Queen's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Nimzowitsch Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
249,724 games: White 45.9% / Draw 7.7% / Black 46.4%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Quiet Line | 96,36596K | |
| 61,77762K | ||
| 31,02931K | ||
| 29,51730K | ||
| Nimzowitsch Attack | 25,10125K | |
| Timman's Line | 3,3203,320 | |
| 1,7851,785 | ||
| 239239 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 3, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.23 The position is about equal
Best play: 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Rc1 d5 9. cxd5 Nxd5
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 647 | |
| 1400–1799 | 7,068 | |
| 1800–2199 | 96K | |
| 2200 and up | 148K | |
| Masters, over the board | 22K |
Master games
- Aronian, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Karjakin, S.
- Nakamura, H. – Carlsen, M.
- Aronian, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Aronian, L. – 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
Queen's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Nimzowitsch Variation (ECO E15, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the Queen's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 (4 moves).
In 249,724 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 45.9%, Black 46.4% and 7.7% were drawn. White's most played move here is 5. b3, in 39% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are Queen's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Nimzowitsch Variation, Quiet Line and Queen's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Nimzowitsch Variation, Nimzowitsch Attack. In all, 6 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 Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Nimzowitsch Variation
5. Qa4 (Nimzowitsch Attack) scores best for White: 52.3%, with White winning 48.3% and Black 43.7% of 25K games. The most played, 5. b3, scores 49.3% in 96K games, and 5. Bg2 scores lowest: 43.8%. Stockfish's first choice is 5. b3.
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 Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Nimzowitsch Variation peaked in 2018 at 0.014% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.0098% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.011% | 3,941 |
| 2017 | 0.011% | 6,282 |
| 2018 | 0.014% | 10,965 |
| 2019 | 0.012% | 15,407 |
| 2020 | 0.011% | 31,778 |
| 2021 | 0.0087% | 34,105 |
| 2022 | 0.0085% | 31,956 |
| 2023 | 0.0089% | 33,456 |
| 2024 | 0.009% | 32,117 |
| 2025 | 0.0098% | 33,873 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.01% | 11,167 |
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 (3)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Queen's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Nimzowitsch Variation (E15)”. Lichess data as of 3 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-indian-defense-fianchetto-variation-nimzowitsch-variation