Is a knight or a bishop better?

Neither in general. Knights are better in closed positions with outposts and pawns on one wing; bishops are better in open positions with pawns on both wings.

Why do knights fork so often?

A knight attacks only squares of the opposite colour to the one it stands on, so the pieces it hits cannot hit back unless they are also knights.

Is this lesson in the free plan?

No, it is in Pro. The free lessons are Open Files, Outposts and Pawn Structure Basics.

Minor pieces · quiz of 2

Pro

Knight vs Bishop

The eternal duel. Knights love closed positions, outposts and pawns on one wing; bishops love open positions, long diagonals and pawns on both wings. Knowing which minor piece is better tells you which pieces to trade.

In Pro

Knight vs Bishop is part of Pro, with all 25 lessons and every quiz.

Pro is $6.99 a month or $49 a year. Start free: three days in a row earns 72 hours of Pro with no card.

Create a free account

About this lesson

A knight and a bishop are both worth about three pawns, and that is where the similarity ends. One jumps and forks, the other crosses the board in one move. Which is better depends on the pawns, and knowing the answer tells you which trades to accept. This lesson gives you the tests.

What you will learn

Why a locked centre, such as the King’s Indian structure, favours knights.
Why pawns on both wings favour the bishop, and how many moves a knight needs to change wings.
The fork, and why a knight attacks pieces that cannot attack it back.
The endgame rule: pawns on one wing, keep the knight; pawns on both wings, keep the bishop.

The rule of thumb

The lesson moves from opening to ending. A King’s Indian position with pawns on c4, d5 and e4 against d6 shows a centre where no file will open soon and the knights have targets. A bare position with a white bishop against a black knight and pawns on both wings shows the opposite. A knight on d5 against king and rook shows the fork. And a minor-piece ending repeats the one-wing, two-wing count.

Club players decide knight or bishop by taste rather than by structure. The useful questions: is the pawn structure fixed, are the pawns on one wing or two, and is there an outpost. Fixed pawns and an outpost say knight. Open files and pawns on both wings say bishop. The second mistake is forgetting that the answer changes as pawns come off.

How to practise it

The quiz after the four sections has a centralised knight that wants to fork, and a bishop against a knight with pawns on both wings where you win a piece. One move each, spoken or tapped. This is a Pro lesson; the free Outposts shows the knight at its best.

Create a free account

Questions people ask

Is a knight or a bishop better?: Neither in general. Knights are better in closed positions with outposts and pawns on one wing; bishops are better in open positions with pawns on both wings.
Why do knights fork so often?: A knight attacks only squares of the opposite colour to the one it stands on, so the pieces it hits cannot hit back unless they are also knights.
Is this lesson in the free plan?: No, it is in Pro. The free lessons are Open Files, Outposts and Pawn Structure Basics.

Guides

Read the guide, then drill it

A daily chess training routine you can keep 6 min read