The ten highest-rated active chess players on FIDE's September 2026 list, led by Magnus Carlsen at 2823, 31 points clear of the field.
Quick answer: 1. Magnus Carlsen, 2. Hikaru Nakamura, 3. Fabiano Caruana, 4. Javokhir Sindarov, 5. Wesley So, 6. Vincent Keymer, 7. Nodirbek Abdusattorov, 8. Praggnanandhaa R, 9. Arjun Erigaisi, 10. Anish Giri.
This is the world's top ten in classical chess, taken straight from the International Chess Federation's official rating list for September 2026. Magnus Carlsen is still number one, as he has been since 2011, and his 31-point lead over Hikaru Nakamura is wider than the gap between numbers two and ten. The list is also a snapshot of a generational handover. Five of the ten were born in 2003 or later, and Uzbekistan and India each have two players in the top ten. The reigning world champion, Gukesh D, is not in the top ten at all: he is 32nd on 2703, and his challenger, Javokhir Sindarov, is fourth.
World number one on 2823, 31 points ahead of anyone else. Carlsen gave up the world championship title in 2023 but has kept the top rating throughout. His peak of 2882, set in 2014, is still the highest rating in history.
The American five-time US champion is second on 2792. Born in 1987, he is the oldest player in the top ten.
Caruana is third on 2789, three points behind Nakamura. His 2844 in 2014 is the second-highest rating anyone has reached, and he played Carlsen for the world title in 2018.
Sindarov is fourth on 2778 and is the highest-rated player born in 2005. He plays Gukesh D for the world championship in a match scheduled for late November 2026, and he goes in rated 75 points higher than the champion.
So gained 9 points by winning the 2026 Sinquefield Cup, which put him back in the top five for the first time in nearly four years. He is on 2774 and passed Vincent Keymer this month.
Germany's number one is on 2764, two points ahead of Abdusattorov. So passed him this month. He is one of four players in the top ten born in 2004 or 2005.
Abdusattorov is on 2762 and is the second Uzbek in the top ten. He became world rapid champion at 17 in 2021.
Praggnanandhaa had the biggest move of the month. He won the 2026 Grand Chess Tour Finals, gained 11 points to reach 2761 and climbed from 12th to 8th, which put him back in the top ten.
India's second player in the top ten is on 2759. Erigaisi became only the second Indian, after Viswanathan Anand, to pass 2800, in late 2024.
Giri dropped three places after an underwhelming Saint Louis event and now shares 2757 with Alireza Firouzja. FIDE's published order puts him 10th and Firouzja 11th.
| # | Name | Federation | Rating | Born |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Magnus Carlsen | Norway | 2823 | 1990 |
| 2 | Hikaru Nakamura | United States | 2792 | 1987 |
| 3 | Fabiano Caruana | United States | 2789 | 1992 |
| 4 | Javokhir Sindarov | Uzbekistan | 2778 | 2005 |
| 5 | Wesley So | United States | 2774 | 1993 |
| 6 | Vincent Keymer | Germany | 2764 | 2004 |
| 7 | Nodirbek Abdusattorov | Uzbekistan | 2762 | 2004 |
| 8 | Praggnanandhaa R | India | 2761 | 2005 |
| 9 | Arjun Erigaisi | India | 2759 | 2003 |
| 10 | Anish Giri | Netherlands | 2757 | 1994 |
Players are ranked by their standard (classical) rating on the official FIDE rating list for September 2026, as published in FIDE's Top 100 Players (Open) table. Only players on FIDE's active list are included, which is the list FIDE itself ranks. Rapid and blitz ratings are excluded. Anish Giri and Alireza Firouzja are tied on 2757, and this list follows FIDE's published order, which puts Giri 10th and Firouzja 11th. The top ten was cross-checked against ChessBase's September 2026 rating report. Ratings are updated monthly, so the order can change on the 1st of each month.
Magnus Carlsen of Norway, on 2823 in FIDE's September 2026 list. He has been world number one continuously since July 2011.
Ratings measure recent results, not titles. Gukesh D holds the world championship but is 32nd on the September 2026 list with 2703. His challenger, Javokhir Sindarov, is fourth on 2778. They play for the title in late November 2026.
FIDE publishes a new standard rating list on the first day of every month, so this ranking can shift each month depending on results in rated classical games.
Magnus Carlsen's 2882, reached in May 2014. Fabiano Caruana's 2844, also from 2014, is second.
More like this: all Culture & Media rankings · browse every topic