Chess gear
The kit,
chosen with care.
Smart boards that bring Chess.com to real pieces, the set every club player owns, the clock FIDE uses, gifts with a story, and the books stronger players still recommend. Each one comes with who it suits and what to know before buying.
Prices checked November 2026 · No paid placements
Where to start
Our picks for every need.
If you only read one part of this guide, read this one. Each pick opens its full page, with alternatives beside it.
Best first smart boardSmart boards · Smart boardChessnut AirChessnutA compact board that recognises every piece and lights up your opponent’s moves. It is the board most people buy first.$249.99$150 to $400- Best self-moving boardSmart boards · Self-moving boardChessnut MoveChessnutA robotic board: magnets under the surface slide your opponent’s pieces, and it can reset every piece at once.From $719Over $400
Best for learningSmart boards · Teaching smart boardChessUp 2Bryght LabsA Wi-Fi board with a touchscreen that shows legal moves and rates your choices as you play. Chess.com supports it officially.$349.99$150 to $400- The set everyone needsSets · Club setInspiration Club SetChess HouseTriple-weighted modern Staunton pieces on a thin flex-pad board that rolls or folds. The kind of set you see at every club.$42Under $50
The clock to buy onceClocks · Tournament clockDGT 3000DGTThe official FIDE clock, used at the World Championship, the Candidates and the World Cup. It handles every time control there is.$89.95$50 to $150
The first book to readBooks · Annotated gamesLogical Chess: Move by MoveIrving ChernevThirty-three master games with every single move explained in plain words. Many club players say this is the book that made chess click.Under $25Under $50- The gift with a storyGifts and home · Historical replicaIsle of Lewis ChessmenChess HouseAntiqued replicas of the 12th-century chessmen found on the Isle of Lewis, now in the British Museum and National Museum of Scotland.$369$150 to $400
Best clock under $50Clocks · Club clockZMF-IIZMFA bright LED clock with touch-sensitive buttons, delay and increment, designed and made in the US, with long battery life.$43Under $50
The catalogue
Everything we recommend.
Search, filter by category and price, or sort. Every product links to a page with its details and where to buy it.
65 products
- Best first smart boardSmart boards · Smart boardChessnut AirChessnutA compact board that recognises every piece and lights up your opponent’s moves. It is the board most people buy first.$249.99$150 to $400
Smart boards · Smart boardChessnut Air+ChessnutThe Chessnut Air rebuilt in wood: same size and the same technology, but an all-wooden board and wooden pieces.$399.99$150 to $400
Smart boards · Travel smart boardChessnut GoChessnutChessnut’s thinnest board: magnetic pieces, full piece recognition and a built-in engine, at about the size of a tablet.$179.99$150 to $400
Smart boards · Full-size smart boardChessnut ProChessnutChessnut’s piece recognition in a tournament-size solid-wood board, with regular or premium wooden pieces.From $699.99Over $400
Smart boards · Board with built-in screenChessnut EvoChessnutAn all-in-one board with its own colour touchscreen. It plays human-like Maia bots and connects online without a phone.$629.99Over $400- Best self-moving boardSmart boards · Self-moving boardChessnut MoveChessnutA robotic board: magnets under the surface slide your opponent’s pieces, and it can reset every piece at once.From $719Over $400
- Best for learningSmart boards · Teaching smart boardChessUp 2Bryght LabsA Wi-Fi board with a touchscreen that shows legal moves and rates your choices as you play. Chess.com supports it officially.$349.99$150 to $400
Smart boards · Smart boardGoChess AirParticulaA slim board with coloured lights for hints, threats and your opponent’s moves, and AI coaching through its app.$249.95$150 to $400
Smart boards · Full-size smart boardGoChess ProParticulaA tournament-size light-up board in a modern or classic design, with two extra queens and the GoChess app.From $299.95$150 to $400
Smart boards · Self-moving boardGoChess Wizard AliveParticulaAn officially licensed Harry Potter Wizard’s Chess board: say your move and watch your piece glide into place.$699Over $400
Smart boards · Smart boardDGT PegasusDGTA compact wooden Bluetooth board from DGT, the Dutch company whose e-boards broadcast elite tournaments.$559Over $400
Smart boards · Chess computerDGT CentaurDGTA standalone chess computer with an e-paper display and an engine that adapts to your strength, so games stay close.$395$150 to $400
Smart boards · Chess computerChessGenius ProMillenniumA sensor-board chess computer with a colour display, learning aids and many playing levels, running Richard Lang’s ChessGenius engine.$179$150 to $400
Smart boards · Chess computerChessGenius ExclusiveMillenniumA wooden board that identifies every piece by RFID, with the ChessGenius engine built in, from gentle beginner levels to strong club play.$399$150 to $400- The set everyone needsSets · Club setInspiration Club SetChess HouseTriple-weighted modern Staunton pieces on a thin flex-pad board that rolls or folds. The kind of set you see at every club.$42Under $50
Sets · Heavy club setBobby Fischer Ultimate SetChess HouseExtra-heavy plastic pieces with felted bottoms and grooved knights, on a flex-pad board. A favourite of blitz players.$94.95$50 to $150
Ready-made kits
Things that go together.
Three common situations, and the combination we would buy for each.
Your first tournament
Everything a US event asks you to bring, for about $100.
- Inspiration Club SetClub set$42
- DGT North AmericanClub clock$64.95
- Chess ScorebookScorebook$4.75
- Deluxe Chess BagBag$24
About $135 together
Online chess, real pieces
Play Chess.com and Lichess on a real board, and study what you played afterwards.
- Chessnut AirSmart board$249.99
- Logical Chess: Move by MoveAnnotated gamesUnder $25
- The Woodpecker MethodTactics$25 to $40
About $300 together
A gift for a young player
A board that teaches, a book written for children, and a set for the car.
- ChessUp 2Teaching smart board$349.99
- Chess for ChildrenFor kidsUnder $25
- Magnetic Folding Travel SetTravel set$22
About $390 together
How this guide works
No paid placements.
Products are here because chess players widely use and recommend them, not because a maker asked. Every entry says who it suits and what to keep in mind.
Prices are what the linked store charged when we checked in November 2026, in US dollars. They change often, so check the store before you buy. Where no price is listed we show a band: Under $50 under $50, up to Over $400 over $400.
We don’t earn commissions from any of these links. Product photos belong to the makers and retailers credited on each product page; book covers come from Open Library.
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