Caro-Kann Defense: Modern Variation
Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.
Statistics from Lichess
3,084,675 games: White 50.5% / Draw 6.1% / Black 43.4%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 2,597,1842.6M | ||
| 151,902152K | ||
| 117,074117K | ||
| 67,55568K | ||
| 54,31754K | ||
| 30,80631K | ||
| 15,53116K | ||
| 11,65912K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.23 The position is about equal
Best play: 3... dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Nxf6+ exf6 6. c3 Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. Qc2
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 56% under 1400, 52% at 2200 and up and 55% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 116K | |
| 1400–1799 | 661K | |
| 1800–2199 | 2M | |
| 2200 and up | 596K | |
| Masters, over the board | 11K |
Master games
- Caruana, F. – So, W.
- Kasparov, G. – Anand, V.
- Svidler, P. – Carlsen, M.
- Kasparov, G. – Anand, V.
- Ivanchuk, V. – Anand, V.
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 26, 2026
Overview
Caro-Kann Defense: Modern Variation (ECO B12, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Caro-Kann Defense, reached after 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 (3 moves).
In 3,084,675 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 50.5%, Black 43.4% and 6.1% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 3…dxe4, in 84% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Caro-Kann Defense: Main Line and Caro-Kann Defense: Edinburgh Variation. In all, 19 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
Write a description or report a mistake
Popularity by year
The Caro-Kann Defense: Modern Variation has gained ground since 2016: 0.14% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.089%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.089% | 31,651 |
| 2017 | 0.12% | 66,191 |
| 2018 | 0.14% | 108,215 |
| 2019 | 0.13% | 158,435 |
| 2020 | 0.11% | 325,173 |
| 2021 | 0.1% | 393,952 |
| 2022 | 0.11% | 406,016 |
| 2023 | 0.11% | 415,547 |
| 2024 | 0.12% | 448,028 |
| 2025 | 0.14% | 495,716 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.16% | 175,086 |
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)
All 19 named lines that continue from here
- B12 Caro-Kann Defense: Edinburgh Variation 3 moves
- B15 Caro-Kann Defense: Main Line 4 moves
- B18 Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation 4 moves
- B16 Caro-Kann Defense: Finnish Variation 4 moves
- B17 Caro-Kann Defense: Karpov Variation 4 moves
- B18 Flohr Variation 6 moves
- B18 Main Line 6 moves
- B18 Maróczy Attack 6 moves
- B17 Modern Variation 5 moves
- B17 Smyslov Variation 7 moves
- B17 Tiviakov-Fischer Attack 6 moves
- B18 Caro-Kann Defense: Martian Gambit 7 moves
- B19 Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation 7 moves
- B17 Caro-Kann Defense: Karpov Variation, Modern Main Line 10 moves
- B17 Ivanchuk Defense 5 moves
- B17 Main Line 8 moves
- B19 Spassky Variation 8 moves
- B19 Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation, Lobron System 12 moves
- B19 Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation, Seirawan Variation 12 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Caro-Kann Defense: Modern Variation (B12)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/caro-kann-defense-modern-variation