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Bishop's Opening

35 variations · 38M games from Lichess · Updated January 2026

Key Finding

Bishop's Opening gives White a 53.4% expected score — a strong opening choice.

With a minimum advantage of 6.8%, this opening reliably outperforms the baseline 50% expected score.

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Rating
Time
White Expected Score0.0%Range (90% confident): 53.4% – 53.5%Aggregated from 35 variations
0%53.4%100%
Range (90% confident): 53.4% – 53.5%
ContextOverall · n=38M
Outcome Distribution
51.6%3.7%44.8%
Win
Draw
Loss
2.Bc4
Bishop's Opening
Variations35
Games (Context)38M
Avg Length32 moves
Draw Rate3.7%

What Should I Play?

Player-controlled continuations for White · Overall

#1Bishop's Opening: Lewis GambitTop Pick
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.d4
Min adv +19.9% · n=234K
60.1%
#2Bishop's Opening: Urusov Gambit, Keidansky Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.Qxd4
Min adv +17.1% · n=68K
58.9%
#3Bishop's Opening: Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bc4 Nxe4 4.Nc3
Min adv +15.3% · n=156K
57.9%
#4Bishop's Opening: Ponziani Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4
Min adv +13.0% · n=709K
56.6%
#5Bishop's Opening: Vienna Hybrid, Hromádka Variation
1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d3 Bb4 5.Ne2
Min adv +11.9% · n=192K
56.2%
#6Bishop's Opening: Lopez Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.Qe2 Nc6 4.c3 Nf6 5.f4
Min adv +8.1% · n=1.6K
56.1%
#7Bishop's Opening: Vienna Hybrid, Spielmann Attack
1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.d3
Min adv +7.9% · n=960K
54.1%
#8Bishop's Opening
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4
Min adv +7.1% · n=18M
53.6%
#9Bishop's Opening: Urusov Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nf3
Min adv +6.8% · n=240K
53.6%
#10Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit, La Bourdonnais-Denker Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.b4 Bxb4 4.c3
Min adv +6.7% · n=4.9K
54.6%

Continuations show the most common variations from this opening. Higher expected scores indicate better statistical outcomes, but familiarity and playstyle matter too.

What is the Bishop's Opening expected score for White?

Snapshot

Overall, the Bishop's Opening family has a 53.4% expected score for White (we're 90% confident it's between 53.4% and 53.5%), aggregated from 35 variations and 38M Lichess games.

White Win% by Rating

Stable across ratings (~51%)

0
1000
1200
1400
1600
1800
2000
2200
2500+

  • 0-999: 51.2% win rate (3,927,424 games)
  • 1000-1199: 52.2% win rate (4,945,201 games)
  • 1200-1399: 52.0% win rate (7,368,492 games)
  • 1400-1599: 51.5% win rate (8,644,504 games)
  • 1600-1799: 51.3% win rate (7,290,454 games)
  • 1800-1999: 51.2% win rate (4,093,881 games)
  • 2000-2199: 51.4% win rate (1,371,237 games)
  • 2200-2499: 52.0% win rate (386,911 games)
  • 2500+: 51.1% win rate (57,982 games)

White Win% by Time Control

Best in UltraBullet (57%), worst in Classical (51%)

UltraBullet
Bullet
Blitz
Rapid
Classical

  • UltraBullet: 56.9% win rate (213,204 games)
  • Bullet: 52.9% win rate (8,813,891 games)
  • Blitz: 51.2% win rate (20,166,259 games)
  • Rapid: 50.9% win rate (8,581,026 games)
  • Classical: 50.9% win rate (311,706 games)

Rating vs Time Control Matrix

Click cells to filter · White expected scores

White% by Rating × Time Control

Click any cell to filter. Green = above 50%, Red = below 50%.

RatingUBBulleBlitzRapidClass
0-999
1000-1199
1200-1399
1400-1599
1600-1799
1800-1999
2000-2199
2200-2499
2500+

