the new changes! Once you do, you'll never want to go back. (I bet you don't miss the old v1 site!)

Want to take a full, guided tour of the new Chess.com? Watch all our tutorial videos below.

I'm using an older computer or browser, and the new version does not perform well for me. What can I do?
The new version of Chess.com works best with relatively modern computers and browsers. We are working on supporting older hardware and software as much as we can, but for now you should switch back to v2 (www.Chess.com/switch) if you're running on an older system.

Full Tutorial Playlist