Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line
10K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
White expected score · All ratings · All speeds
54.2%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 55.0%.
Measured over 10K games at this level and clock.
A strong choice for White at this level and clock.
Outcomes for White
Draw 8.2 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 10K games
- Rank among the families White can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 10K
- Best context
- 55.0% at 2200-2499 Blitz
- Worst context
- 52.8% at 2000-2199 Bullet
- Average game length
- 39 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 91.8%
- Draws
- 8.2%
Best and worst are the strongest and weakest squares with at least 500 games behind them. The table further down shows every square, including thinner ones.
Extra Analysis
Deep-dive datasets for this opening
Where it holds · White score by rating × clock
Green is clearly ahead for White, grey is around even, red is behind. Tap a cell to measure there, and again to clear. It gets better as the rating rises: 42.1% at 0-999, 60.3% at 2500+.
| Rating | UB | Bulle | Blitz | Rapid | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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, Bullet: 39.5% expected score (8 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 56.7% expected score (6 games)
- 0-999 rating, Rapid: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 46.5% expected score (41 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 55.0% expected score (39 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 56.8% expected score (131 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 51.5% expected score (169 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 66.4% expected score (23 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 54.5% expected score (266 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 52.3% expected score (483 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 54.2% expected score (94 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 68.2% expected score (4 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 54.2% expected score (482 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 54.0% expected score (965 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 50.5% expected score (209 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 64.9% expected score (12 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 54.6% expected score (640 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 54.9% expected score (1,498 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 52.3% expected score (333 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 61.8% expected score (24 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 52.8% expected score (603 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 53.2% expected score (1,551 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 54.5% expected score (289 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 38.0% expected score (11 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 54.6% expected score (625 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 55.0% expected score (1,359 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 54.4% expected score (181 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 79.5% expected score (7 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 58.0% expected score (193 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 64.1% expected score (130 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 58.7% expected score (10 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line scores 54.2% for White — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 53.4% and 55.0% — from 10K Lichess games. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
How the figures are made
- Whose games these are
- 10K+ rated games played on Lichess (2023-12 to 2025-11). The games are Lichess’s and free for anyone to use. What is ours is the reading of them. Last rebuilt January 2026.
- Which games we count
- Rated games only — nothing casual.
- Both players within 200 rating points of each other. A mismatch tells you about the gap, not about the opening.
- At least 2 moves played.
- A game is filed under White’s rating.
- Why every number comes with a range
- A number off a few hundred games is a guess. The same number off millions is a fact. The range is what tells them apart, and it is what the lists rank on — so an opening cannot reach the top on a lucky run of forty games. The more games behind a figure, the narrower its range.
- How much we need before we say anything
- An opening page needs 100 games. A gambit needs 50 games at a rating before we will say whether it pays there. The chaos and trap lists need 500 games overall and 250 games at one rating or clock.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate?
Playing the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line, White wins 50.1%, draws 8.2% and loses 41.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.2%. It rests on 10K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line perform best?
The Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line performs best for White at 2500+, with an Expected Score of 60.5% (333 games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line better in blitz or rapid?
For White, the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line scores higher in Blitz: an Expected Score of 54.3% in Blitz (6.2K games) against 53.3% in Rapid (1.1K games).
How sharp is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line?
The Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line has a sharpness score of 91.8 (decisive), meaning 91.8% of games end decisively. Average game length is 39 moves.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, White wins 53.2%, draws 3.2% and loses 43.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.8%. It rests on 323 Lichess games, which average 35 moves.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, White wins 51.1%, draws 4.4% and loses 44.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.3%. It rests on 847 Lichess games, which average 35 moves.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, White wins 51.0%, draws 5.4% and loses 43.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.7%. It rests on 1.7K Lichess games, which average 38 moves.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, White wins 50.9%, draws 7.2% and loses 41.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.6%. It rests on 2.5K Lichess games, which average 38 moves.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, White wins 48.6%, draws 9.1% and loses 42.3%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.2%. It rests on 2.5K Lichess games, which average 40 moves.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, White wins 48.9%, draws 12.0% and loses 39.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.9%. It rests on 2.2K Lichess games, which average 42 moves.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, White wins 53.4%, draws 14.2% and loses 32.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 60.5%. It rests on 333 Lichess games, which average 46 moves.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, White wins 51.7%, draws 5.3% and loses 43.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.4%. It rests on 3.0K Lichess games.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, White wins 49.7%, draws 9.2% and loses 41.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.3%. It rests on 6.2K Lichess games.
What is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, White wins 48.0%, draws 10.5% and loses 41.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.3%. It rests on 1.1K Lichess games.
Is the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line a good opening?
The Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Main Line is good for White. Across all ratings, White wins 50.1% of its games and loses 41.7%. It performs best at 2500+. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.