Level 1 · 5 min
What is each piece worth?
Count what you win, and what they can take back.
- 1Pawn 1, knight 3, bishop 3, rook 5, queen 9.
- 2Before you capture, count what you win and what they can take back.
- 3When you are ahead, trade pieces. When you are behind, avoid trades.
The longer explanation
The numbers. A pawn is worth 1, a knight 3, a bishop 3, a rook 5 and a queen 9. The king cannot be traded, because losing it loses the game. The numbers are rough, but they are the language of trades.
Count before you capture. Before you take something, ask two questions: what do I win, and what can they take back? If the piece you take is protected, they will take back, and then you have to compare what you gave with what you got.
Good trades and bad trades. Giving a bishop (3) for a rook (5) wins two points. Giving a queen (9) for a pawn (1) loses eight. When you are ahead, trading pieces makes your lead count for more. When you are behind, avoid trades.
Bishop or knight?. Both count as 3, and for a beginner that is the right answer: do not give one for the other expecting to gain. The fine print: bishops get stronger as the board opens up and pawns come off, knights are happier in closed positions with pawns locked in place, and keeping both bishops is usually worth about half a pawn extra.
What about the king?. The king has no trade value, because losing it ends the game. In the endgame, when the queens are gone, it becomes a fighting piece worth roughly a minor piece: bring it to the centre instead of hiding it.
When the numbers lie. The values are a starting point, not a verdict. A pawn one step from promoting is worth far more than 1. A rook stuck in the corner does less than a knight in the middle. And none of it matters if a move allows checkmate: material only counts once the king is safe.