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Most Played Openings by Lichess Rating

At Under 1200 the most played start was King's Pawn Game (e4 e5, 37.5% of games); at 2100+ it was Sicilian Defense (e4 c5, 12.4%).

52 two-move positions had 300+ games at every level; the five most played are shown.

In Lichess games from Oct 2025–Sep 2026: At Under 1200 the most played start was King's Pawn Game (e4 e5, 37.5% of games); at 2100+ it was Sicilian Defense (e4 c5, 12.4%). Observed results, not causation.

Based on the sampled Lichess games from Oct 2025–Sep 2026 (5,629,529 games used), by Lichess rating level (the average of both players' ratings).

The numbers

Under 1200 (Lichess rating)

The five most played two-move starts at Under 1200, by share of that level's games
Rank	Opening	Games	Share of games
1	King's Pawn Game e4 e5	306,444	37.5%
2	Queen's Pawn Game d4 d5	93,344	11.4%
3	Scandinavian Defense e4 d5	62,569	7.7%
4	French Defense e4 e6	37,552	4.6%
5	Sicilian Defense e4 c5	36,542	4.5%

1200–1499 (Lichess rating)

The five most played two-move starts at 1200–1499, by share of that level's games
Rank	Opening	Games	Share of games
1	King's Pawn Game e4 e5	365,379	30.6%
2	Queen's Pawn Game d4 d5	138,095	11.5%
3	Sicilian Defense e4 c5	86,311	7.2%
4	Scandinavian Defense e4 d5	84,261	7.0%
5	French Defense e4 e6	69,075	5.8%

1500–1799 (Lichess rating)

The five most played two-move starts at 1500–1799, by share of that level's games
Rank	Opening	Games	Share of games
1	King's Pawn Game e4 e5	366,281	22.9%
2	Queen's Pawn Game d4 d5	178,271	11.2%
3	Sicilian Defense e4 c5	157,898	9.9%
4	Scandinavian Defense e4 d5	111,308	7.0%
5	French Defense e4 e6	100,536	6.3%

1800–2099 (Lichess rating)

The five most played two-move starts at 1800–2099, by share of that level's games
Rank	Opening	Games	Share of games
1	King's Pawn Game e4 e5	195,608	14.7%
2	Sicilian Defense e4 c5	162,750	12.2%
3	Queen's Pawn Game d4 d5	131,960	9.9%
4	French Defense e4 e6	88,541	6.7%
5	Scandinavian Defense e4 d5	85,796	6.5%

2100+ (Lichess rating)

The five most played two-move starts at 2100+, by share of that level's games
Rank	Opening	Games	Share of games
1	Sicilian Defense e4 c5	85,888	12.4%
2	Indian Defense d4 Nf6	61,921	9.0%
3	King's Pawn Game e4 e5	56,450	8.2%
4	Queen's Pawn Game d4 d5	53,118	7.7%
5	French Defense e4 e6	41,547	6.0%

Margins are approximate 95% margins based only on the number of games; real uncertainty is larger (games come in blocks and the same players play many of them). These are observed results, not causes. Download: Most played openings (CSV), CC0.