Monthly edition
The state of chess ratings, August 2026
One pool moved in August 2026 and the rest did not. That pattern usually says more about who was playing in that pool than about chess overall — a single population shifting while its neighbours hold still is a local event, not a trend.
What moved
- FIDE Rapid -25 1,625 → 1,600
| Pool | Where each rating sits | Rated players | Bottom 10% | Median | Top 10% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIDE | Blitz | 119,536 | 1,450 | 1,650 | 2,025 |
| FIDE | Rapid | 199,762 | 1,425 | 1,600 | 1,950 |
| FIDE | Classical | 219,442 | 1,450 | 1,700 | 2,025 |
| Lichess | Blitz | 657,474 | 975 | 1,475 | 2,000 |
| Lichess | Bullet | 336,344 | 1,000 | 1,575 | 2,175 |
| Lichess | Classical | 38,941 | 1,075 | 1,525 | 1,925 |
| Lichess | Rapid | 466,867 | 875 | 1,400 | 1,900 |
Who moved this month
Samuel Stephen Noble S put on 344 points — a month most players never have. At the other end, Morell, Oscar lost 190. It was a month of climbs: far more of the movers went up than down.
| Player | Rating | Change | Games |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samuel Stephen Noble S FM | 2,355 | +344 | 18 |
| Widjaja, Luke CM | 2,389 | +293 | 18 |
| Xu, Zhihan (samuel) CM | 2,149 | +278 | 17 |
| Vedant Rupeshbhai Varasada CM | 2,233 | +258 | 18 |
| Kleschevnikov, Arseny CM | 2,311 | +232 | 20 |
| Pratitee Bordoloi WFM | 2,252 | +232 | 28 |
| Borischik, Sergey CM | 2,417 | +215 | 16 |
| Moghe Parth FM | 2,327 | +210 | 35 |
| Zhang, Jiemin WCM | 2,004 | +210 | 20 |
| Varyemez, Ali FM | 2,307 | +202 | 17 |
| Topuz, Mirac Melih CM | 2,280 | +198 | 18 |
| Tursunalieva, Nurelina WFM | 2,046 | +193 | 18 |
| Zhou, Abigail WCM | 2,023 | +192 | 16 |
| Hajdinic, Ema WFM | 2,157 | +191 | 18 |
| Gokturk, Murat Kutay CM | 2,156 | +188 | 23 |
| Gaer, Sofiya Ig WCM | 1,970 | +186 | 18 |
| Cankurt, Arda CM | 2,256 | +177 | 20 |
| Fefelova, Ekaterina WFM | 2,038 | +177 | 18 |
| Lam, Chun Yung Samuel FM | 2,255 | +177 | 10 |
| Ton, Nu Quynh Duong WFM | 2,184 | +175 | 17 |
| Player | Rating | Change | Games |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morell, Oscar CM | 1,981 | −190 | 18 |
| Gaw, Chloe WIM | 2,001 | −190 | 25 |
| Tsetskhladze, Mariam WFM | 1,968 | −189 | 19 |
| Aynaoglu, Efe CM | 2,007 | −186 | 16 |
| Abdulazizov, Asilbek CM | 2,031 | −182 | 18 |
| Elhusseiny, Eyad FM | 2,095 | −172 | 19 |
| Briem, Gudrun Fanney WFM | 1,816 | −162 | 10 |
| Huynh Phuc Minh Phuong WCM | 1,752 | −157 | 17 |
| Warsia, Khusbu WFM | 1,916 | −152 | 9 |
| Donda, Jazmin WFM | 1,809 | −151 | 17 |
Titled players only, measured against the July 2026 list. A month needs at least 5 rated games to count — without that floor this table is a list of players returning from inactivity.
Measured 2026-08-01.