Chess Titles
Do you know the titles that chess players can earn? The journey to become a titled player is not easy and takes a lot of work. Here is what you need to know about chess titles:
- What Are Chess Titles?
- Chess Titles Awarded By FIDE
- Why Are Some Titles For Only Women?
- Requirements Of Chess Titles
- Non-FIDE Titles
- Can Kids Earn Chess Titles?
- Are Titled Players On ChessKid?
- Frequently Asked Questions About Chess Titles
- Wrapping Up
- Chess Titles Video
GM Anna Muzychuk, the fourth woman in chess history to attain a FIDE rating of at least 2600, hosted an online chess event with ChessKid in 2022 that raised money to help the people of Ukraine.
What Are Chess Titles?
Every player has the right to earn a chess title, which indicates that they are among the world’s top players. Chess titles have been awarded by national chess federations for more than a century. Beginning in 1950, the International Chess Federation, known by the acronym FIDE, has been awarding chess titles internationally. (The initials FIDE are for the organization’s original name in French: Fédération Internationale des Échecs.) When titles are awarded, they are usually held for life (except in instances of fraud or cheating).
Chess Titles Awarded By FIDE
FIDE awards several titles, and each one has to be applied for. Open titles are awarded to all players; women’s titles are restricted to women players. Some women hold both open and women’s titles.
The highest title is grandmaster (GM) — except for being the world champion. GMs are the strongest chess players in the world, and even very talented players must prove themselves in difficult tournaments to achieve the title. It requires an official Elo rating of 2500 as well as norms (explained below in “Requirements Of Chess Titles”). First awarded by FIDE in 1950, the title is so exclusive that fewer than 2,000 players hold it. Although an unofficial term, “super grandmaster” or “super GM” is often used to refer to a player with a 2700 rating or higher.
Also established in 1950 is the title of international master (IM), which ranks just below grandmaster. It requires an official rating of 2400 as well as norms.
In addition, two subordinate titles have also been created — FIDE master (FM) in 1978 and candidate master (CM) in 2002. Although ChessKid’s favorite FM is FunMasterMike, even more impressive is Alekhine Nouri of the Philippines who became the youngest FM in the world at age 7 in 2013. The ratings required for FM and CM are 2300 and 2200 respectively.
FunMasterMike challenges you to study and work for a chess title.
All four open titles can be earned by any player regardless of gender. In addition, four similar titles are awarded to only women players. They are lower by 200 Elo points than the comparable open titles:
- Woman grandmaster (WGM), first awarded in 1976
- Woman international master (WIM), first awarded in 1950
- Woman FIDE master (WFM), first awarded in 1980
- Woman candidate master (WCM), first awarded in 2002
Why Are Some Titles For Only Women?
Women’s titles were created to encourage more females to play chess. In addition, they give players who aren’t within range of open titles something to aim for. However, not everyone agrees that women-only titles should be established. For example, GM Irina Krush says: “I just don't see the point in having these separate women's titles. I'm not sure what they indicate. Women can play with men — they do play with men now. They can earn the same titles as men.”
Although there are critics of women’s titles, having one may benefit a female player. As WGM Natalia Pogonina explains: “Having a title is beneficial in terms of getting special conditions from organizers, becoming a more recognized coach or author, finding sponsors or receiving stipends from certain institutions, [and] free memberships from top chess websites.”
Every woman has the right to compete in open chess tournaments and play against all players. Women-only events are held to offer a space for female chess players (often less than 10 percent of the entrants in a tournament) so they feel represented and can meet other female players more easily. As WGM Jennifer Shahade has expressed: “Women's tournaments and training allow an underrepresented population in the chess world to make friends and help organizers to promote women in chess to the media and community.”
FIDE and ChessKid teamed up in July 2022 to hold an unrated girls’ tournament as part of Queens’ Online Chess Festival 2022.
Requirements Of Chess Titles
Titles are generally achieved by a combination of Elo rating and norms. Norms are qualifying standards based on a specific performance achieved in events at classic time controls under FIDE-approved conditions that include other titled players. The initial norms for titles were established by FIDE in 1953. Titles can also be awarded for achieving a specific place or result in a tournament, such as qualifying for the FIDE World Cup or winning a designated world or continental championship.
Non-FIDE Titles
Several national federations award the title of national master generally for a player who has attained a rating of 2200 as well as other titles.
For example, the English Chess Federation has six categories of national titles: national master (minimum rating of 2200), regional master (2100), country master (2000), club master (1800), team master (1600), and chess maestro (1400).
In the United States, the rank of expert (the unofficial title for players with a U.S. Chess rating of 2000 or higher) is within the top 5 percent of American chess players. Fewer than one percent of rated U.S. players hold the national master title (rating of 2200 or higher).
Five-time world chess champion Vishy Anand (left) reviews the training features of ChessKid with FunMasterMike.
Can Kids Earn Chess Titles?
Yes. Much like FM Nouri, many kids have earned chess titles. For example, the record for the youngest IM is currently held by Abhimanyu Mishra, who attained the title at the age of 10 years, nine months, and three days. He is now a grandmaster!
In 2019 at age 11, ChessKid’s Carissa Yip became the youngest American woman in history to qualify for the IM title, which was awarded to her by FIDE in February 2020. She even beat a grandmaster when she was 10, and she has now advanced to the WGM title. Read about her achievements in the article “Carissa Yip: Youngest Female Master Ever.” On ChessKid, she is known as Magician4MA in her articles and videos.
Another rising star is Tanitoluwa (Tani) Adewumi, who earned the chess title of national master when he was just 10. Although this title is below that of IM, he is well on his way to achieving higher titles. Tani plays regularly on ChessKid. In fact, you can play Tani the bot on ChessKid. Watch FunMasterMike as he tries to beat him in this video. Will Tani advance to the IM title and achieve other higher goals? Follow his progress in articles on ChessKid. Meanwhile, read about his chess successes in the article “Tani Is a Chess Master.”
Follow the adventures of ChessKid’s FM Shreyas Royal (known as crushmaster2019) as he pursues the IM title in this article “My Road To IM.”
FM Shreyas Royal gets ready for another game to begin at the European Individual Chess Championship in April 2022.
Are Titled Players On ChessKid?
Titled players are part of the chess community on ChessKid. See the list here. They are easy to identify online because their titles are usually displayed next to their usernames. The most well-recognized titled player on ChessKid is IM Danny Rensch (known as Poppa Bear), who writes articles and makes videos. See this video by him on “How to Get Your Pieces Working Together.”
Frequently Asked Questions About Chess Titles
What Are The Chess Titles In Order?
The FIDE open titles in order are GM, IM, FM, and CM. The women’s titles in order are WGM, WIM, WFM, and WCM.
What Is The Best Chess Title?
GM is the best FIDE title. It is the one that is the most exclusive. Other than being the world champion, GM is the highest title that a chess player can earn.
How Many Chess Titles Are There?
FIDE awards four open titles and four women’s titles.
What Is The Lowest Chess Title?
The lowest FIDE open title is CM, which requires an Elo rating of 2200. With a required rating of 1800, the WCM is the lowest FIDE women’s title.
ChessKid’s Carissa Yip, who is the youngest American woman in history to qualify for the IM title, recommends eating veggies and studying chess. Photo: Carissa Yip via Twitter.
Wrapping Up
You now know the important chess titles and how they are earned. Are you inspired to pursue a chess title for yourself? We hope so. However, earning a title requires a lot of study and dedication. Head over to our Lessons page to learn essential chess concepts to get on the right track for earning a FIDE title.