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    How long should I think on a move?

    Enter your rapid rating. See how players at your level spend the clock, how stronger players spend it, and what your own clock leaves for long thinks.

    Where you play

    Compared with players rated 1000–1200 on Lichess rapid.

    Where the time goes

    Typical seconds per moveYour level (1000–1200)1800 and above
    024685–1011–2021–3031–4041–60Move numberYour level (1000–1200)1800 and above

    • A typical move in the opening

      5.4 s

      Players rated 1800 and above take 3.3 s on moves 5 to 10.

    • A typical move in moves 21 to 30

      6.9 s

      Players rated 1800 and above take 7.5 s.

    • Long thinks in a 40-move game

      about 2.3

      Players rated 1800 and above take about 2.8. A long think is 30 seconds or more.

    The same numbers as a table
    StageYour level, typical1800 and above, typicalYour level, 30 s or more1800 and above, 30 s or more
    Moves 5 to 105.4 s3.3 s5.0%3.1%
    Moves 11 to 207.4 s6.8 s8.6%9.5%
    Moves 21 to 306.9 s7.5 s7.5%11%
    Moves 31 to 404.9 s5.7 s3.6%6.4%
    Moves 41 to 603.1 s3.5 s1.1%2.3%

    Measured: 43.7 million moves. Lichess rapid games, September 2026, whole-second %clk readings, plies 1-4 and time scrambles left out. "Typical" is the middle move: half are quicker, half slower.

    What your clock allows

    A 40-move game at 10+0 gives you 10 min. Your 40 moves at your level's typical pace take about 4 min 10 s. That leaves about 5 min 50 s, enough for 11 long thinks of 30 seconds.

    Players at your level use about 2.3 of them. So the clock is rarely the problem: the question is which moves deserve the time.

    Which moves deserve a long think

    • The first move after your opening knowledge runs out.
    • Any move where a piece of yours is attacked, or you could capture or give check.
    • Before you change the pawn structure or trade queens: those moves cannot be taken back.
    • When your opponent plays something you did not expect.

    This list is a coach's advice, not a measurement. The data shows when stronger players slow down, in moves 11 to 40, and not why.

    Practise the quick check on every move with Is this move safe?, and bank opening time with the Opening Trainer.

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    Thinking time FAQs

    Frequently Asked Questions

    From the clock readings of 43.7 million moves in Lichess rapid games played in September 2026. For each rating band and stage of the game we fitted a curve to how long players took, and every figure on this page is read off those curves.

    It shows what players do, which is not the same as what is best. The useful part is the comparison: stronger players play the opening faster and save their long thinks for the middlegame.

    The data is from rapid games only, so the page offers rapid clocks. In blitz every move is faster, and in classical games players think far longer.

    A move that takes 30 seconds or more. In rapid games that is rare at every level: at most about 1 move in 10 in the middlegame, and far fewer late in the game.