Player↕ | Country↕ | Era↕ | Peak Rating↕ | Title↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Magnus Carlsen | Norway | 2004–present | 2882 | World Champion 2013–2023 |
Garry Kasparov | Russia | 1975–2005 | 2851 | World Champion 1985–2000 |
Bobby Fischer | USA | 1958–1972 | 2785 | World Champion 1972–1975 |
Anatoly Karpov | Russia | 1969–2005 | 2780 | World Champion 1975–1985 |
Viswanathan Anand | India | 1988–present | 2817 | World Champion 2007–2013 |
José Raúl Capablanca | Cuba | 1902–1942 | ~2725 | World Champion 1921–1927 |
Mikhail Tal | Latvia/USSR | 1953–1992 | 2705 | World Champion 1960–1961 |
Alexander Alekhine | Russia/France | 1909–1946 | ~2690 | World Champion 1927–1946 |
Hikaru Nakamura | USA | 2001–present | 2816 | 5× US Champion, Twitch star |
Ding Liren | China | 2009–present | 2816 | World Champion 2023–2025 |
Fabiano Caruana | USA | 2005–present | 2844 | World #2, Challenger 2018 |
Mikhail Botvinnik | USSR | 1927–1970 | ~2690 | World Champion 1948–1963 |
Emanuel Lasker | Germany | 1889–1941 | ~2720 | World Champion 1894–1921 |
Vladimir Kramnik | Russia | 1991–2019 | 2817 | World Champion 2000–2007 |
Levon Aronian | Armenia | 2002–present | 2830 | World #2, elite GM |
Boris Spassky | Russia | 1955–1992 | 2690 | World Champion 1969–1972 |
Judit Polgár | Hungary | 1991–2014 | 2735 | Strongest female player ever |
D. Gukesh | India | 2018–present | 2794 | World Champion 2025, youngest ever |
Alireza Firouzja | France/Iran | 2016–present | 2804 | Youngest 2800+ ever |
Praggnanandhaa | India | 2018–present | 2747 | World Cup finalist at 18 |
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Frequently asked questions
How is the Best Chess Players list ranked?
The Chess Players list is ranked by community votes. Every visitor can pick one option over another in head-to-head matchups, and the running totals determine the order you see. No editors or algorithms — just real people voting.
How many entries are in this Best Chess Players dataset?
This dataset contains 20 entries, each with multiple sortable, filterable columns. The full table is visible on this page and can be downloaded as a CSV, JSON, or Excel file.
Can I download the Best Chess Players data?
Yes. The download buttons at the top of the page give you the full 20-row dataset as CSV, JSON, or Excel. Use of the data is permitted under a Creative Commons Attribution license — credit dtbse.com when you republish.
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