Chess has six types of piece: king, queen, rook, bishop, knight, and pawn. Each follows its own movement pattern, but every move must also respect king safety. A piece cannot land on a friendly piece, and only the knight can jump over other pieces during ordinary movement.
Use this reference after setting up the board. Learn the patterns first, then check how blockers and attacks change what is legal in a particular position.
King: one square, with a safety restriction
The king moves one square horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. It captures in the same way, provided the destination is not attacked. Kings cannot stand next to each other because each would attack the other's square.
A king's apparent escape can therefore be illegal even when the square is empty. Castling is a special exception to its ordinary one-square movement; see the castling guide for the full conditions.
Queen: straight lines and diagonals
The queen can move any distance along a rank, file, or diagonal. It cannot jump over a blocker or combine directions in one move. Moving three squares horizontally and then one diagonally is not a queen move.
Its reach makes it powerful, but an undefended queen can still be captured. Bringing it out early also gives the opponent opportunities to attack it while developing other pieces.
Rook: ranks and files
A rook moves any distance horizontally or vertically. A friendly piece blocks its path. An opposing piece can be captured if it is the first occupied square along the chosen line; the rook cannot continue through it during that move.
Rooks often become more active as pawns leave files open. Their starting corner squares do not limit where they can move later.
Bishop: diagonals of one color
A bishop moves any distance diagonally without jumping. It stays on the same square color throughout its movement, so a light-squared bishop cannot reach a dark square.
Each side starts with two bishops on opposite colors. A bishop's long diagonal can be blocked by a pawn, including a pawn from its own army.
Knight: an L-shaped jump
A knight moves two squares along a rank or file and one square perpendicular to that direction. The destination is a different color from its starting square. It can jump over intervening pieces, but it still cannot land on a friendly piece.
From g1, a knight can reach f3 or h3 in the standard starting position. Its other geometric destination, e2, is occupied by a friendly pawn and is unavailable.
Pawn: forward moves, diagonal captures
A pawn normally moves one square forward into an empty square. From its starting square it may advance two if both squares ahead are empty. It captures one square diagonally forward and never moves backward.
White moves toward higher rank numbers; Black moves toward lower ones. Reaching the last rank requires promotion to a queen, rook, bishop, or knight. En passant is a special capture available only immediately after a qualifying two-square pawn advance.
Watch the rules in a short example
Start
The pawns open lines, the knights jump over the starting army, and the bishops travel along cleared diagonals. Replay the moves on the analysis board and name the squares each piece crosses.
Movement alone does not settle legality: a pinned piece may be unable to move because it would expose its king. Consult Article 3 of the FIDE Laws of Chess, then practice the patterns in an untimed computer game.