About Checkers
Checkers, known as Draughts in Britain, is not one fixed game but a family of diagonal capture games. Different countries settled on different board sizes, king powers and capture rules, yet the shared core stays instantly recognizable: move diagonally, jump to capture, crown a piece when it reaches the far side.
The three versions here cover the forms most people play. If you already know one of them, this page is the fastest way to see exactly what changes when you sit down to another.
Compare the three checkers variants
Each one keeps the familiar checkers feel, but board size, king movement and the capture rules change the tempo, the tactics and the endgames in ways you feel from the first few moves.
An 8×8 game with flying kings and forced longest captures, packing international-style tactics onto a compact board.
- Board
- 8×8
- Kings
- Flying kings
- Men capture
- Forward and backward
- Capture rule
- Longest capture
- Back row mid-capture
- Stays a man
The 10×10 world standard, with flying kings, long forcing lines and rich endgame play.
- Board
- 10×10
- Kings
- Flying kings
- Men capture
- Forward and backward
- Capture rule
- Longest capture
- Back row mid-capture
- Stays a man
The classic 8×8 game most people mean by checkers, with short kings and clean forcing play.
- Board
- 8×8
- Kings
- Short kings
- Men capture
- Forward only
- Capture rule
- Any capture
- Back row mid-capture
- Crowned, turn ends
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Checkers is the American name and Draughts is the British one for the same family of games. Individual versions carry both names too: American Checkers is also called English Draughts, and International Checkers is also called International Draughts.
American Checkers is usually the easiest starting point. Its rules are the most widely known, kings move only one square at a time, and you are free to choose among available captures.
Three rules do most of the work: flying kings, men that capture backwards as well as forwards, and the requirement to play the longest capture available. Together they produce far longer forcing sequences and a very different endgame.
International Checkers is played on 10×10 with 20 pieces per side. Brazilian Checkers and American Checkers both use the familiar 8×8 board with 12 pieces per side.
No. Brazilian and International Checkers use flying kings, which slide any distance along a diagonal. American Checkers uses short kings that move one square at a time. Captures are compulsory in all three, but only the first two make you play the longest capture available.
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