Bogo-Indian Defense: Grünfeld Variation
Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.
Statistics from Lichess
381,430 games: White 51.5% / Draw 7.2% / Black 41.3%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 147,299147K | ||
| 72,70073K | ||
| 53,38853K | ||
| 42,18342K | ||
| 14,54815K | ||
| 14,00114K | ||
| 11,33311K | ||
| 7,6477,647 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 7, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.33 White is slightly better
Best play: 4... b6 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Bxd2 Bb7 7. e3 d6 8. Bd3 Nbd7 9. O-O
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for White: White scores 57% under 1400, 54% at 2200 and up and 58% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 8,054 | |
| 1400–1799 | 37K | |
| 1800–2199 | 170K | |
| 2200 and up | 187K | |
| Masters, over the board | 9,098 |
Master games
- Vachier Lagrave, M. – Carlsen, M.
- Karjakin, S. – Carlsen, M.
- Aronian, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Grischuk, A. – Carlsen, M.
- Ding Liren – Carlsen, M.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026
Overview
Bogo-Indian Defense: Grünfeld Variation (ECO E11, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the Bogo-Indian Defense, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nbd2 (4 moves).
In 381,430 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.5%, Black 41.3% and 7.2% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 4…O-O, in 39% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Queen's Indian Defense, with e3, Bb4+ Line and Queen's Indian Defense, with e3.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
Write a description or report a mistake
How to play against the Bogo-Indian Defense: Grünfeld Variation
4…b6 scores best for Black: 46.1%, with Black winning 42.1% and White 49.9% of 73K games. The most played, 4…O-O, scores 45.8% in 147K games, and 4…c5 scores lowest: 43.1%. Stockfish's first choice is also 4…b6.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The Bogo-Indian Defense: Grünfeld Variation peaked in 2018 at 0.019% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.016% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.017% | 5,907 |
| 2017 | 0.017% | 9,275 |
| 2018 | 0.019% | 14,544 |
| 2019 | 0.017% | 20,749 |
| 2020 | 0.016% | 45,531 |
| 2021 | 0.012% | 48,736 |
| 2022 | 0.014% | 51,551 |
| 2023 | 0.014% | 53,459 |
| 2024 | 0.014% | 51,860 |
| 2025 | 0.016% | 54,820 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.017% | 18,094 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (2)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Bogo-Indian Defense: Grünfeld Variation (E11)”. Lichess data as of 7 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/bogo-indian-defense-grunfeld-variation