Queen's Indian Defense, with e3
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Statistics from Lichess
268,559 games: White 46.7% / Draw 5.6% / Black 47.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 76,52577K | ||
| 63,75164K | ||
| 61,08961K | ||
| 20,84721K | ||
| 15,77516K | ||
| 11,65312K | ||
| 4,5194,519 | ||
| 3,9743,974 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.05 The position is about equal
Best play: 6. Bd3 Bd6 7. O-O O-O 8. b3 a6 9. Bb2 Nbd7 10. Re1 Ne4
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, 50% at 2200 and up and 50% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 35K | |
| 1400–1799 | 149K | |
| 1800–2199 | 157K | |
| 2200 and up | 19K | |
| Masters, over the board | 467 |
Master games
- Kramnik, V. – Aronian, L.
- Gelfand, B. – Karpov, A.
- Le, Q. L. – Aronian, L.
- Kramnik, V. – Hou Yifan
- Kasimdzhanov, R. – Mamedyarov, S.
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, with e3 (ECO E14, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the Indian Defense: Anti-Nimzo-Indian, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. e3 b6 5. Nc3 Bb7 (5 moves).
In 268,559 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.7%, Black 47.7% and 5.6% were drawn. White's most played move here is 6. cxd5, in 28% of those games.
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, with e3
The most played answer, 6. cxd5, also scores best for White: 50.5%, with White winning 47.6% and Black 46.5% of 77K games. Of the main answers, 6. Be2 scores lowest: 48.9%. Stockfish's first choice is 6. Bd3.
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, with e3 has lost ground since 2016: 0.009% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.011% (its peak: 0.014% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.011% | 4,093 |
| 2017 | 0.014% | 7,497 |
| 2018 | 0.014% | 10,822 |
| 2019 | 0.013% | 16,700 |
| 2020 | 0.012% | 34,574 |
| 2021 | 0.01% | 40,562 |
| 2022 | 0.01% | 38,626 |
| 2023 | 0.0099% | 37,285 |
| 2024 | 0.0092% | 33,011 |
| 2025 | 0.009% | 31,156 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0088% | 9,674 |
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Queen's Indian Defense, with e3 (E14)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-indian-defense-with-e3