Every chess book, magazine and website writes moves the same way: in algebraic notation. Once you can read it, you can follow any game ever recorded. It takes about ten minutes to learn.
The squares
The board has eight files, the columns, named a to h from White's left to right. It has eight ranks, the rows, numbered 1 to 8 from White's side. Every square is a file and a rank: White's king starts on e1, Black's on e8. The square in White's bottom left corner is a1, and it is always a dark square.
The pieces
Each piece has a capital letter:
- K king
- Q queen
- R rook
- B bishop
- N knight (K is already the king)
Pawns have no letter. A move is the piece's letter and the square it goes to: Nf3 is a knight to f3, e4 is a pawn to e4.
Captures, checks and mate
- x means a capture: Bxe5 is a bishop taking on e5. A pawn capture names the file the pawn came from: dxe5.
- + means check: Qh5+.
- # means checkmate: Qf7#.
Castling and promotion
- O-O is castling on the king's side, O-O-O castling on the queen's side.
- = shows promotion: e8=Q is a pawn reaching e8 and becoming a queen.
- e.p. is sometimes written after an en passant capture.
When two pieces could go there
If two knights could both reach d2, the move adds the file or rank they started from: Nbd2 is the knight from the b-file, R1e2 the rook from the first rank.
Move numbers
Moves come in pairs, White's then Black's, with a number: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6. When a book starts with a Black move, it puts three dots after the number: 12...Qd7 is Black's twelfth move.
The marks for good and bad moves
Books and annotators add marks after a move:
- ! a good move, !! a brilliant one
- ? a mistake, ?? a blunder
- !? an interesting move, worth trying
- ?! a doubtful move
You may also see +- (White is winning), -+ (Black is winning), = (equal) and ± or ∓ (better for White or Black).
Figurine notation
Many books print a small picture of the piece instead of its letter: ♘f3 rather than Nf3. This is the same notation, chosen so readers anywhere can follow it whatever their language; the letters differ from language to language. Read the figure as the piece.
Older books
Books from before the 1970s, especially in English, often use descriptive notation, where moves look like P-K4 and N-KB3. It is a different system, with files named after pieces and ranks counted from each player's side, and it has its own post on this blog.
Practising
The quickest way to learn notation is to play through a game with a board beside you. Say each move aloud as you make it. After two or three games you will read it without thinking.
GreyChess's book reader helps with this: open a PDF or ePub chess book you own, and the moves printed after each diagram, in letters or figurines, can be played through on a live board beside the page. There is also a lesson on reading chess notation.