Chess openings by rating

Chess Openings for Players Rated 1200–1399

Between 1200 and 1399 the top of the list barely moves, but the Sicilian starts to arrive: 1...c5 climbs into second place against 1.e4, behind 1...e5. Openings with an early queen or bishop still score above their averages here.

The Sicilian edges into second place

1.e4 and 1.d4 together hold about 85 points of every 100 in White's first-move share. Against 1.d4, 1...d5 grows a little, while 1...Nf6 holds third behind 1...e6.

White's first move

  1. 1. e465%
  2. 1. d420%
  3. 1. e33%
  4. 1. Nf33%

Black against 1.e4

  1. 1... e554%
  2. 1... c513%
  3. 1... d510%
  4. 1... e610%

Black against 1.d4

  1. 1... d558%
  2. 1... e613%
  3. 1... Nf610%
  4. 1... d63%

The top lines at 1200 to 1399

The King's Knight Opening still leads by a distance. The Queen's Gambit and the Italian Game enter the top ten for the first time, as classical development takes over from early raids.

  1. King's Knight Opening19.6%
  2. King's Knight Opening: Normal Variation10.1%
  3. Sicilian Defense8.2%
  4. Scandinavian Defense6.7%
  5. French Defense6.3%
  6. Philidor Defense5%
  7. Bishop's Opening3.8%
  8. Queen's Gambit3.8%
  9. Italian Game3.4%
  10. Scandinavian Defense: Mieses-Kotroc Variation3%
  11. Horwitz Defense2.7%
  12. Ruy Lopez2.6%
  13. Center Game2.4%
  14. King's Pawn Game: Wayward Queen Attack2.2%
  15. French Defense: Normal Variation2.1%

Above-average lines at this level

The Chigorin Variation against 1.d4 d5 (an early Nc3 for White), the Wayward Queen Attack and the Leonardis Variation all score above their averages, and so does the Accelerated London.

  1. Queen's Pawn Game: Chigorin Variation1.5% here, 0.8% overall
  2. Center Game: Normal Variation0.8% here, 0.5% overall
  3. King's Pawn Game: Wayward Queen Attack2.2% here, 1.3% overall
  4. King's Pawn Game: Leonardis Variation1.5% here, 0.9% overall
  5. Queen's Pawn Game: Accelerated London System0.9% here, 0.6% overall
  6. Van't Kruijs Opening3.4% here, 2.1% overall

Still under the average

Indian Defense lines remain well below their average share, and so do the Slav and the Old Benoni. The Old Sicilian and the Modern Sicilian lines also trail.

  1. Indian Defense: Normal Variation0.6% here, 3.1% overall
  2. Indian Defense2% here, 5.8% overall
  3. Sicilian Defense: Old Sicilian1% here, 2.6% overall
  4. Sicilian Defense: Modern Variations1% here, 2.4% overall
  5. Slav Defense0.5% here, 1.2% overall
  6. Benoni Defense: Old Benoni0.5% here, 0.9% overall

Openings by rating

Published by BeaconChess

AI-generated content. Every figure comes from the opening books BeaconChess opponents play from, built from rated Lichess games. Check important lines on the board before relying on them.

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