If you've been playing on Chess.com for a while, you've probably seen several players with some red letters next to their name like GM or IM. What do these mean?
These letters are titles that chess players can earn from FIDE (the International Chess Federation) by playing in chess tournaments. You can read more about their titles here.
The titles that Chess.com acknowledges are listed below:
GM | Grandmaster |
WGM | Woman Grandmaster |
IM | International Master |
WIM | Woman International Master |
FM | FIDE Master |
NM | National Master |
CM | FIDE Candidate Master |
WFM | Woman FIDE Master |
WCM | Woman FIDE Candidate Master |
These titles are generally earned through a long process of success in tournaments.
Players will often display these titles next to their name with pride, and they stand as a testament to the player’s achievements.