title image

Pocket Chess

Chess Puzzles

Ratings

Age

4+

Category

Board

Languages

English

Pocket Chess offers a new and effective way to learn and improve at chess through a massive collection of puzzles and tactical problems. Featuring boards that are small and simple, the game keeps important pieces in focus, helping you learn to recognize critical patterns faster. Challenge yourself with hundreds of levels, ranging from 'Checkmate in 2' to 'Checkmate in 4' and beyond. Whether you're looking to brush up on your skills or start from scratch, Pocket Chess provides a polished, intuitive platform to elevate your tactical thinking and master the board.

Dinsun Expert Review

Our Expert Score

83/100

Pocket Chess is a brilliant reimagining of chess training, focusing on the 'puzzle' aspect of the game to help players recognize patterns much faster than traditional matches. By using smaller, simplified boards, it strips away the noise and forces you to focus on the essential pieces and their relationships. This 'checkmate in X' format is incredibly effective for improving tactical vision, whether you're a beginner learning the basics or a seasoned player looking to sharpen your end-game skills.

The game features hundreds of thought-provoking problems that range from simple two-movers to complex four-move sequences. The UI is clean and efficient, making it perfect for quick training sessions during a commute or break. It’s a dedicated, high-quality tool for anyone serious about improving their chess game, offering a structured way to practice and internalize the tactics that separate casual players from masters.

Dinsun reviewed on: Tue Feb 24 2026

Features

1

Hundreds of chess puzzles

2

Simplified board for better focus

3

Checkmate in 2 to 4 challenges

4

Regular tech and level updates

5

Clean, user-friendly interface

Tips & Walkthrough

Gameplays

Screenshot

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Q&A

Yes, the simplified boards and 'Checkmate in 2' levels are perfect for beginners to learn basic winning patterns.

Ratings & Reviews

THE BEST CHESS APP EVER
Sun Jun 23 2024 olliegrace3

This app is actually so great. I know only the basics of chess, and this has improved me so so much. I am ever so thankful for this app. I have been searching for a while looking for a good app to play on, but none of them fit my desires and needs. This app has basically everything. It shows you how to properly use pieces, and make checkmate without failure! Whenever I used to play chess, I just placed my pieces anywhere on the board hoping i would win. But with this app, i actually enjoy and understand chess!!! The levels on this app are easy enough so you don’t get frustrated, but challenging enough that you learn something. This app is completely beyond words. I totally recommend it!!!!!

Fun game, good concept, but
Fri Feb 10 2023 ProbablyBadReview

I downloaded this game not too long ago and ive had a lot of fun i love the concept of having a game like this for free, but, there is one thing in particular about this game that really bugs me, the ads, the amount of ads on this is just ridiculous, especially if you get a level that you complete fast, i mean you get ads after basically every single level and it is very frustrating. i kind of understand why there would be maybe an ad after every level considering that some levels may take a while to complete, which would make sense to make an ad afterwards to make up for the playing time of said level, but i just dont think its necessary. and i also think coins should be able to actually purchase things in game like different boards, backgrounds, pieces, etc. instead of just hints.

The better puzzle game
Sat Oct 29 2022 Dadasein

I’ve always wanted to get good at chess. Since I was a kid, I’ve worked through chess books and used programs/apps, but I know I’m not good. I saw an ad for pocket chess and dumped other puzzle games I was wasting time on. I never could consistently work through chess puzzle books, but I play pocket chess obsessively every day. I’m not certain it’s working—surely it’s improved my endgame. At least at the beginning, I felt my neurons rewiring, like a video game with novel controls. Now that I’ve gotten 3 times through the basic 1010 and 13 events down, the puzzles come easier. I’m definitely better at thinking in chess. I just wish it could help with my middle game.

What A Ride
Fri Jan 17 2025 TheSingingFly

Wow. Just beat the game today; all 1010 of the main puzzles plus several events. This app is an insanely good resource for improving your chess calculation and tactical pattern recognition in realistic situations. When I downloaded this app, I had a Puzzle ELO of 2300 on Chesscom; that number has risen to nearly 3000. I'm finding tactics much faster in real chess games, too. This app has been an incredible journey for me for low-stakes tactics calculation. Some of these puzzles are actually pretty hard; some would be upwards of 3000 Puzzle ELO in Chesscom. Thank you for compiling this list of puzzles and putting it in a very fun app interface! I love watching the king fall when it gets mated.

I hate chess
Sat Mar 25 2023 voss0

Whenever I play chess I feel stupid but I love these puzzles so much. At first, the boards are super small and weird but as you get a little deeper in, it starts to give you some possible game positions. I have never paid to remove ads in my life but this game was worth it, you can also turn off wifi and cellular for the game if you aren't lazy like me. The quality of the puzzles is fantastic, some took a lot of deep thought which gave me something fun to chew on in the morning. It's been a great tool to evaluate how efficiently my brain is working and I hope they add more puzzles in the future :)

Good game
Mon Mar 13 2023 CamBam12274

Don’t get me wrong it was fun for about 25-30 levels. Pros good graphics, good difficulty (at first) and different from most. But the cons!! So many ads it’s ridiculous. once you get past level 30 it’s like there trying to find grand masters because they start to base the levels off of you need to get a hint, that’s leads into watch ads being 75 coins yet the hint is 100 coins. Then even if you watch the ads the hint it only tells you what peace to move not what move to do. I get it needs to be challenging but it took maybe 15 minutes to get there and I got stuck. If your looking for a quick game to play because your bored just move on to the next game but if your a great player and I mean great player at chest give this game a try because I believe it will stump even grand masters.

A freemium app in premium apps clothing
Sun Oct 30 2022 Grdjj258

Seemed like a chess tactics app with good graphics and a nice interface. I was happy to pay $5 to get rid of ads, only to realize that the entire game basically runs on a hint system that either costs you more money or… makes you watch ads. You have to complete each puzzle before going to the next one, so if you’re stuck at all, it’s ad time again. There’s day-specific puzzles and multi-puzzle time-based “events” but those usually only give you more hint currency if you get to the very end, and since solutions to those cannot easily be found online as they can for the standard levels (at least the earlier ones), you’re stuck without answers or compensation unless you can solve everything, or pay for hints. Ultimately, chess should be about learning. It’s fun when it’s turned into mini games like this but it’s annoying when progress and knowledge is locked behind micro-transactions. Given how many similar (but better) apps there are right now, there’s basically no justification for this apps popularity or high rating. I guess a polished aesthetic counts for a lot to people. My recommended alternative is Chess Tactics Pro, but there’s many other options.

Fantastic, but lay-off the micro-purchases
Sat Jan 07 2023 shadowgreen

Awesome creative and challenging puzzles of all difficulties! The various shapes and sizes of the board, and the fact that different combos of pieces are used than standard chess, makes this app really unique and valuable. I would easily pay money for this app. I would pay to remove ads if there were any. I might even pay for more levels. I don’t like paying for coins because that’s manipulative, and feels a bit of a scam. I might even do a monthly subscription that came with a few hints each month. Just lay off the “limited time 50% off 5k coins” type of sales tactic.

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