Free tool
Time control converter
How it works
Type a time control as base+increment, like 15+10. The tool adds the base minutes to the increment seconds read as minutes, which is the FIDE Laws test of base plus 60 increments, and names the speed category: 60 minutes or more is standard, more than 10 and under 60 is rapid, 10 or less is blitz. That is a speed category, not a rating verdict. Whether a game can be FIDE-rated is a separate test, shown under the result.
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- 6 cited sources
The FIDE Laws sort a game by base minutes plus 60 times the increment: 60 minutes or more is standard, more than 10 and under 60 is rapid, 10 minutes or less is blitz. Whether a game can be rated is a separate test, and event approval and player eligibility also apply. Multi-phase and delay controls are not parsed: add the phases yourself, and do not type a delay as an increment.
ResultUpdates as you type
Laws speed category
Standard
Base plus 60 increments: 120 min. A speed class, not a rating verdict.
Combined clock budget, 60 moves
4h 0m
Each player 2h 0m. Longer games add more increment.
Combined clock budget, 40 moves
3h 40m
40 moves is a planning assumption, not an average.
Rating test: the 60-move minimum for standard rating is met in every player band (60, 90 and 120 minutes).
How it works
The method behind the numbers
Formula
Laws test = base minutes + 60 x increment seconds / 60 = base + increment (minutes). Combined clock budget at N moves = 2 x (base + N x increment seconds / 60)
Two different tests hide behind one word. The Laws of Chess (Appendices A and B) sort a game by base plus 60 increments: rapid is more than 10 and under 60 minutes, blitz is 10 or less. FIDE rating is a separate test. The rapid and blitz rating regulations (B.02, effective 1 March 2024) rate rapid in the same window but rate blitz only above 3 minutes, so 2+1 is blitz under the Laws and too short to be rated as blitz. For standard rating the 60-move minimum is 60 minutes when both players are under 1800, 90 minutes when either is 1800 or higher, and 120 minutes when either is 2400 or higher. Event approval and player eligibility apply on top.
The 2026 exception is still moving. On 12 January 2026 FIDE said that events approved by its Qualification Commission may rate 45+30, or longer such as 60+30, as standard chess in 2026, with at most one such norm counting toward a title and no more than two rounds a day. On 12 October 2026 FIDE explained that the General Assembly resolution on shorter time controls does not change the regulations by itself: the Council planned to propose 60+30 as a control needing no approval and 45+30 only in certain cases, and the wider changes depend on a consultation. Read the current Handbook and the Qualification Commission instructions before you print either control in an event notice.
The converter reads one base and one increment. Controls with several phases are not parsed, so add the phases yourself. For 90 minutes for 40 moves, then 30 minutes to finish, plus a 30 second increment from move 1, the 60-move test is 90 + 30 + 30 = 150 minutes (arithmetic only). A delay is not an increment either. Article 6.3 of the Laws describes a delay as extra time per move that is used up first, so unused delay time is not banked. Do not type a delay as an increment.
| Control | Base + increment (min) | Laws category | Combined clock, 60 moves | FIDE rating test |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2+1 | 3 | Blitz | 6m | Too short to rate as blitz (needs over 3) |
| 3+2 | 5 | Blitz | 10m | Inside the blitz rating window |
| 10+0 | 10 | Blitz | 20m | Inside the blitz rating window |
| 10+5 | 15 | Rapid | 30m | Inside the rapid rating window |
| 15+10 | 25 | Rapid | 50m | Inside the rapid rating window |
| 30+30 | 60 | Standard | 2h 0m | Meets the 60-minute minimum (both players under 1800) |
| 45+30 | 75 | Standard | 2h 30m | Meets 60 only; stronger fields need the 2026 approval route |
| 60+30 | 90 | Standard | 3h 0m | Meets 60 and 90; short of 120 if a player is 2400 or higher |
| 90+30 | 120 | Standard | 4h 0m | Meets every standard minimum |
Combined clock = 2 x (base + 60 x increment / 60) minutes. Rating minimums are the 60-move figures in FIDE B.02 as effective from 1 March 2024; approved 2026 events can differ.
| Notation | Parsed | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 90+30 or 25 (base, optional increment) | Yes | Type it as it is. |
| 90 for 40 moves, then 30 | No | Add the phases to one base, then add the increment. |
| Delay (Bronstein) controls | No | Do not enter the delay as an increment: unused delay time is not banked. |
Corrected 16 October 2026: an earlier version called the speed class a FIDE category, labelled the 60-move figure a maximum, and wrote the formula without dividing seconds by 60. The class is now the Laws speed category, the figure is a combined clock budget, and the formula is fixed.
Sources
- FIDE Laws of Chess, Appendices A and B and Article 6 (retrieved 2026-10-16)
- FIDE Rapid and Blitz Rating Regulations, effective 1 March 2024 (retrieved 2026-10-16)
- FIDE Rating Regulations, section 1.1, effective 1 March 2024 (retrieved 2026-10-16)
- FIDE news, 12 January 2026: faster time controls for major events (retrieved 2026-10-16)
- FIDE news, 12 October 2026: General Assembly resolution on shorter time controls (retrieved 2026-10-16)
- Time control
Worked example
The steps with real numbers
Illustrative figures, worked the way the tool works them. Put the same numbers into the tool above to check.
Back to the toolA time control written 90+30 gives each player 90 minutes and adds 30 seconds after every move. The increment is why the game has no fixed length. By move 60 each player has had 90 + 60 x 30 / 60 = 120 minutes available, and every extra move adds another 30 seconds to each clock. The combined clock budget at 60 moves is the two allowances added together, 240 minutes or 4 hours.
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See scheduling
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What do the two numbers in a time control mean?
The first number is each player’s starting time in minutes, the second is the increment in seconds added after every move they make. So 3+2 is three minutes plus two seconds per move, and 25+10 is twenty-five minutes plus ten seconds per move.
Where is the line between rapid and blitz?
The Laws draw it at 10 minutes on base plus 60 increments: more than 10 and under 60 is rapid, 10 or less is blitz. So 10+0 is blitz and 10+5, which sums to 15, is rapid. FIDE adds a lower limit for rating: blitz is rated only above 3 minutes on the same sum.
Is a rapid or blitz category the same as being FIDE-rated?
No. The category comes from the Laws and only sorts the speed of play. Whether a game is rated depends on the rating regulations, the event being submitted for rating and the players. The result panel shows the clock test separately so the two are not confused.
Does 45+30 or 60+30 count as classical?
By the Laws both are above 60 minutes on base plus 60 increments (75 and 90), so neither is rapid. For standard rating, FIDE said on 12 January 2026 that Qualification Commission-approved events may rate 45+30 or longer as standard chess in 2026. On 12 October 2026 it said the Council still had to approve a framework in which 60+30 would need no special approval. Check the current Handbook before you advertise a rating claim.
Why does the tool use 60 moves?
FIDE writes its time limits as base plus 60 times the increment, which is the allowance a player has by move 60. The 40-move line is a planning assumption for schedules and not an average game length. Games with an increment can run past either figure.
How long should our academy schedule for a 15+10 round?
Use the tournament time planner for the whole round. As a starting point, 15+10 at 40 moves gives each player 21 minutes 40 seconds of allowance, so the two clocks together allow about 43 minutes 20 seconds before any buffer. Every extra move adds 10 seconds to each clock.
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