What is stalemate in chess?
I · Intermediate · Winning and drawing · 2 of 7Stalemate is a draw. It happens when the player to move has no legal move and their king is not in check. A game is also drawn in a dead position, where neither player could ever give checkmate by any series of legal moves, such as king against king.
How it works
- Stalemate: "the player to move has no legal move and his/her king is not in check".
- It ends the game at once: as a draw, provided the move that produced it was legal.
- Dead position: "neither player can checkmate the opponent's king with any series of legal moves".
- Also immediate: a dead position ends the game as a draw without any claim.
- Typical dead positions: king against king, and king with a single bishop or knight against a bare king.
- Not about what is likely: a position is dead only if checkmate is impossible, not if it is merely unlikely.
The glossary has the stalemate, the dead position, the draw, the checkmate, the king and the endgame.
Tricky cases
One side has a queen and a rook, and the other only a king that has no legal move and is not in check. Who wins?
Nobody. It is stalemate and a draw, however much material one side has.
The player to move has no king moves but can still move a pawn. Stalemate?
No. Stalemate needs no legal move at all, with any piece.
King and two knights against a bare king. Is that a dead position?
No. Checkmate cannot be forced, but a series of legal moves leading to it exists, so the game continues.
Is stalemate a win for the side that delivered it in some forms of chess?
No, not under the FIDE Laws. It is always a draw.
Why the rule exists
A player must move, and may not move into check. When those two rules collide, the game cannot go on. Since the king is not attacked, nobody has won. Stalemate gives the weaker side something to play for and punishes a careless winner.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| No legal move, king in check | Checkmate | FIDE Laws 1.4; 5.1.1 |
| No legal move, king not in check | Stalemate: draw | FIDE Laws 5.2.1 |
| Checkmate impossible for both sides | Dead position: draw | FIDE Laws 1.5; 5.2.2 |
| Time runs out against an opponent who cannot possibly checkmate | Draw | FIDE Laws 6.9 |
From the rule book
FIDE, Laws of Chess (approved 7 August 2022, applied from 1 January 2023), Articles 1.5, 5.2.1, 5.2.2 and 6.9. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: FIDE Laws of Chess taking effect from 1 January 2023 (FIDE Handbook E.01).