WinBoard: It isn't the prettiest GUI, but WinBoard and Xboard are feature rich and include support for chess variants, too. It includes a bunch of engines and training tools, and the UI isn't too confusing, even if you're unfamiliar with the more complicated functions of chess engines.Īrena Chess GUI: Arena Chess is more daunting for newcomers than Lucas Chess, but it includes a great deal of features, as well as support for 19 languages and a Linux verison. Lucas Chess: Simple and easy to understand for beginners.
Most come with engines installed already, so you can get started with one download. To easily play against a chess engine or use it to analyze boards, you'll want to pair it with a chess GUI. An engine alone won't do much for you, as they don't include any kind of graphical user interface, just a console.
