Queen's Gambit Declined: Charousek Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
569,560 games: White 47.3% / Draw 7.1% / Black 45.6%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 292,796293K | ||
| 116,587117K | ||
| 73,75374K | ||
| 30,78931K | ||
| 28,20828K | ||
| 7,7777,777 | ||
| 5,5505,550 | ||
| 3,6633,663 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 24, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.35 White is slightly better
Best play: 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bf4 Nf6 6. e3 O-O 7. Bd3 c5 8. Nge2 Bg4
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 47% under 1400, 48% at 2200 and up and 41% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 20K | |
| 1400–1799 | 125K | |
| 1800–2199 | 314K | |
| 2200 and up | 169K | |
| Masters, over the board | 8,718 |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
- Carlsen, M. – Aronian, L.
- Vachier Lagrave, M. – Caruana, F.
- Mamedyarov, S. – So, W.
- Nakamura, H. – Vachier Lagrave, 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
Queen's Gambit Declined: Charousek Variation (ECO D31, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a declined gambit in the Queen's Gambit Declined: Queen's Knight Variation, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 (3 moves).
In 569,560 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 47.3%, Black 45.6% and 7.1% were drawn. White's most played move here is 4. Nf3, in 51% of those games.
It branches into 6 named variations; the most played are Queen's Gambit Declined: Harrwitz Attack, Fianchetto Defense and Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense. In all, 8 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Queen's Gambit Declined: Charousek Variation
4. cxd5 scores best for White: 52.5%, with White winning 48.6% and Black 43.6% of 117K games. The most played, 4. Nf3, scores 50.8% in 293K games, and 4. e3 scores lowest: 47.6%. Stockfish's first choice is also 4. cxd5.
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
The Queen's Gambit Declined: Charousek Variation peaked in 2018 at 0.031% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.02% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.022% | 7,895 |
| 2017 | 0.026% | 14,268 |
| 2018 | 0.031% | 23,976 |
| 2019 | 0.026% | 32,491 |
| 2020 | 0.024% | 70,278 |
| 2021 | 0.022% | 85,654 |
| 2022 | 0.022% | 81,740 |
| 2023 | 0.02% | 77,054 |
| 2024 | 0.021% | 73,790 |
| 2025 | 0.02% | 68,923 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.021% | 23,083 |
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 (6)
- D31 Miladinovic Gambit 4. e4 dxe4 5. f3
- D37 Harrwitz Attack, Fianchetto Defense 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 b6
- D56 Lasker Defense 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Ne4
- D58 Tartakower Defense, Exchange Variation 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 b6 8. cxd5 exd5
- D59 Tartakower Defense, Makogonov Exchange Variation 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 b6 8. cxd5 Nxd5
- D53 Uhlmann Variation 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. Rc1 dxc4
All 8 named lines that continue from here
- D31 Miladinovic Gambit 5 moves
- D37 Queen's Gambit Declined: Harrwitz Attack, Fianchetto Defense 6 moves
- D56 Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense 7 moves
- D58 Queen's Gambit Declined: Tartakower Defense, Exchange Variation 8 moves
- D59 Queen's Gambit Declined: Tartakower Defense, Makogonov Exchange Variation 8 moves
- D53 Queen's Gambit Declined: Uhlmann Variation 7 moves
- D57 Main Line 10 moves
- D59 Queen's Gambit Declined: Tartakower Defense 11 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Charousek Variation (D31)”. Lichess data as of 24 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-charousek-variation