Checkers vs draughts is mostly a question of vocabulary. In the United States the 8x8 game is called checkers; in Britain it is called draughts. Same board, same moves. The real differences start when you meet other national versions, which change the board, the pieces and even the direction of travel.
One word, many games
"Draughts" is really a family name. Dozens of regional games share the idea of small pieces that capture by jumping and promote to kings. Three variants cover most of what people ask about: American checkers (also called English draughts), International draughts, and Turkish draughts, known as Dama.
Three questions separate almost all of them. Can ordinary pieces capture backwards? How far can a king travel? And when a capture is available, must you take the biggest one?
The rules side by side
| Feature | American / English | International | Turkish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Board | 8x8, dark squares | 10x10, dark squares | 8x8, all squares |
| Pieces per side | 12 | 20 | 16 |
| Direction of travel | Diagonal | Diagonal | Straight: forward or sideways |
| Men capture backwards | No | Yes | No |
| King | One square at a time | Flies along diagonals | Flies along rows and columns |
| Capture is compulsory | Yes, any route | Yes, the most pieces | Yes, the most pieces |
American checkers and English draughts
This is the game most English speakers learn. Twelve pieces a side sit on the dark squares of an 8x8 board. A man steps one square diagonally forward and can only jump forward. On reaching the last row it is crowned. A king still moves just one square, but may go diagonally in all four directions.
Taking is compulsory, and a chain of jumps must be finished. If you have two different captures, you may choose either, even if one takes fewer pieces. That freedom keeps the game tactical but readable, since kings are slow and a lead can be converted patiently.
International draughts
The 10x10 version is the one governed by the world federation. Each side has 20 men, and the changes are large. Men may capture backwards. Kings are "flying": they glide any distance along a diagonal and can capture from afar, landing on any empty square beyond the victim.
The majority rule also applies: if you can capture, you must choose the route that removes the most pieces. Together these rules make the game sharper. A single careless king can wipe out a whole wing, so players spend more time calculating routes than racing to promote.
Turkish draughts: a different geometry
Turkish draughts, or Dama, breaks the diagonal habit completely. All 64 squares are in play. Each side has 16 men filling its second and third rows, and the back row starts empty. Men step forward or sideways, never backwards and never diagonally. They capture the same way, by hopping an enemy piece directly ahead or beside them.
Getting a man to the opposite edge crowns it. The new king slides along rows and columns across as many empty squares as it wants, including backwards, and takes a piece by sailing over it to any free square past it. Taking is obligatory, and when routes differ you must pick the one that removes the most pieces.
To see these rules in action, open Turkish Draughts. You can face the computer, share one screen, or find an online opponent, and its page describes the same straight-line movement and compulsory longest capture.
A worked example of forced capture
Picture a white man with a black man directly ahead of it and an empty square behind that black man. White jumps and lands. Now a second black man sits directly to White's left, again with a free square beyond it. White must keep going and turn left to take both. Meanwhile a different white man that could take only one piece is not allowed to move. Sacrificing a piece so that the opponent's forced route pulls a piece into your reach is the heart of Dama tactics.
Points the rulebooks argue about
Even within one game, details vary, so check the rules of the platform you use.
- First move: in American checkers the dark pieces traditionally start; in International draughts the light pieces do.
- Promotion mid-capture: some rule sets stop a man that reaches the last row during a jump, others let it carry on as a king.
- A king against one man in Turkish draughts: some sources call it a draw by convention, others treat it as a win for the king.
A twist on the formula
If the standard rules feel settled, Angry Checkers changes the goal: you push enemy pieces off the board rather than jumping them. Its modes are Multiplayer, Single Player and Hot Seat. Pieces near the rim become the weakest ones, the reverse of normal checkers, where an edge piece cannot be jumped.
More tabletop options sit in the board games category, and Ultimate Chess offers a different kind of duel against the computer. Players who enjoy calculating forced sequences may also like the strategy games.
Which one should you learn?
Start with whichever you grew up with. For a fresh challenge, International draughts rewards deep calculation, while Turkish draughts is the easiest to explain because the pieces move in straight lines like the board's own grid.
Common questions
Is checkers the same as draughts?
For the 8x8 game, yes: American checkers and English draughts are one game with two names. Other draughts variants, such as International or Turkish, have different rules.
Why are flying kings so strong?
A flying king covers an entire line in one move and can capture from a distance. A one-square king has to creep toward its target.
Do you have to take the most pieces?
Only in some versions. International and Turkish draughts require the largest capture; American checkers lets you pick any capture.
Do Turkish draughts use diagonals?
No. Pieces move and capture along rows and columns only, on all 64 squares.