U.S. Chess Federation

The U.S. Chess Federation (USCF) regulates and governs the game in the United States.

It sanctions tournaments and officials as well as oversees the ratings system that measures players' skills. Chess is recognized as an essential tool that promotes inclusiveness and benefits education, rehabilitation, recreation, and friendly competition.

Players must be an active member to participate in USCF rated tournaments. See next section below for information about ratings.

U.S. Chess - Goals

* Expand the educational, social, recreational and rehabilitative applications of chess.

* Increase the visibility of chess on mainstream communications channels.

* Develop the depth and breadth of our partnerships.

* Use chess to increase opportunities for under-represented segments of society.

* Continuously improve internal operations and member services.

U.S. Chess - Core Values

* Education. We promote the transformative power of chess for lifelong personal growth.

* Customer Service. We endeavor to be responsive, adaptive and proactive in providing

services to our customers.

* Excellence. We strive to be the best we can be as an organization and in service to the

game.

* Integrity. We honor, preserve and promote fair play.

* Inclusion. We believe everyone has a seat at the chess table.

* Love of the Game. We embrace chess as a historic and iconic game, and we celebrate its

history, growth and evolution in our activities and services.

U.S. Chess - Member Benefits

Play official US Chess rated games, online or in person, for national and local events.
Recognition for your performance across age, gender, and game categories in our Top 100 lists.
Opportunities to improve as a player, chess organizer, coach, or tournament director through webinars and official certifications.
Voting Rights in US Chess Elections; participate in governance and have your say in the future of chess in America.
Digital access to Chess Life and Chess Life Kids, our award-winning magazines.
Print editions of Chess Life and/or Chess Life Kids (opt-in fees apply).
Helping us grow the game in America and worldwide!

So many opportunities available!

The U.S. Chess Federation web site offers so much information about being part of the great game.

Or scroll down here on our site for membership information below and click the link at the end to join.

Find out more

USCF Ratings System

Additional Information

Players must join the USCF to obtain a membership number which is required when registering for rated tournaments and other events. Tournament directors submit results to the Federation which updates a player's rating. A player's rating is an indicator of the player's skill level. Tournaments are divided into competitive sections based on the rating system.
The general ratings include:

Novice (<800)
Beginner (800-1099)
Intermediate (1100-1399)
Intermediate2 (1400-1699)
Advanced (1700-1999)
Expert (2000-2299)
2200-2399 = 'Master' - strongest amateur rank

International professional players have two ranks:

2400-2499 = 'International Master' - basic professional rank; strong, experienced international player;
2500+ = 'Grandmaster' - Top of the line

The US Chess Rating Classifications include:

Senior Master (above 2399)
Master (2200-2399)
Expert (2000-2199)
Class A (1800-1999)
Class B (1600-1799)
Class C (1400-1599)
Class D (1200-1399)
Class E (1000-1199)
Class F (800-999)
Class G (600-799)
Class H (400-599)
Class I (200-399)
Class J (Under 200)

Online Chess

Online platforms may assign a rating based on a player's performance on their platforms only. Online ratings may vary from a player's USCF Over-the-Board (OTB) rating when assessing skill levels.

Separate Rating Pools: US Chess maintains completely separate rating systems for online play and over-the-board play.
Online-Rated Events: Games played in official online US Chess-rated events affect your USCF Online rating (such as Online Blitz or Online Rapid), not your official OTB rating.
Platform Games: Casual or rated games played on independent websites like Chess.com or Lichess do not count toward any official USCF rating at all.

Tournament Sections

USCF sanctioned tournaments include sections that determine the pairings of players based on their ratings. An OPEN section is where any player may participate regardless of their rating, but it is also the most competitive section that includes the highest rated participated players.

Other sections may be listed as U1600 or U100 or U800 or U400, etc., with the U standing for Under. In these sections, players may play only within these ranges according to their rating, with some exceptions. A player may in a higher rated section (playing up) than their rating, but they cannot play in a lower rated section.

Example 1: John or Jane Doe has a rating of 756. He/she would typically register for an U800 or U1000 section, depending on what a tournament is offering. This player can play up into say U1200 or 1600 and can play in the OPEN. However, this player could not play in a U400 section.

Example 2: John or Jane Doe has a rating of 355. He/she would typically register for an U400 section, depending on what a tournament is offering. This player can play up into any higher section or in the Open.

U.S. Chess Federation - Membership

Adult - Regular

Players above age 24 may join at $54 for one year or $105 for two years at a time.

Adult - Senior *

Players age 65 and above may join at $48 for one year or $93 for two years at a time.

Adult - Lifetime A

Players age 65 and above may join at $810 one time and not have to renew.

Adult - Lifetime B

Players age 64 and under may join at $1,620 one time and not have to renew.

Adult - Young *

Players age below 24 may join at $33 for one year or $63 for two years at a time.

Youth *

Players below age 19 at expiration may join at $24 for one year or $45 for two years at a time.

Family Plan # 1

Family may join at $102 for one year at a time. Includes parents and children under age 19; may include college students up to age 24.

Family Plan # 2

Family may join at $66 for one year at a time. Includes Includes all children under age 19 living in household at the same address.

Special - Blind, prison inmates

Player may join at $22 for one year at a time if blind or incarcerated.

Special - Blind Life

Players who are blind may join at $405 one time and not have to renew.

Rate increase

If the rates appear to be more than they were last year, that is correct. The U.S. Chess Federation increased its membership rates which became effective January 1, 2025.

* Plans marked with asterisk

Member needs to be in the age range during the entire term purchased. For example, you cannot purchase a 2-year young adult membership if you would turn 24 before the end of the second year.

Safe Play

The Scott County Chess Club is committed to providing a safe environment for all chess players. We will not tolerate any kind of physical, mental, emotional, verbal or any other kind of abuse directed at any person participating in any of our events.

Any person found to be violating this policy will be ejected from the event. After due process, violators will be permanently banned from any future participation of events sponsored by the Scott County Chess Club.

If necessary, violators will be reported to local law enforcement authorities.

Our club tournament director/coordinator has completed Safesport training.

SC Chess has adopted and follows the U.S. Chess policy regarding Safe Play

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