Even the best miss a blunder

November 2026

Tracks: games played on Lichess each month, 2013 to 2026

Key points

What does a blunder look like?

Four blunders in six moves, two of them missed

Blunder punished by the next moveBlunder missed

Source: Lichess open database (CC0), with the Lichess server's engine analysis.

How often is a blunder punished?

Two in three blunders are punished on the next move

Share of blunders the opponent's next move punished, %, by the average rating of the two players

Where do blunders go unseen?

Blunders on a player's own half are missed more often

Share of blunders the next move missed, %, by the square the blundering piece moved to, seen from the blunderer's side

Palest: 22% or less missedDeepest rust: 38% or more

Does more time help?

Rating pays off when the clock leaves time to look

Share of blunders punished on the next move, %, by rating and time control

Bullet: under 3 minutes a side, counting 40 moves of increment. Blitz: 3 to 8. Rapid: 8 to 25. Rating bands with fewer than 1,000 blunders are left out. Source: Lichess open database (CC0).

Does the first blunder decide the game?

The first player to blunder still wins one game in three

Result for the player who made the game's first blunder, % of games, by rating

WonDrew