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Chess Knight Moves: The Complete Rules and Examples
The knight chess piece has a well-earned reputation as the hardest one to get comfortable with. So we're giving it an article all to itself. By the end of this guide you'll be able to explain chess knight moves to any child, and just as importantly, you'll understand why a knight sitting in the center of the board is worth so much more than one stuck on the rim.
This guide covers the following.
- The rule behind the knight's move.
- How to get the most out of a knight during a game.
- The knight fork, a tactical weapon every player needs to know.
- A neat checkmate delivered with a single knight.
Chess Knight Moves: The Basic Rule
The knight always moves two squares in a straight line, then one square to the side.
Let's look at an example.
The knight on d5 can advance two squares up the board, then move one square to the right, landing on e7.
Its path traces a giant letter L, which can just as easily be flipped or turned on its side.
From d5, the knight actually had every one of these squares available as a destination.
If you follow the eight green arrows in the diagram above, you'll count eight possible moves for the knight.
One more rule worth knowing is that the knight jumps clean over every other piece on the board, its own and its opponent's alike. So from the starting position, White can move either a pawn or a knight on the very first move, and nothing stands in the knight's way.
Where the Knight Starts on the Board
Wondering how to set up a chess board correctly? The rooks go in the corners, and the knights sit right next to them. Here's the full starting position.
Take a moment to commit that starting setup to memory. It's the foundation everything else is built on.
How Does the Knight Capture in Chess?
Beginners often say a knight "eats" a piece. The proper chess word is capture, or simply take. Same goes for the piece itself, you might hear players call it "the horse," but the correct name is knight.
A knight captures by jumping onto the square an enemy piece is standing on. Whatever was sitting there comes off the board.
Take a look at the position below.
It's White to move. The white knight on f3 sits exactly the right distance away to capture the black pawn on d4.
Black can now capture a piece too, if they choose to. The knight sitting on c6 can take the white knight that just landed on d4.
To win the material back, White now has to recapture the black knight with the queen.
Where to Place the Knight for Maximum Power
This is an important question, one that gets a whole lesson to itself in our full how to play chess course. Still, here's a piece of advice that carries real weight. Knights belong in the center of the board. The reason is purely mathematical. From a central square, a knight controls up to eight squares and has influence over the entire board. Push it to the edge and it controls only four squares, and tucked away in a corner, just two. Count the squares a knight can jump to and you've got a good measure of how strong it is right now.
That's why, early in the game, knights usually head toward the center by way of c3 or f3 rather than toward the edge of the board.
By the same logic, the black knights are usually best developed on c6 and f6.
Knight Chess Moves FAQ
Here are the questions about the knight chess piece we get asked most often.
Can the knight move backward?
Yes, absolutely. The pawn is the only piece on the board that can never move backward.
Should you develop a knight on the very first move?
Yes, if it's the knight on g1, but it's not a great idea for the knight on b1. One reason is that in many openings White wants to push the c-pawn early, and putting a knight on c3 gives up that option. On the other hand, 1.Nf3 is a well-known opening in its own right, called the Réti Opening.
Which is stronger, the bishop or the knight?
It really depends on the position. The bishop loves open positions where it can influence both sides of the board at once. The knight, on the other hand, prefers closed positions, where it can hop over blocked pawns that would stop a bishop cold. We look at this question in much more detail in a separate article on bishop versus knight.
Can the knight jump over other pieces?
Yes, the knight is the only piece on the chessboard with the power to jump clean over other pieces, whether they belong to you or your opponent. That's exactly what makes it agile and hard to predict in cramped positions. It's also what turns the knight into a dangerous tool for surprise attacks and infiltration.
The Knight's Move in Video
An English video on how the knight moves is in the works. Join the waitlist and we'll send it to you when it's out.
The knight is only one of six pieces. Our complete guide to the rules of chess covers how each of the others moves.
The Knight Fork
This is the knight's signature tactical weapon. A fork simply means attacking two pieces at the same time. If your opponent moves one of them to safety, you take the other.
Here's an example of a fork in action.
The knight jumps to e7, forking the king and the rook. The king has to move out of check, and the knight is then free to capture the black rook.
Checkmate With a Single Knight: A Knight Move Puzzle
Here's a small exercise built entirely around the knight's move. Fair warning, it's not easy. You'll need to think hard to uncover the secret behind this position.
White to move and mate in three.
For anyone new to this kind of puzzle, here's how it works. You, playing White, make a move, Black replies, you make a second move, Black replies again, and on your third move the black king gets checkmated.
Here's the solution.
With the black king boxed into the corner of the board, we can deliver mate even with very little material left.
1.Ne3
The white knight steps closer to the action. Black is left with exactly one legal move, tucking the king further into the corner.
1...Kh1 2.Nf1!!
This is the only move that covers h2 and g3 at the same time. Covering h2 stops the black king shuffling between h1 and h2, and covering g3 is what delivers the mate.
2...h2 3.Ng3#
A pretty little path for the knight, don't you think? Don't worry if this puzzle felt tough. Our upcoming lesson series builds up to positions like this one starting from much simpler exercises, join the waitlist to get it first.
What to Read Next
- Keep building your chess fundamentals so you'll be ready to play a full game soon.
- Get comfortable with the rules of chess from the ground up.
That wraps up our guide to chess knight moves. If it helped, feel free to share it around.
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