Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation 4. Nxd4 Nf6
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Statistics from Lichess
3,509,198 games: White 51.0% / Draw 5.0% / Black 44.0%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 2,759,9262.8M | ||
| 358,465358K | ||
| 198,451198K | ||
| 72,37272K | ||
| 61,83562K | ||
| 8,7138,713 | ||
| 7,4957,495 | ||
| 5,4725,472 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 13, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.58 White is slightly better
Best play: 5. Nc3 Be7 6. Bf4 O-O 7. Qd2 Nc6 8. O-O-O Nxd4 9. Qxd4 a6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 49% under 1400, 47% at 2200 and up and 45% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 891K | |
| 1400–1799 | 2.6M | |
| 1800–2199 | 1.9M | |
| 2200 and up | 155K | |
| Masters, over the board | 2,984 |
Master games
- Dominguez Perez, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Karjakin, S. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Mamedyarov, S.
- Carlsen, M. – Dubov, D.
- Grischuk, A. – Dubov, D.
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
Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation (ECO C41, Open Games) is a variation of the Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 (4 moves).
In 3,509,198 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.0%, Black 44.0% and 5.0% were drawn. White's most played move here is 5. Nc3, in 79% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, Philidor Defense: Berger Variation.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 4…Nf6
The most played answer, 5. Nc3, also scores best for White: 54.2%, with White winning 51.7% and Black 43.3% of 2.8M games. Of the main answers, 5. Bg5 scores lowest: 49.1%. Stockfish's first choice is also 5. Nc3.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White'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
This line has lost ground since 2016: 0.12% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.19%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.19% | 68,851 |
| 2017 | 0.18% | 100,614 |
| 2018 | 0.17% | 132,559 |
| 2019 | 0.16% | 199,529 |
| 2020 | 0.15% | 433,660 |
| 2021 | 0.14% | 533,908 |
| 2022 | 0.13% | 495,738 |
| 2023 | 0.13% | 479,550 |
| 2024 | 0.13% | 448,437 |
| 2025 | 0.12% | 417,996 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.12% | 132,922 |
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 (1)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation (C41)”. Lichess data as of 13 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/philidor-defense-exchange-variation-3