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Chess Time Controls Explained

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In 3+2, each player starts with three minutes and receives two seconds after each completed move. That describes the clock. Calling it bullet, blitz or rapid is a separate classification, and organisers do not all use the same boundaries.

On this page
  1. FIDE’s over-the-board definitions
  2. Common clock notation
  3. Increment, simple delay and Bronstein timing
  4. Which time control should you choose?
  5. Sources and scope
  6. Keep learning

FIDE’s over-the-board definitions

For FIDE rapid chess, each player’s allotted time is more than 10 minutes but less than 60 minutes, calculated using the starting time plus 60 increments when an increment is used. FIDE blitz is 10 minutes or less by the same calculation. Games at 60 minutes or more fall under the standard-play laws rather than the rapid appendix.

This produces classifications that can surprise online players. Under the FIDE calculation, 10+0 is blitz, while 10+1 totals 11 minutes over 60 moves and is rapid. “Bullet” is a common online term, not a separate category in the FIDE Laws of Chess.

Common clock notation

3+2
3 minutes initially; 2-second increment after each move
15+10
15 minutes initially; 10-second increment after each move
90+30
90 minutes initially; 30-second increment after each move
40/90 + 30
A staged control: 40 moves in 90 minutes, then added time; notation varies by organiser

Increment, simple delay and Bronstein timing

Fischer increment adds the stated number of seconds after the move. Unused increment remains on the clock, so a player can build time.

Simple delay waits for the stated number of seconds before the main time begins to fall. Unused delay is not saved.

Bronstein timing deducts thinking time, then returns up to the delay amount after the move. It has a similar practical effect to simple delay but is displayed differently. Implementations and labels vary, so check the clock’s actual behaviour.

Which time control should you choose?

Choose enough time to practise the decision you care about. A control such as 15+10 leaves substantially more room than blitz for comparing candidate moves and making notes after the game; longer controls leave more still. Blitz is useful for recall, pattern exposure and enjoyment, but it produces different evidence from a slow game. There is no need to turn that distinction into a moral judgement about fast chess.

Sources and scope

Regulations and platform implementations can change. These notes were checked on 16 July 2026; follow the linked first-party source for the current wording.

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