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Saragossa Opening

1 variations · 6.5M games from Lichess · Updated January 2026

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1.c3
Analyze this line move by move

White expected score · Overall

50.9%

45%55%
Floor50.8%

the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. Its best is the same figure — the band is too tight to plot.

Measured over 6.5M games at this level and clock.

Playablewins about as often as it loses at this level

Roughly even — the middlegame decides more than this opening choice does.

Outcomes for White

Draw 3.8 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 6.5M games

Rank among the families White can choose here
#37 of 56
Games in this context
6.5M
Best context
62.2% at 2500+ UltraBullet
Worst context
43.8% at 0-999 UltraBullet
Variations measured
1
Average game length
35 moves

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.

What to play from here

White · Overall
#1Saragossa OpeningBest here
1.c3
Floor 50.8% · 6.5M games
50.9%

These are the moves players actually choose from here, ranked by how they score. A higher score is a better bet on the numbers alone — familiarity and playstyle still matter.

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: 46.9% at 0-999, 57.2% at 2500+.

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: 43.8% expected score (1,250 games)
  • 0-999 rating, Bullet: 48.2% expected score (74,213 games)
  • 0-999 rating, Blitz: 48.6% expected score (173,556 games)
  • 0-999 rating, Rapid: 47.8% expected score (72,635 games)
  • 0-999 rating, Classical: 46.2% expected score (922 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, UltraBullet: 46.2% expected score (4,004 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 50.6% expected score (130,508 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 50.5% expected score (227,209 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 49.6% expected score (83,557 games)
  • 1000-1199 rating, Classical: 46.6% expected score (2,853 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, UltraBullet: 49.0% expected score (14,560 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 50.6% expected score (250,646 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 50.4% expected score (322,931 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 49.4% expected score (100,644 games)
  • 1200-1399 rating, Classical: 47.2% expected score (6,678 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, UltraBullet: 49.1% expected score (53,182 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 50.4% expected score (415,603 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 50.4% expected score (388,605 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 48.9% expected score (88,241 games)
  • 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 45.1% expected score (7,378 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, UltraBullet: 51.7% expected score (69,811 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 50.7% expected score (580,974 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 50.8% expected score (450,647 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 50.5% expected score (77,041 games)
  • 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 48.7% expected score (3,546 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, UltraBullet: 52.6% expected score (42,979 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 50.9% expected score (672,973 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 50.9% expected score (406,662 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 51.3% expected score (57,328 games)
  • 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 52.6% expected score (2,730 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, UltraBullet: 54.8% expected score (22,788 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 51.3% expected score (669,941 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 52.3% expected score (201,292 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 52.2% expected score (20,639 games)
  • 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 54.2% expected score (756 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, UltraBullet: 53.1% expected score (15,050 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 52.3% expected score (557,153 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 53.3% expected score (74,543 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 55.9% expected score (6,225 games)
  • 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 56.3% expected score (70 games)
  • 2500+ rating, UltraBullet: 62.2% expected score (551 games)
  • 2500+ rating, Bullet: 53.8% expected score (126,644 games)
  • 2500+ rating, Blitz: 56.5% expected score (8,416 games)
  • 2500+ rating, Rapid: 53.3% expected score (617 games)
  • 2500+ rating, Classical: 60.1% expected score (256 games)

1 variations · ranked by floor

Floor — the worst score you would still get, 90% confident.

1
Saragossa Opening6.5M games
50.9%Floor 50.8%
Analyze Saragossa Opening PositionsSee what each move is worth at your rating, move by move

Methodology

Across every rating and clock, the Saragossa Opening family scores 50.9% for White — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 50.8% and 50.9% — from 6.5M Lichess games across 1 variations. 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
6.5M+ 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 Saragossa Opening win rate?

Across the Saragossa Opening's 1 variations, White wins 48.9%, draws 3.8% and loses 47.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 50.9%. It rests on 6.5M rated games from Lichess.

How many Saragossa Opening variations are there?

1 Saragossa Opening variations have a page of their own, each broken down by rating and by clock.

At what rating does the Saragossa Opening perform best?

The Saragossa Opening family performs best for White at 2500+, with an Expected Score of 54.0% (136K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read. Performance may vary by specific variation.

Is the Saragossa Opening better in blitz or rapid?

For White, the Saragossa Opening scores higher in Blitz: an Expected Score of 50.8% in Blitz (2.3M games) against 49.7% in Rapid (507K games).

How sharp is the Saragossa Opening?

Saragossa Opening games are 96.2% decisive (non-draws), with an average length of 35 moves. Sharpness varies by specific variation.

Is the Saragossa Opening a good opening family?

The Saragossa Opening family is about level overall. Across its games, White wins 48.9% and loses 47.2%. Results differ between its 1 variations, so open the one you play for its own figures.