Report updated Jun 12, 2026
Lichess
For chess players ranging from beginners to grandmasters who require a free, open-source, and ad-free environment for play and analysis.
Lichess is an established games app that is completely free. With a 3.5/5 rating from 9.3K reviews, it shows polarized user reception.
What is Lichess?
Lichess is an open-source, free-to-play chess application for iOS and Android that offers real-time play, tournament hosting, and engine analysis.
Users hire Lichess for a distraction-free, ad-free competitive environment that prioritizes game utility and community study over the monetization-heavy loops of commercial rivals.
Current Momentum
v0.22 · 3w ago
Intense- Shipped correspondence challenge creation fixes.
- Improved Crazyhouse variant stability.
- Added pinned player broadcast functionality.
What makes this app unique?
What Does It Look Like?
What Are The Key Features?
Local or server-side analysis using Stockfish engine for game review
Interactive, shared board environment for analyzing games with others
Real-time arena, swiss, and simultaneous exhibition hosting for global player pools
How much does it cost?
- 100% free access to all features
- Optional voluntary donations via Patron program
The model relies on a non-profit, donation-funded structure with no paid-tier gates or ad inventory.
Who Built It?
Providing a comprehensive, ad-free, and open-source chess ecosystem for players to learn, play, and analyze games without financial barriers.
Portfolio
1
Apps
Explore the full LICHESS.ORG report
Portfolio breakdown, audience, momentum, and every app published by LICHESS.ORG.
What do users think recently?
Analysis in progress, available soon
View the full user-sentiment analysis
Mood gauge, ratings & review-volume history, every praise / complaint / request, and sentiment over time.
What is the competitive landscape for Lichess?
Where is it available?
Localized markets (1)
How's The Games Market?
How does it evolve in the Games market?
Lichess maintains a consistent presence in the top 50-100 free board games across multiple international markets, including a #17 rank in Germany and #29 in the United Kingdom. This global footprint, achieved without paid acquisition, signals high brand authority that forces commercial competitors to compete on feature depth rather than discovery.
Rank progression
99 active rankings tracked — 30-day window
Which niche is Lichess in?
Explore the full Chess Companions niche
Every app in this space — 3 tracked, the niche's live rankings, and Marlvel's editorial take on the job-to-be-done.
The rivals identified
Nemeses(1)
With over 1.7 million ratings, this app dominates the casual chess market through sheer install volume and long-term retention.
Differentiators
- Maintains a massive, stable user base that prioritizes simple, offline-first gameplay over complex social features.
- Focuses on a minimalist, single-player experience that avoids the social overhead of Lichess's community-driven platform.
- Provides a highly predictable, static interface that appeals to casual players who dislike frequent UI changes.
Head to head
Lichess should avoid competing on the casual, offline-only front and instead double down on its unique value proposition as the premier platform for serious, community-driven competitive play.
Contenders(2)
Maintains a high rating and significant review volume, serving as a direct alternative for users seeking a polished, standard chess experience.
Differentiators
- Focuses on a highly polished, standard board aesthetic that appeals to traditionalists who find Lichess's feature set overwhelming.
- Optimizes for a clean, distraction-free board experience that minimizes the UI clutter often associated with feature-heavy platforms.
High release velocity indicates an aggressive strategy to capture market share through gamification and frequent content updates.
Differentiators
- Integrates heavy gamification elements like quests and rewards to drive daily active usage among casual players.
- Ships frequent feature updates that prioritize engagement loops over the pure, utilitarian chess experience Lichess provides.
Same space(3)
Operates in the board game category with a focus on high-quality engine analysis and tactical training.
Differentiators
- Prioritizes deep tactical analysis tools that cater to users looking to improve their game through engine feedback.
- Maintains a specialized focus on training modules that differentiates it from general-purpose play-and-social platforms.
Leverages high-profile branding to attract users interested in learning from and playing against engine-simulated personalities.
Differentiators
- Uses celebrity-branded AI personalities to create a unique, narrative-driven learning experience for chess enthusiasts.
- Focuses on educational content and skill-based progression that differentiates it from pure play-focused platforms.
Targets the adjacent sub-genre of experimental and non-standard chess variants for players seeking novelty.
Differentiators
- Introduces randomized piece setups that fundamentally change the strategic landscape of traditional chess games.
- Positions itself as a creative, experimental alternative to the rigid, rule-bound nature of standard chess platforms.
Compare Lichess against every rival
All rivals in one side-by-side table — identity, store metrics, ratings & sentiment, and strategic intel — plus a head-to-head page for each.
The outtake for Lichess
Strengths to defend, gaps to attack
Core Strengths
- Open-source engine authority drives high organic traffic
- Collaborative study features create deep community network effects
- Tournament infrastructure spikes recurring daily active usage
Critical Frictions
- Android-iOS rating gap of 0.89 stars
- Donation-only funding limits capital for expansion
- No ad-based revenue restricts marketing budget
Growth Levers
- Untapped B2B education partnerships for distribution
- Wearable integration for over-the-board clock utility
- Localized tournament expansion in emerging markets
Market Threats
- Commercial rivals' aggressive user acquisition budgets
- EU data-minimization tightening on kids-category features
- Competitor feature-velocity outpacing open-source cycles
What are the next best moves?
Audit Android stability because of the 0.89-star rating gap vs iOS → improve Android retention
The rating gap indicates platform-specific friction that erodes the daily active habit on the majority-Android user base.
Trade-off: Pause the UI-refresh sprint for the study module — stability is a higher-impact retention lever.
Formalize B2B education outreach because of the open-source brand authority → unlock new distribution channels
The open-source nature is a unique value proposition for schools that commercial, ad-heavy apps cannot match.
Trade-off: Deprioritize the new board-theme development — distribution growth outweighs cosmetic updates.
A counter-intuitive read
The open-source model is not a weakness but a B2B distribution moat, as schools and international chess federations prefer non-profit, ad-free tools over the commercial alternatives.
Feature Gaps vs Competitors
- Celebrity-branded AI personalities (available in Play Magnus but absent here)
- Gamified quest and reward systems (available in Chess Universe+ but absent here)
Key Takeaways
Lichess holds its category lead through sticky community mechanics but faces long-term resource constraints against commercial rivals, so the PM should prioritize Android stability to defend the core user base against churn.
Where Is It Heading?
Stable
The chess category is consolidating around high-utility platforms, and Lichess remains advantaged by its ad-free, open-source brand. However, the lack of paid acquisition capital leaves the platform exposed to commercial rivals who can outspend on user acquisition, so the PM must focus on retention-heavy stability to maintain the current chart position.
Consistent tournament infrastructure updates maintain high session frequency, which protects the platform against casual-game churn.
The 0.89-star Android-iOS rating gap signals persistent stability issues that will eventually erode the daily active habit on the Android base.