Algebraic notation is the standard system recognized worldwide for recording chess moves.
It is the only notation officially recognized by FIDE for tournaments and matches, and most chess books and educational materials also adopt this format. Please refer to the
link below for detailed specifications.
In algebraic notation, every square on the chessboard has a unique coordinate:
Files (columns): Labeled a-h from left to right.
Ranks (rows): Numbered 1-8 from bottom to top (from White's perspective).
Basic Notation Rules
Piece Symbols
These symbols refer to all pieces except pawns.
King: K
Queen: Q
Rook: R
Bishop: B
Knight: N (to avoid confusion with King)
Move Notation
Basic moves are written as: [Piece][Destination Square]
Common Move Examples
Pawn Moves
For pawns, only the destination square is written.
It is not necessary to add 'P' for pawn, like Pe4.
e4: Pawn moves to e4
d5: Pawn moves to d5
a7: Pawn moves to a7
Piece Moves
For pieces, their corresponding symbol is used as a prefix.
Nf3: Knight moves to f3
Bc4: Bishop moves to c4
Qd2: Queen moves to d2
Kf1: King moves to f1
Ra1: Rook moves to a1
Captures
When a piece captures another, x is used.
exd5: Pawn on the e-file captures on d5
Nxe4: Knight captures on e4
Bxh7: Bishop captures on h7
Qxd8: Queen captures on d8
Disambiguation
When multiple pieces of the same type can move to the same square, it is necessary to specify which piece is moving.
Disambiguation by File
Nbd2: Knight on the b-file moves to d2
Rdf1: Rook on the d-file moves to f1
Disambiguation by Rank
R1a3: Rook on the 1st rank moves to a3
N1f3: Knight on the 1st rank moves to f3
Special Moves
Castling
O-O: Kingside castling (short castling)
O-O-O: Queenside castling (long castling)
En Passant
exd6 e.p.: Pawn captures en passant on d6
However, the en passant symbol ("e.p.") can be omitted.
Pawn Promotion
e8=Q: Pawn promotes to Queen on e8
a1=N: Pawn promotes to Knight on a1
Checks and Checkmates
Check
Add + after the move.
Qh5+: Queen moves to h5, checking
Bc4+: Bishop moves to c4, checking
Checkmate
Add # after the move.
Qh7#: Queen moves to h7, checkmating
Rd8#: Rook moves to d8, checkmating
++ is also accepted for checkmate.
Note that FIDE treats + and # as optional (Appendix C.13). Leaving them out is not wrong notation, but books and game scores conventionally include them, and they make a score much easier to follow — so this article always writes them.
Common Symbols
Move Quality
!: Good move
!!: Brilliant move
?: Dubious move
??: Blunder
!?: Interesting move
?!: Questionable move
Position Evaluation Symbols
=: Equal position
±: White has a slight advantage
∓: Black has a slight advantage
+-: White has a decisive advantage
-+: Black has a decisive advantage
Sample Game Notation
Below is the score of a real masterpiece — the "Opera Game", played by Paul Morphy at the Paris Opera in 1858. It shows the symbols from this article in action: captures (x), checks (+), queenside castling (O-O-O), a disambiguated move (11...Nbd7), and checkmate (#).
The Opera Game (Morphy, 1858)
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1-0
Tap any move to see that position on a board.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Lowercasing piece symbols: Write Nf3, not nf3. Piece letters are capitals, and a lowercase b is indistinguishable from a b-file pawn move.
Insufficient disambiguation: Forgetting to specify which piece when multiple can move to the same square.
Prefixing pawn moves: Write e4, not Pe4. The pawn is the one piece with no letter — the absence of a letter is what marks it as a pawn.
