There are a few reasons why you may not be able to chat or add an avatar, depending on how old your account is.

Brand new accounts will not be able to chat or post in the forums or add an avatar until 48 hours have passed! Two days after your account creation date, these features will be unlocked, assuming you have met the other requirements below.

In order for your account to gain full access to features, it needs to be activated. Accounts that have not been activated won’t be able to chat, or post in the forums or add/change an avatar! To activate your account, you must click the link in the activation email that was sent to you when you created the account. It will be sent to the email you used to sign up.

Please check your spam folder if you have not received this email!

Chat will remain disabled on new accounts until you've played 10 games of any kind. This is to prevent people who will create accounts simply to post ad links or harass others. We want to make sure you're here to play chess! After you've played 10 games, chat will be unlocked.

If you used to be able to post, and find that you are now unable to, your account could be restricted. There are several things that can cause this. This restriction also blocks your ability to add or change your avatar.

Spam-like messages: normal messages can sometimes trigger the site spam filter to mute your account. The most common reason this happens is sending the same message to many other members, or posting the same message on the profiles of other members.

Abusive or offensive language: Chess can be a very intense game, and sometimes it’s hard to resist giving your opponent a word or two with some foul or insulting language. However, this kind of behavior is not tolerated on Chess.com, and can lead to your chat privileges being removed!

If you have had your chat restricted for abusive language or spam, it will usually only last for 1 day or 1 week. Repeat offenses can lead to a longer, or permanent restriction.