Réti Opening

ECO A09-A12beginner

The Réti, 1.Nf3 d5 2.c4, is the hypermodern manifesto in opening form: White attacks Black's center rather than building one, following up with g3, Bg2, often b3 and Bb2, and striking with the c4 and e4 levers once Black commits. Richard Réti used it to defeat Capablanca in 1924 — the game that legitimized hypermodern chess. Today it doubles as both an independent system and the most sophisticated transpositional weapon into Catalan and English structures.

Train as White Train as Black Explore all variations

Main line

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Diagram shows the position after 6 half-moves of the main line. On SpeakChess you can drill this line move by move — the trainer plays the other side and corrects you instantly, then spaced repetition schedules each variation so you review it right before you would forget it.

Move by move

The first 10 moves of the main line, explained one at a time. Every move of every variation is annotated like this inside the trainer — this page shows the opening moves so you can judge the explanations before signing up.

White starts with the knight jumping to f3, a great central square. It controls key squares in the middle of the board and gets a piece out early.
Black pushes the pawn to d5, grabbing a share of the center right away. This challenges White's space and opens lines for Black's pieces.
White advances the pawn to c4, putting pressure on Black's d5 pawn. This is the Reti Opening — White wants to fight for the center from the sides.
Black supports the d5 pawn by advancing the pawn to c6. This keeps the center stable and makes it harder for White to win the d5 square.
White pushes the pawn to g3, making room for the bishop to go to g2. This fianchetto setup puts the bishop on a long, powerful diagonal.
Black brings the knight to f6, a strong central square. It puts pressure on White's center and helps develop the kingside quickly.
White places the bishop on g2, completing the fianchetto. From g2 the bishop looks all the way down the long diagonal toward the center and queenside.
Black develops the bishop to f5, an active square outside the pawn chain. The bishop is well placed here, pointing toward the center of the board.
White castles kingside, tucking the king safely behind the pawns and bringing the rook to f1 where it can become active.
Black advances the pawn to e6, giving the bishop on f5 solid support and helping control the d5 square. The position becomes nice and solid.

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Win rates by rating

Results from real online games, measured after the line shown in each row. Most opening sites show one aggregate number — how an opening scores depends heavily on who is playing it.

Rating	Games	White wins	Draws	Black wins	Position after
400-600	1,331	43.2%	7.4%	49.4%	1.Nf3 d5
600-800	61	45.9%	1.6%	52.5%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3
800-1000	27	51.9%	0%	48.1%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bf5 5.O-O e6
1000-1200	42	59.5%	2.4%	38.1%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2
1200-1400	483	55.3%	2.9%	41.8%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bf5 5.O-O e6
1400-1600	1,119	52.5%	3.8%	43.7%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bf5 5.O-O e6
1600-1800	292	56.5%	4.1%	39.4%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bf5 5.O-O e6
1800-2000	795	50.7%	6%	43.3%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bf5 5.O-O e6
2000-2200	1,540	52.5%	6.3%	41.2%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bf5 5.O-O e6
2200-2400	1,611	51.3%	6.3%	42.3%	1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bf5 5.O-O e6

Most played continuations (2200-2400 rating)

After 1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bf5 5.O-O e6:

cxd5 — played 30.9% of the time (White wins 52%, draws 4.8%, Black wins 43.2%)
Qb3 — played 23.2% of the time (White wins 51.7%, draws 7%, Black wins 41.3%)
d3 — played 15.1% of the time (White wins 49.6%, draws 7%, Black wins 43.4%)

Frequently asked questions

What happens if Black just takes the c4 pawn?

After 2...dxc4 White regains it comfortably with Na3, Qa4+ or e3, having lured Black's central pawn off the board — exactly the hypermodern bargain. Black's most testing answers instead support the center: 2...c6 or 2...e6, when White chooses between pressure and a Catalan-style transposition.

Is the Réti a real attempt for an advantage?

In modern practice, absolutely — it is a primary weapon of Carlsen, Firouzja and most elite players precisely because it denies Black a fixed target. The edge comes later and subtler than in 1.e4 chess: a better minor piece, a queenside majority, a perfectly-timed e4. It suits patient, structure-literate players.