Play Checkers (Draughts) online
with a friend

How to play Checkers (Draughts) online

1. Start a room and send the link to the other player.
2. Tap one of your pieces to see where it can go, then tap the square you want. Only the dark squares are in play.
3. Men move one square diagonally forward. If a capture is available anywhere on the board, you have to take it.
4. Land beyond a captured piece and, if the same piece can jump again, your turn keeps going. That's a chain, and chains win games.
5. Reach the far row and your piece is crowned a king, which may move and capture in both directions. Take all their pieces, or leave them with no legal move, to win.

Why Checkers (Draughts) works over a distance

People think of Checkers as the easy one. It isn't. Because captures are forced, you're not really deciding whether to trade, you're setting up which trade you'll be forced into. Most games are decided by a piece someone left as bait three moves earlier.

The board only lets you play legal moves. Tap a piece and the squares it can reach light up. When there's a capture on the board, pieces that can't take it just won't respond, so you never have to remember the rule. In the middle of a chain the board picks the piece for you, since only one can move.

You always see the board from your own side, so nobody plays upside down. Games run long, so it's a good one to leave open in another tab while you talk.

Also known as draughts, checkers online, play draughts, two player checkers.

Questions

Do I have to take a capture?

Yes. This is standard checkers: if any of your pieces can jump, one of them must. The board won't let you make another move while a capture is available, and it tells you why.

Can a king jump backwards?

Yes. A crowned piece moves and captures along all four diagonals. An uncrowned man only ever goes forward.

What happens if I reach the back row mid-jump?

You get crowned and your turn ends there, even if the new king could jump again. That's the standard rule, and it stops one chain from running up and down the whole board.

How does a game end in a draw?

If fifty moves go by with no capture and no promotion, the game is a draw. Otherwise two kings could chase each other around forever.

Can I play Checkers against the computer?

Yes, with Play solo. The bot looks a move ahead at your best reply, so it won't give you a piece for free, but you can beat it.

The rest of the arcade

• 💞 How Well Do You Know MeAnswer for yourself, guess for them, then find out who was paying attention.
• 🫶 In SyncThis or that, picked at the same time. See how often you land on the same side.
• ❌ Tic-Tac-ToeThree in a row. Thirty seconds a game, and somehow still tense.
• 🔴 Connect 4Drop, stack, and pretend you didn't miss the diagonal.
• 🔤 Word DuelSame secret word, two boards, six guesses. No waiting for turns.
• 🔲 Dots & BoxesDraw a line, close a square, go again. Ruthless in the endgame.
• ⚫ ReversiTrap a line, flip it all. The lead changes hands every turn.
• 🚢 BattleshipFive ships, one hundred squares, and no idea where they are.
• 🎲 Dice DuelFive dice, three rolls, thirteen boxes. Luck you can play badly.

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