Checkers Strategy: 9 Tips to Win More Games

Good checkers strategy is about space and timing. Every piece moves forward on a slant, so each move you make gives up a little ground you can never take back. The player who spends those moves well, and spots the forced jumps first, wins most games.

These tips fit the standard American rules: an 8 × 8 board, twelve pieces a side on the dark squares, men stepping and capturing forward only, kings moving both ways, and a capture that must be taken whenever one is open. You can try every one of them in Checkers on HulaGames, free in your browser, against a bot with three levels. Jumps there are optional by default, so turn on Must jump in Settings to play by the standard rule: then the pieces that must jump glow, and you always see the forced moves on the board.

1. Hold the center

The four middle squares are the most useful on the board. A piece there reaches both sides, supports its neighbors and blocks the other side’s advance. Aim your first moves towards the center, and back up a center piece so it can’t be jumped for free.

2. Guard your back row

Your back row is the other side’s crowning row. While you keep pieces there, their men can’t become kings. You can’t keep all four forever, but holding two well-placed back-row squares for most of the game makes crowning much harder for the other side. Move the back row last.

3. Move in groups

A lone piece out in front is easy to trap. Pieces that sit diagonally behind each other protect one another, because a jump needs an empty square to land on. Advance in small connected groups and fill the gaps behind your front pieces.

4. Use forced jumps against the other side

Since a jump is a must, you can make the other side move where you want. Offer one piece so that their forced capture lands their piece where you can jump two in reply. This “two-for-one” shot is the most common way games are won. Before each move, ask whether a small offer now opens a bigger jump for you next.

5. Check their shots before you move

The same trick works against you. Before you move, look at every jump your move gives the other side, and every jump that jump leads to. A move that looks safe can open a chain that takes two or three of your pieces.

6. Be careful on the edges

A piece on the side of the board can’t be jumped from that side, which makes it feel safe. It also has only one way forward, so it can get stuck and does little for the center. Use the edges to shelter a piece for a move or two, not as a place to park.

7. Trade when you are ahead

Each even trade with a lead makes the lead bigger in proportion: five against four is close, two against one is usually won. When you are ahead, look for safe one-for-one trades. When you are behind, avoid them and keep the board crowded, where mistakes are more likely.

8. Get a king, and use it

A king moves and jumps both ways, so it’s worth far more than a man. Once your opponent’s back row thins out, push a group towards it. A new king can attack men from behind, where they can’t turn to face it.

9. Finish the endgame

With two kings against one, the lone king runs to a double corner, the two dark squares in a corner where it can shuttle back and forth. Bring both your kings close, take away its squares one by one, and drive it out. Count moves near the end too: if neither side captures or moves a man for a long time, the game is a draw.

Practice against the bot

Checkers on HulaGames has three bot levels. Easy is relaxed, Medium looks a few moves ahead and still slips now and then, and Hard searches deep and punishes a loose piece. When you want a puzzle, Today’s Daily Jump asks you to win in a set number of moves against a bot that defends perfectly. It’s a good way to practice tip 4. For more classic strategy, read our mancala tips or our backgammon strategy guide.