Chess opening · ECO A04
Zukertort Opening
1.Nf3, the Zukertort Opening, develops the king's knight before any pawn moves. From f3 it covers e5 and d4 and, for now, stops Black from playing ...e5. White keeps all pawn plans in hand and can head for the Réti with c4, the King's Indian Attack with g3, d3 and e4, or a d4 opening by a different order.
- Rank by weighted share
- #10 of 159
Key moves
1. Nf3
- 1. Nf3The knight takes control of e5 and d4 and gets White one move closer to castling short. If Black replies 1...e5, the pawn simply falls to Nxe5, so Black usually starts with ...d5, ...Nf6 or ...c5 instead.
Three roads from one knight move
With c4 next, White reaches the Réti and attacks Black's center from the side. With g3, Bg2, d3 and e4, White gets the King's Indian Attack, a kingside setup that also works against French and Sicilian structures.
With d4, the game often transposes to Queen's Gambit or Indian Defense lines. That flexibility lets White pick the structure after seeing Black's first move.
Why Black cannot play ...e5 yet
The f3 knight attacks e5, so Black needs to defend e5 first, with a pawn on d6 or a knight on c6, before that push works. Several of White's later plans lean on keeping this grip, especially in the King's Indian Attack, where e5 becomes a key square for White's own pawn.
Back into a Queen's Gambit
1... d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4
Four moves in, the position is a Queen's Gambit with both king's knights already developed. Black now chooses between ...e6, ...c6 and ...dxc4, the same choices as in a Queen's Gambit reached through 1.d4.
Top replies by rating
d5 leads every band below 2000. In the 2000 and up band, Nf6 moves ahead of d5, and c5 holds third place from 1600 up.
| Rating | Top | Second | Third |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1200 | d5 36% | e6 16% | Nc6 9% |
| 1200–1399 | d5 40% | e6 15% | Nc6 11% |
| 1400–1599 | d5 38% | Nc6 12% | e6 11% |
| 1600–1799 | d5 37% | Nf6 14% | c5 10% |
| 1800–1999 | d5 35% | Nf6 20% | c5 13% |
| 2000 and up | Nf6 35% | d5 26% | c5 15% |
Related openings
Try it on the board. The first coached game and three analyses are free.