Play checkers against the computer
Move your pieces diagonally forward, jump your opponent’s pieces and get crowned. American checkers (English draughts) is set by default – six more national variants are one click away.
Source: Wikipedia: Checkers – rules and national variants (board, backward captures, flying kings, capture constraints, first move). Updated: .
How it is calculated
How to play checkers
Checkers is played on the dark squares only. Each side starts with 12 pieces on the first three rows (20 pieces on four rows on the 10×10 board). A man moves one square diagonally forward. If an opponent’s piece is diagonally in front of you and the square behind it is empty, you jump over it and capture it. If you can keep jumping, you have to. Whenever a capture is possible, capturing is mandatory. A man that reaches the far row is crowned king (shown with a crown). You win when your opponent has no legal move left – all pieces captured or blocked.
- Tap a piece: when a capture is available, every piece that can jump gets a green ring.
- Tap the target square: green dots show where you may go. For a multi-jump the final square is enough; if there are several routes, tap the landing squares one by one.
- Undo takes back your last move together with the computer’s reply.
American checkers and the other variants
The default is American checkers, known as English draughts in the UK: men capture forward only, a king moves one square in any diagonal direction, and you may choose any capture sequence as long as you finish it. Black (the dark side) moves first. A man that is crowned during a jump ends its move there.
- International draughts: 10×10, 20 pieces, men capture backwards, flying kings, and you must take the maximum number of pieces. Played in the Netherlands, France and much of Europe and Africa.
- Brazilian: the same rules on an 8×8 board.
- German: flying kings that must land directly behind the captured piece.
- Spanish and Italian: the board is turned (playable corner on the right) and captures follow priority rules; in Italian draughts a man may not capture a king.
- Turkish: men move straight forward or sideways, 16 per side on the second and third rows.
The three computer levels
- Easy: looks one move ahead and often plays at random.
- Medium: searches four plies and follows capture sequences to the end.
- Hard: iterative alpha-beta search up to ten plies, capped at about 0.7 seconds per move. Equally good moves are picked at random.
Honest limits
A game is drawn after 25 moves per side with kings only and no capture – a simplified version of tournament rules. There is no repetition rule, no clock and no “huffing” (removing a piece that failed to capture): the app simply enforces the capture. Rules follow the Wikipedia overviews listed under sources; club rules may differ in detail. Checkers has been weakly solved: with perfect play from both sides it is a draw (Schaeffer et al., 2007).
Storage and privacy
Your variant, level, colour and your record per variant are kept in your browser’s localStorage (key dame). Nothing is sent to a server.
More board games: chess against the computer and four in a row.
Hint, undo and picking up where you left off
The Hint button shows a recommended move for the side to play and highlights the start and target squares; when a capture is forced, it is always a capture. It is calculated with the same search as the Hard level – a good move, not a proven best one. Undo takes back your last move together with the computer’s reply. The game in progress is stored in this browser: after a reload the board is exactly as you left it, and undo still works.
Frequently asked questions
What are the basic rules of checkers?
Men move one square diagonally forward and capture by jumping over an opposing piece to the empty square behind it. Captures are mandatory. A man reaching the last row becomes a king that can move backwards too. The player who cannot move loses.
Can you jump backwards in checkers?
In American checkers only kings can jump backwards; men capture forward only. In international and Brazilian draughts men may also capture backwards. Choose the variant above the board.
Do you have to jump in checkers?
Yes. If a capture is available you must take it and continue a multi-jump to the end. In American checkers you may choose which capture to make; in international draughts you must take the route that captures the most pieces.
How do kings move in checkers?
In American checkers a king moves one square diagonally in any direction. In international, Brazilian, Spanish and Turkish rules it is a flying king that moves any number of empty squares.
Is the computer on hard impossible to beat?
No. It searches up to ten plies within about 0.7 seconds, which is strong for casual play, but it does not use opening books or endgame databases. Long-term plans and good endgame technique can beat it.
Can I play checkers with two players?
Yes. Choose “Two players” and White and Black take turns on the same phone, tablet or computer. The record against the computer is only counted in computer mode.
Sources and legal basis
- Wikipedia: Checkers – rules and national variants (board, backward captures, flying kings, capture constraints, first move)
- Wikipedia: International draughts
- Wikipedia: English draughts
- Wikipedia: Turkish draughts
- Wikipedia: Italian draughts
- Wikipedia: Alpha-beta pruning
- MDN: Crypto.getRandomValues()
As of: · Editorial policy
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