Expected score matrix by rating bracket and time control

  • 0-999 rating, UltraBullet: 55.2% expected score (12,919 games)
  • 0-999 rating, Bullet: 53.6% expected score (786,557 games)
  • 0-999 rating, Blitz: 52.6% expected score (1,756,397 games)
  • 0-999 rating, Rapid: 53.5% expected score (1,357,603 games)
  • 0-999 rating, Classical: 52.2% expected score (13,948 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, UltraBullet: 58.5% expected score (37,089 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 54.9% expected score (1,135,941 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 53.6% expected score (2,608,658 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 53.2% expected score (1,127,721 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, Classical: 53.2% expected score (35,792 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, UltraBullet: 57.6% expected score (78,442 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 54.6% expected score (1,606,163 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 53.4% expected score (4,079,592 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 53.3% expected score (1,544,008 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, Classical: 53.2% expected score (60,287 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, UltraBullet: 57.1% expected score (57,826 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 54.1% expected score (1,800,239 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 53.1% expected score (4,784,022 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 52.9% expected score (1,907,785 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 52.2% expected score (94,632 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, UltraBullet: 56.9% expected score (19,470 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 53.7% expected score (1,612,826 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 53.1% expected score (3,953,164 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 53.0% expected score (1,628,908 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 54.1% expected score (76,086 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, UltraBullet: 56.9% expected score (6,496 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 53.4% expected score (1,085,716 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 53.2% expected score (2,154,939 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 53.1% expected score (820,298 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 54.9% expected score (26,432 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, UltraBullet: 56.8% expected score (856 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 53.1% expected score (533,351 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 53.9% expected score (660,818 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 54.2% expected score (172,042 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 58.0% expected score (4,170 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, UltraBullet: 50.0% expected score (103 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 54.0% expected score (208,269 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 55.3% expected score (156,198 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 56.2% expected score (22,005 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 57.3% expected score (336 games)
  • 2500+ rating, UltraBullet: 61.2% expected score (3 games)
  • 2500+ rating, Bullet: 55.0% expected score (44,829 games)
  • 2500+ rating, Blitz: 56.0% expected score (12,471 games)
  • 2500+ rating, Rapid: 56.9% expected score (656 games)
  • 2500+ rating, Classical: 43.9% expected score (23 games)

Matrix view reveals how performance varies across rating brackets and time controls. Green indicates favorable, red indicates challenging contexts.

Variations (35)

1
Bishop's Opening: Lewis Gambit234K games
60.1%
2
Bishop's Opening: Urusov Gambit, Keidansky Gambit68K games
58.9%
3
Bishop's Opening: Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit156K games
57.9%
Bishop's Opening: Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit, Lichtenhein Defense13K games
57.8%
Bishop's Opening: Ponziani Gambit709K games
56.6%
Bishop's Opening: Vienna Hybrid, Hromádka Variation192K games
56.2%
Bishop's Opening: Anderssen Gambit13K games
55.9%
Bishop's Opening: Horwitz Gambit3.9K games
56.5%
Bishop's Opening: Boi Variation4.6M games
54.6%
Bishop's Opening: Lopez Gambit1.6K games
56.1%
Bishop's Opening: Vienna Hybrid, Spielmann Attack960K games
54.1%
Bishop's Opening18M games
53.6%
Bishop's Opening: Urusov Gambit240K games
53.6%
Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit, La Bourdonnais-Denker Gambit4.9K games
54.6%
Bishop's Opening: Khan Gambit508K games
53.4%
Bishop's Opening: Vienna Hybrid2.6M games
53.3%
Bishop's Opening: del Rio Variation864 games
55.9%
Bishop's Opening: Warsaw Gambit77K games
53.3%
Bishop's Opening: Philidor Counterattack1.3M games
52.9%
Bishop's Opening: Calabrese Countergambit, Jaenisch Variation72K games
52.8%
Bishop's Opening: Kitchener Folly32K games
52.6%
Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit, McDonnell Double Gambit217 games
57.3%
Bishop's Opening: Stein Gambit64K games
52.1%
Bishop's Opening: Berlin Defense7.2M games
51.9%
Bishop's Opening: Philidor Variation219K games
51.9%
Bishop's Opening: Lopez Variation15K games
51.8%
Bishop's Opening: Calabrese Countergambit354K games
50.5%
Bishop's Opening: Lopez Variation, Lopez Gambit519 games
52.6%
Bishop's Opening: Berlin Defense, Greco Gambit72K games
49.2%
Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit4.2K games
49.8%
Bishop's Opening: Thorold Gambit389 games
51.4%
Bishop's Opening: Lisitsyn Variation457 games
50.8%
Bishop's Opening: Lewis Countergambit1.4K games
43.7%
Bishop's Opening: Pachman Gambit139 games
45.0%
Bishop's Opening: Urusov Gambit, Panov Variation541 games
39.2%
Analyze Bishop's Opening PositionsGet move-by-move win rates with the TrueElo analyzer

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Bishop's Opening win rate?

The Bishop's Opening family has a 51.6% (90% CI: 51.6%-51.6%) win rate for white, aggregated from 35 variations and 38M rated games from Lichess.

How many Bishop's Opening variations are there?

This analysis covers 35 Bishop's Opening variations with sufficient game data. Each variation has its own statistics page with detailed win rates by rating and time control.

At what rating does the Bishop's Opening perform best?

The Bishop's Opening family performs best at 1000-1199 Elo with a 52.2% win rate for white (4.9M games). Performance may vary by specific variation.

Is the Bishop's Opening better in blitz or rapid?

UltraBullet (56.9%) outperforms Classical (50.9%) by 6.0% across all Bishop's Opening variations.

How sharp is the Bishop's Opening?

Bishop's Opening games are 96.3% decisive (non-draws), with an average length of 32 moves. Sharpness varies by specific variation.

Is the Bishop's Opening a good opening family?

The Bishop's Opening family is statistically favors white overall with a 51.6% (90% CI: 51.6%-51.6%) aggregated win rate. However, win rates vary significantly between the 35 variations—explore individual lines to find the best fit for your style.