Chess Notation Converter
Working with different chess notation formats? This tool converts between Standard Algebraic Notation (SAN), Universal Chess Interface (UCI) format, PGN game records, and FEN position strings. Paste your input on the left and see the converted output on the right.
Professor Archer says: When I was learning chess, I encountered old books that used descriptive notation - "P-K4" instead of "e4". It was terribly confusing until I found a converter. Today, the main challenge is moving between SAN (what humans read) and UCI (what engines use). This tool handles all of it.
Features
- SAN to UCI conversion and vice versa
- PGN to FEN extraction (any move number)
- Descriptive notation to algebraic
- Batch conversion for multiple moves
- Copy output with one click
The Four Notation Formats, and When You Meet Each One
SAN (Standard Algebraic Notation) is what humans read and write: Nf3, Bxe5, O-O, e8=Q. Every modern book, article, and broadcast uses it. UCI notation is what engines speak: the same three moves are g1f3, c1e5 (as from-square to-square), and e1g1. If you have ever fed moves to Stockfish or written a chess script, you have met it.
PGN is not a move format but a container: a full game record with headers (players, event, result) wrapped around a SAN move list. FEN is a single frozen position rather than a game. The everyday conversions are SAN to UCI (driving an engine from a book line), UCI to SAN (making engine output readable), and PGN to FEN (freezing move 23 of a game so you can analyze or share just that position).
Reading the Symbols in Annotated Games
Chess notation carries a compact symbol vocabulary. x means a capture, + is check, # is checkmate, O-O and O-O-O are kingside and queenside castling, and = marks a pawn promotion, as in e8=Q. Annotators add evaluation marks: ! for a strong move, !! for a brilliant one, ? for a mistake, ?? for a blunder, and !? or ?! for interesting or dubious tries.
Disambiguation trips up many readers: when two identical pieces can reach the same square, the file or rank of the departing piece is inserted, so Rad1 means the a-file rook goes to d1. Our notation symbols reference covers the complete list, including the rarer position-evaluation glyphs used in opening books.
Descriptive Notation: Reading the Old Books
Before the 1980s, English-language chess books used descriptive notation, which names squares from each player's own perspective: 1. P-K4 P-K4 is 1. e4 e5, and P-QB4 means "pawn to queen's bishop four," our c4. The same square has two names depending on whose move it is, which is exactly why the system died out.
But the classics that shaped chess (Capablanca, Fischer, Reinfeld, and decades of magazine archives) were printed in it. Paste a descriptive line into the converter and read the classics without keeping a translation table in your head. The mapping rule, if you want it: for White, K-file is e and Q-file is d, with ranks counted from White's side; for Black, the same names count from the opposite direction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between SAN and UCI notation?
SAN (Standard Algebraic Notation) is the human-readable format used in books and on screen: Nf3, Bxe5, O-O. UCI (Universal Chess Interface) notation is used by engines and specifies moves as from-to squares: g1f3, c1e5, e1g1. SAN is more compact and readable, while UCI is unambiguous and machine-friendly.
What is descriptive notation?
Descriptive notation was the standard English-language notation until the 1980s. Instead of using file letters and rank numbers, it names squares from each player perspective: P-K4 means "pawn to king 4" (equivalent to e4 for White or e5 for Black). Old chess books often use this format, making conversion tools valuable.
How do I get the FEN for a specific move in a game?
Paste the full PGN into the converter and choose the move number you want. The tool plays the game to that point internally and outputs the FEN of the resulting position, ready to paste into an engine, a board editor, or an article.
What does long algebraic notation look like?
Long algebraic notation includes the starting square of every move: Ng1-f3 instead of Nf3, e2-e4 instead of e4. Some European books and beginner materials use it because it removes all ambiguity. It converts cleanly to and from both SAN and UCI.