10 zugzwang positions rated between 1800 and 1999, averaging 1900. Each position below is from a real game, with the solution given underneath — so you can check yourself immediately rather than guessing whether you were right.
Zugzwang is the state where every legal move worsens your position — having to move is itself the disadvantage. It is almost exclusively an endgame phenomenon, and it is the mechanism behind most king-and-pawn wins.
These are pitched at 1800-rated players. Puzzle ratings work like player ratings: a puzzle rated 1800 is one that players around 1800 solve about half the time, so if you are getting most of these you should move up a band.
Solving from a page is good for pattern recognition but not for tracking progress. The rated puzzle trainer serves puzzles matched to your own rating and adjusts as you solve, and the Mistake Trainer builds puzzles from positions you actually got wrong in your own games.
Nxf5 exf5+ Kf4 Kg6 Ke5
Kc4 Kd2 Kb3
Kg1 g3 Kf2
d3 cxd3 Kxb3 d4 Kc4
axb4 Ke7 h5 gxh5 gxh5
Kf3 f5 Kg4 fxg6 fxg6 Kd5 Kxg5
fxg5+ Kxg5 Kf3 Kf6 Kf4
Kxc4 Kc6 g3 Kd6 Kd4
Kxg2 Ke4 Kg3 Kf5 Kh4
f6 Kd5 Kc3 Kc5 Kxc2 Kxc4 Kd2 Kd4 Ke2 Ke4 Kf2 Kd3 Kxf3
Train zugzwang puzzles at your rating →
Zugzwang is the state where every legal move worsens your position — having to move is itself the disadvantage. It is almost exclusively an endgame phenomenon, and it is the mechanism behind most king-and-pawn wins.
Puzzle ratings work like player ratings. A puzzle rated 1800 is one that players rated around 1800 solve roughly half the time. The puzzles on this page average 1900, so they suit 1800-rated players.
Yes. Every puzzle on this page, including its solution, is free to view with no account. The rated trainer that tracks your progress and serves puzzles matched to your rating is part of Chess Ramp Premium.