Accounts of every size
150 accounts chosen so that small, medium and large game histories are all represented. This is the closer estimate for real searches.
66 of 150 found first
44% · 71 in the first three
Coverage and accuracy benchmarks
What the current evidence supports
We take Chess.com players whose accounts we already hold, search with their newest games only, and check where the known account comes out.
Tested October 16, 2026
Preparation leads, not proof
These numbers show how often the known account came out on top in a test. A result from your own search is a lead to check, not proof of who owns an account.
Games-only test, Chess.com
How often the known account came first
Random active accounts
100 accounts chosen at random. They lean to very active players with large histories.
67 of 100 found first
67% · 72 in the first three
More games help
A separate set of 100 very active players, searched with their newest 10, 20 and 30 games. Compare these rows with each other, not with the sets above.
- 10 games57 of 100 found first
- 20 games70 of 100 found first
- 30 games75 of 100 found first
How the test worked
One test search
Scout got an account's 10 newest games, played after the games we hold for it. Names, ratings and clocks were removed, so it saw only the moves, dates and results.
Found first
The known account was the first account on the list.
In the first three
The known account was one of the first three accounts on the list.
How to read this result
- These were online games, searched without a name. Tournament games are harder: in smaller tests on new players, games alone usually missed the account. When the account's public profile shows the player's real name, the name and FIDE ID in a PGN usually find it. We report those two kinds of search separately.
- Chess.com only. Lichess has not been tested this way yet.
- Every tested account was already in our index. Scout cannot find an account we do not hold yet.
- These results are for accounts we already hold. They are not a success rate for any player you might search, and we do not present them as one.
See the Trust page for data handling and product safeguards.