Scoring

The ranking is based primarily on the World Championship, the Candidates Tournament, and the historical development of the Elo rating. The system also includes major global competitions such as the Grand Swiss, World Cup, Grand Chess Tour, and Grand Prix, as well as continental championships.

The strongest international tournaments of each era are also an integral part of the ranking. Their inclusion, based on the strength of the field, helps maintain historical comparability, particularly with periods before the establishment of the modern structure of elite competitions. National, age-restricted, and exhibition tournaments are excluded from this category.

Classical chess carries the greatest weight, while rapid and blitz competitions receive a lower point value. The national rankings combine individual results with global and continental team competitions, weighted according to their importance on the international stage.

The women's ranking follows the same general philosophy and additionally rewards victories or shared victories by women in strong open tournaments where the opposition has an average Elo rating of at least 2500.

A specific rule applies to World Championship matches: the winner of the Candidates Tournament receives no additional points for subsequently losing the title match, as qualification has already been rewarded through the Candidates Tournament. This restriction does not apply to the reigning World Champion or to a challenger who reached the title match without qualifying through the Candidates Tournament.