How to improve at chess: longer games, game review, puzzles and ratings

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Getting better at chess is less about finding secret knowledge and more about steady habits. Many players play hundreds of very fast games and stay at the same level for years. Here is what tends to work, plus a plain explanation of how ratings work and some notes on playing politely online.

Play longer games

Fast games (bullet and blitz) are fun, but they leave little time to think, so you mostly repeat your existing habits. Longer games, such as rapid or classical time controls, give you time to calculate, check for your opponent's threats and try out new ideas. If improvement is your aim, make a good share of your games longer ones. Use the time: before each move, check what your opponent's last move threatened and look at your forcing moves (checks, captures and threats).

Review your games

This is the habit that separates players who improve from those who do not.

Straight after the game, go through it yourself before using an engine. Note where you were unsure and what you were thinking.
Find the turning points: the moves where the game changed. Often one or two moments decide everything.
Then check with an engine to see what you missed. Do not just look at the best move; try to understand why it is better.
Look for patterns over many games: do you keep losing to the same opening, the same tactic, or by running short of time?

Write down one lesson per game. Over time you get a list of your own recurring mistakes, which is more useful than any general advice.

Puzzles every day

Tactics decide most games below a high level, so regular puzzle practice pays off. A few puzzles a day, solved properly (work out the whole line before moving), builds pattern recognition. Mix themed sets (forks, pins, back-rank mates) with mixed sets that do not tell you what to look for.

Learn the basic endgames

Know how to mate with king and queen, and with king and rook, and understand basic king and pawn endings. These come up constantly and they are not hard to learn.

Keep openings simple

At first, play openings built on sound principles (control the centre, develop your pieces, castle early) and learn the ideas rather than long lines. Deeper opening study pays off more once tactics and endgames are solid.

Ratings, explained

Most chess ratings are based on, or descended from, the Elo system, named after Arpad Elo, the physicist who developed it for chess. The idea:

Every player has a number. The difference between two players' numbers predicts the expected result between them.
In the standard Elo formula, a player rated 200 points higher is expected to score roughly three-quarters of the points between them, and a player rated 400 points higher roughly nine-tenths. Draws count as half a point.
After each game, your rating goes up if you score better than expected and down if you score worse. Beating a much stronger player gains more than beating a weaker one.

Some things to keep in mind:

Ratings on different sites, and in national or international federations, are calculated on separate pools and often with different formulas, so the numbers are not directly comparable. Many online sites use systems related to Elo rather than Elo itself.
Ratings for different time controls (bullet, blitz, rapid, classical) are usually kept separately.
Your rating will go up and down. Look at the trend over months, not the result of a single day.

Online etiquette

Do not abandon lost games by leaving and letting your clock run. Resign if you want to stop; it is courteous and saves both players time.
Say "good game" or use the site's equivalent, win or lose.
No outside help. Using an engine, a book or another person during a game is cheating, and sites ban accounts for it.
Do not stall in a lost position just to annoy your opponent.
Be gracious in the chat, or switch it off if it tempts you to say something you would regret.
Take breaks after losses. Playing game after game while frustrated is a reliable way to lose rating and enjoy chess less.

Over the board

If you can, play at a local club or in a tournament. Playing over a real board, with a clock and an opponent opposite, is a different experience from online play, and talking about the game afterwards is one of the best ways to learn. What has helped you improve the most, or where are you stuck? Share your experience and your questions in the comments.