10 insanely hard checkmate puzzles, all from real games on Lichess. Can you find the mate before the masters did?
Black to move
Solution: 12…Nf3+ 13. Ke2 Nfxd4+ 14. Ke3 Nf5+ 15. Ke4 d5+ 16. cxd5 exd5+ 17. Kxd5 Nfe7+ 18. Kc4 Be6+ 19. Kb5 a6+ 20. Ka4 b5#
Black sacrifices both knights to lure the white king deep into enemy territory. The pawn storm and bishop coordination lead to a brilliant corner mate with b5#, proving how lethal minor pieces can be with open files. This one is also known as the Hardest Lichess Checkmate Puzzle.
Black to move
28… Ra3+ 29. bxa3 Qb1+ 30. Ka4 Qc2+ 31. Kxb4 Qb2+ 32. Ka4 Ra8+ 33. Qa6 Rxa6#
A textbook use of forcing moves. Rook and queen chase the king until Rxa6# ends it all. Black plays like a machine, forcing b-pawn capture and then punishing every retreat with tempo.
White to move
31. Qxd5+ Kc8 32. Qe6+ Kb7 33. Qxa6+ Kxc7 34. Rf7+ Be7 35. Rxe7+ Kd8 36. Rf7+ Ke8 37. Qe6#
Precision and timing. White’s rook and queen coordinate perfectly, exploiting every check to gain tempo and clear the defense. Qe6# is the final nail in a well-calculated combo.
White to move
22. Rxe4+ Be7 23. Qa4+ c6 24. Rxe7+ Kxe7 25. Qe4+ Kf6 26. Qe5+ Kg6 27. Qg5#
A surgical rook sac to open lines, followed by the queen’s relentless pursuit. Each move tightens the noose until the final queen check ends the game.
Black to move
37… Qe2 38. Qc6+ Kh5 39. Qh6+ Kxh6 40. d8=Q g4+ 41. Kh4 Qxh2+ 42. Kxg4 Qh5#
A mix of underpromotion tactics and quiet moves. Black lets White queen first, only to flip the attack with a deadly bishop-pawn-queen combo. Qh5# is as unexpected as it is brilliant.
White to move
28. Rd7+ Nxd7 29. Nd5+ Ke8 30. Qe7#
Quick, clean, and crushing. White exploits the pinned knight and squares controlled by the d5 knight to deliver a swift and elegant finish.
White to move
51. Nh5+ Kh7 52. Ke7 Nxd4 53. Nf6+ Kg6 54. Rg8#
Patience pays off. After quiet king maneuvering and sacrificing material, the rook and knight execute a rare smother-mate pattern with the black king boxed in.
White to move
Qh2 Bg4+ 20. Ne2 Bh3 21. Qxh3 Ng6 22. Qh7+ Kf8 23. Qh8+ Nxh8 24. Rxh8#
White sacrifices the queen and then delivers a perfect rook mate. Black is baited into capturing on h8, and the punishment is immediate. The rook’s role is pure poetry.
Black to move
32…Qg1 33. Nf3 Rh8+ 34. Nh4 Rxh4+ 35. Kxh4 Qh2#
A quiet queen move initiates a brutal forced mate. The rook sacrifice drags the king to h4, where Qh2# ends the game in a flourish. Precise, forcing, unstoppable.
White to move
Rxb7+ Nxb7 31. Rxb7+ Rxb7 32. Bf6+ Kd7 33. Qxd8#
A textbook decoy. The rook draws the black rook away, the bishop check forces the king back, and then the queen ends the game with a central mate. Clean and instructive.
If you don’t like real-game puzzles, check out 11 Most Tricky Mate-in-2 composed puzzles. It’s more difficult but doesn’t feel so real.
I’m Xuan Binh, the founder of Attacking Chess, and the Deputy Head of Communications at the Vietnam Chess Federation (VCF). My chess.com and lichess rating is above 2300, in both blitz and bullet. Follow me on Twitter (X).
