SkillUnlock
A chess puzzle every time you unlock.
SkillUnlock puts a real tactic between you and your desktop. Find the move and you’re in. A few seconds a day, every day, without opening a chess app.
macOS 14 or later · Chess free for 7 days, then $5.99 once
The real Chess challenge from the app.
Do tactics every day.
Most players know daily tactics help and still skip them. With SkillUnlock the puzzle is how you get in, so you solve one every time you unlock.
325,000 real puzzles
Positions from real games, from the Lichess open puzzle database, each with one best line.
A rating that follows you
An Elo rating from 600 to 2400+. Clean solves raise it; misses and hints lower it.
More of what you miss
It tracks forks, pins and skewers, discovered attacks, sacrifices, mating attacks, endgames and defense, and serves more of what you miss.
Hints when you’re stuck
One hint shows the piece to move, a second shows the move. Using them costs a little rating.
Hold to skip
In a hurry, hold to skip. Set quiet hours or a gap between puzzles so it never gets in the way.
Analytics
Your rating over time, streaks, puzzles solved and the motifs you miss most.
Why it started with chess
SkillUnlock began as ChessUnlock. I was stuck around 1100 on chess.com and knew the fix was daily tactics, and I never did them. So I made my Mac show a puzzle every time I woke it. Five days later I’d solved 34 puzzles without opening a chess app once. It works because unlocking is a habit you already have.
Questions
Do I need to know chess already?
You should know how the pieces move and what checkmate means. Puzzles start around 600 Elo and adapt to you, from beginner to advanced.
Where do the puzzles come from?
All 325,000 are positions from real games, from the Lichess open puzzle database. Each one has a single best line and is tagged with its tactical themes.
How does the rating work?
Your Elo rating goes up when you solve a puzzle cleanly and down when you miss or use a hint. New puzzles are picked near your rating, so they stay hard but solvable.
What if I’m in a hurry?
Hold to skip and you’re through. Your streak resets; your rating doesn’t change. You can also set quiet hours or a gap between challenges.
I bought ChessUnlock. Does my key work?
Yes. SkillUnlock is ChessUnlock’s successor, and a ChessUnlock license key activates the Chess skill.
How much is it?
Chess is free for 7 days, then $5.99 once. Or get every current and future skill for $14.99. No subscription.
Get a puzzle on your next unlock.
Free download. Chess is free for 7 days, then $5.99 once, and Math is free forever.
macOS 14 or later · No account needed