Ponderchess / Explore the game
Chess diagram generator
Paste a position, choose how it should look, and save it as an image for a worksheet, an article, a presentation or a message to your coach.
Paste a FEN, a board layout such as 8/8/8/4k3/8/8/8/4K2R, or a PGN to draw its final position.
How to make a diagram
Paste the position as a FEN, or paste a whole game in PGN to draw its final position. Tick "Black at the bottom" to show the board from Black's side, list squares such as "e4 d5" to highlight them, then download the diagram. PNG works everywhere; SVG stays sharp at any size and is best for print and documents.
What is a FEN?
FEN (Forsyth–Edwards Notation) describes a position in one line of text. The first part lists the board rank by rank from the 8th to the 1st, using letters for pieces (uppercase for White, lowercase for Black: K, Q, R, B, N, P) and numbers for runs of empty squares, with a slash between ranks. The starting position begins rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR. The fields after it say whose move it is, the castling rights, any en passant square and the move counters. A diagram only needs the board part.
Where to find a FEN
Most chess software can copy the current position as a FEN. On Ponderchess, set up or play through a position on the analysis board and follow its link to open the position here. Every puzzle and opening page also shows its positions as diagrams.
Want to know what the symbols mean? The guide to the pieces explains how each one moves, and the notation guide covers how moves are written.