1h2g3f4e5d6c7b8a

1. e4 Nc6

Shown from Black's side. ECO B00.

Opening guide · an opening for Black

Nimzowitsch Defense

The Nimzowitsch Defense starts 1. e4 Nc6. Black develops a knight and waits to choose between ...d5 and ...e5. It is rare at the top level but common in club play. After 2. d4 Black can strike with 2...d5 or 2...e5, and after 2. Nf3 e5 the game transposes to the normal king's pawn openings.

Games in our sample
38,342
White wins
50.2%
Draws
4.1%
Black wins
45.8%
Open this position on the analysis boardResults by rating

How the Nimzowitsch Defense scores at each rating

Each row is one rating band. The share is how much of all the games in that band started with this opening.

RatingGamesShareWhite winsDrawsBlack wins
under 10004,4562.0%51.9%4.5%43.6%
1000 to 11995,2241.6%51.3%3.6%45.0%
1200 to 13996,3081.3%52.0%3.6%44.4%
1400 to 15997,0981.2%50.3%4.0%45.7%
1600 to 17996,5901.0%49.6%3.9%46.5%
1800 to 19995,2091.0%48.6%3.6%47.7%
2000 to 21992,5741.0%45.6%4.9%49.5%
2200 and over8830.8%46.7%10.9%42.5%
All ratings38,3421.2%50.2%4.1%45.8%

Counted from 3,156,949 rated blitz, rapid and classical games played on Lichess from 2026-10-01 to 2026-10-02 (the first 5,000,000 games of the month's public file; bullet and unrated games left out). The rating is the average of the two players' Lichess ratings. Source: the Lichess open database (public domain).

Main lines

The named lines of the Nimzowitsch Defense that were played most in our sample, each with the position it reaches.

  • 1h2g3f4e5d6c7b8a

    Kennedy Variation, Linksspringer Variation

    1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 e5 3. d5

    6,529 games · White 50.0% · draws 3.4% · Black 46.6%

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  • 1h2g3f4e5d6c7b8a

    Scandinavian Variation, Advance Variation

    1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 d5 3. e5

    4,499 games · White 49.4% · draws 3.9% · Black 46.7%

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  • 1h2g3f4e5d6c7b8a

    Declined Variation

    1. e4 Nc6 2. Nf3

    4,076 games · White 50.4% · draws 4.1% · Black 45.4%

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  • 1h2g3f4e5d6c7b8a

    Scandinavian Variation, Exchange Variation

    1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 Qxd5

    2,378 games · White 50.5% · draws 4.0% · Black 45.5%

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  • 1h2g3f4e5d6c7b8a

    Franco-Nimzowitsch Variation

    1. e4 Nc6 2. Nf3 e6

    2,148 games · White 52.0% · draws 4.2% · Black 43.8%

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  • 1h2g3f4e5d6c7b8a

    Williams Variation

    1. e4 Nc6 2. Nf3 d6

    1,736 games · White 50.2% · draws 4.0% · Black 45.8%

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Ideas for White

  • 2. d4 takes the centre; 2. Nf3 invites a transposition to the 1. e4 e5 openings.

Ideas for Black

  • After 2. d4 d5 3. e5 the bishop comes out to f5 before ...e6.

Questions

What are the moves of the Nimzowitsch Defense?
1. e4 Nc6. In the ECO classification it is filed under B00.
How does the Nimzowitsch Defense score?
In 38,342 games with it in our sample, White won 50.2%, 4.1% were drawn and Black won 45.8%.
At which ratings is the Nimzowitsch Defense played most?
Among players rated under 1000 it is 2.0% of all games in our sample, its highest share. Its lowest share, 0.8%, is among players rated 2200 and over.
Which line of the Nimzowitsch Defense is played most?
Nimzowitsch Defense: Kennedy Variation, Linksspringer Variation (1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 e5 3. d5), with 6,529 games in our sample.

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