Remarkable Chess

Puzzles Mate in 1

Mate in 1 chess puzzles

Mate in 1 means one move ends the game. Find the checkmate. Try five right here, one from each belt, then download 100 more as a printable PDF with answers.

Try five mate in one puzzles

  1. 1 White belt

    White to move. Checkmate in one.

  2. 2 Yellow belt

    Black to move. Checkmate in one.

  3. 3 Orange belt

    Black to move. Checkmate in one.

  4. 4 Brown belt

    White to move. Checkmate in one.

  5. 5 Black belt

    Black to move. Checkmate in one.

Answers

Tried them all? Here are the moves.

  1. Puzzle 1 Qh7# Queen to h7, checkmate. White belt, rating 760, on Lichess
  2. Puzzle 2 Qe1# Queen to e1, checkmate. Yellow belt, rating 1092, on Lichess
  3. Puzzle 3 Qxg2# Queen takes g2, checkmate. Orange belt, rating 1425, on Lichess
  4. Puzzle 4 Bxf6# Bishop takes f6, checkmate. Brown belt, rating 1803, on Lichess
  5. Puzzle 5 Nc7# Knight to c7, checkmate. Black belt, rating 2169, on Lichess

Mate in 1 PDFs for every belt

100 puzzles per PDF, one per page, the answer on the next. Print on A4 or Letter, or open on a tablet.

What is a mate in one puzzle?

A mate in one (often written mate in 1, or M1) is a position where the side to move can checkmate in a single move. At White belt the move is often a queen or rook landing next to the king. Higher belts hide it better: a quiet bishop move, a knight jump, or a capture that looks like a mistake. Because there is only one move to find, mate in 1 is the best way to train your eye for checkmate patterns.

Where the puzzles come from

Every puzzle comes from a real game in the Lichess open puzzle database and has been played by Lichess players, which is how it got its rating. We pick them by rating, so each belt is a step up from the last.

How to use the PDFs

Each PDF has 100 puzzles, one per page, with a small grid under the board to write your moves. Turn the page and the answer is at the top. Print on A4 or Letter in black and white, or open it on a tablet and write on it with the pen.

Questions

Are these mate in 1 puzzles free?

Yes. The Mate in 1 PDFs here are free to download, no account or signup.

Are the answers included?

Yes. Every puzzle has its own page, and the answer is at the top of the next page, so you can check yourself without seeing the next puzzle.

Which belt should I start with?

New to chess puzzles? White belt. If you have a Lichess or Chess.com puzzle rating, match it: White 400–800, Yellow 800–1200, Orange 1200–1600, Brown 1600–2000, Black 2000–2500. When in doubt, start one belt lower.

Do I need to be good at chess?

No. You need to know how the pieces move and what checkmate is. That's it. Mate in 1 is where most people start with chess puzzles, kids included.

What comes after mate in 1?

Mate in 2. You find a checkmate that takes two of your moves, so you have to think about the reply in between. It's the natural next step once mate in 1 feels easy.

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