r/chessbeginners rules, stats, and what to post

This is a home for new chess players. The description says people come here to hang out, ask questions, discover tactics, get advice from others, and learn more about the game. So the room is full of beginners who want genuine help with their games, their tactics, and their progress. The rules back that up. The community wants friendly, on-topic chess discussion, quick questions pushed into the megathread, and zero self promotion. If you are a founder, understand that you are a guest in a learning space, not a marketplace.

The rule that decides everything for a founder is “Do not post self-promotion materials or adverts.” It bans advertising a chess website you made, YouTube channels, tutorial services, book sales, and links to advertising sites, and it says accounts that exist primarily for self promotion get permanently banned. “Do not post chess-unrelated / NSFW / offensive / meme / spam materials.” rules out memes, spam, and anything off topic, including chess variants and references to chess memes. “Use caution when discussing AI in chess.” matters if your product touches AI, because posting about a chess website or analysis tool you coded with AI is not permitted, and the rule warns that popular LLMs are not effective chess trainers or analysts. “Read the Wiki before posting / Post Quick Questions in Correct Thread.” sends quick questions like why a move is a blunder to the No Stupid Questions megathread, and questions already answered in the FAQ get deleted. “Be nice and friendly.” and “Do not discriminate.” set the tone, so any post that flames, trolls, or harasses gets removed. “Use Spoilers when posting solutions.” requires spoiler tags around puzzle solutions, which is easy to respect and easy to forget.

A good post here is a genuine contribution to a beginner learning the game. Share a lesson from your own chess journey, break down a tactic, or ask a thoughtful question that is not a quick one-liner for the megathread. If you answer someone's question, be friendly and complete, and use spoiler tags when you give a puzzle solution. If you happen to work in chess, let that show through the quality of your help rather than through a link. The safest posture is to participate as a player first. Any post that reads like an advert will be removed, so there is no clever workaround worth trying.

The fastest way to get removed is any form of self promotion, and the fastest way to lose your account is making promotion the main purpose of it. Memes, spam, and off-topic posts get removed, and that includes chess meme references in comments. Posting about a chess tool or analysis site you built with AI is not permitted, and leaning on chatbot answers about positions is discouraged. Quick questions posted in the main feed instead of the megathread get removed, and questions already covered in the FAQ get deleted. Anything unfriendly, harassing, or discriminatory gets removed. And when you do share a puzzle solution, leaving off the spoiler tags breaks a clear rule.

What stands out to me is how explicit this community is about self promotion, with automatic removal for promo posts and permanent bans for accounts built around it, so there is no gray area to test here. I also like that the AI rule exists at all, because it tells me the regulars have already been burned by chatbot-generated chess advice and tools. The honest play in a room like this is to show up as a learner, answer beginner questions well, and let any interest in what you build come to you.