List of FIDE chess world number ones - wikipedia List of FIDE chess world number ones A total of seven chess players have been the chess world number one on the official FIDE rating list since it was first published in July 1971. The first world number one, in July 1971, was Bobby Fischer. In January 1976 Anatoly Karpov became the highest - rated player on the FIDE list, FIDE having dropped Fischer ( whose rating was higher than Karpov 's ) from the list due to inactivity. In January 1984, the third world number one was Garry Kasparov. Anatoly Karpov briefly held the world number one ranking in July 1985, and the fourth world number one, Vladimir Kramnik, briefly held the ranking in January 1996. Other than these two brief periods, Kasparov dominated for some 22 years from 1984 until his retirement from professional chess on 10 March 2005. In January 1990, he surpassed Fischer 's peak of 2785 and became the first player ever to achieve a 2800 rating. In July 1999, he reached his peak rating, 2851. This was the highest FIDE rating in history until January 2013, when it was surpassed by Magnus Carlsen. On Kasparov 's retirement, the world number one ranking passed to Veselin Topalov, since Kasparov was removed from the rating list in April 2006 due to inactivity. In April 2007, Viswanathan Anand became the sixth player to top the rankings. Kramnik briefly returned to the number one ranking in January 2008, but was again joint number one by rating, being placed first in the list due to having played more games in the rating period in question. For most of the period April 2007 to November 2009, the top ranking was held by either Anand or Topalov. The seventh and current world number one is Magnus Carlsen, who first achieved this ranking in the January 2010 list, and has been world number one since July 2011 after having lost and reclaimed the position from Anand during 2010 and 2011. Contents 1 Publication details 2 List of world number ones 2.1 Timeline of world number ones 2.2 Player statistics 3 Women 3.1 List of world female number ones 3.2 Timeline 3.3 Women statistics 4 List of junior world number ones 5 List of girl world number ones 6 Rapid and blitz ratings 6.1 Rapid chess 6.1. 1 Top players 6.1. 2 Top women 6.1. 3 Top juniors 6.1. 4 Top girls 6.2 Blitz chess 6.2. 1 Top players ( blitz ) 6.2. 2 Top women ( blitz ) 6.2. 3 Top juniors ( blitz ) 6.2. 4 Top girls ( blitz ) 7 See also 8 References 9 Notes 10 External links Publication details There were unofficial lists in 1964, 1969, 1970 and January 1971, as the Elo rating system was first introduced. From 1971 to 1980, there was one main rating list published each year ( for a total of 10 ), initially published in July from 1971 to 1973, then once in May ( 1974 ), before switching to annual publication in January from 1975 to 1980 ( in this period, some supplements and amendments were also published ). From 1981 to July 2000, two lists per year were published, in January and July ( for a total of 39 lists ). In July 2000, the publication schedule was increased to four times a year ( January, April, July, October ) operating from July 2000 to July 2009 ( for a total of 36 lists ). In July 2009, the publication schedule was increased again, to six times a year ( January, March, May, July, September, November ) operating from July 2009 to July 2012 ( for a total of 18 lists ). In July 2012 the publication schedule was increased again to the current monthly schedule. Publication of the rating lists in the 1970s and 1980s was in Chess Informant and other chess publications. The number of games played by individuals during the rating period was added to the lists from July 1985 onwards. Player ID numbers were used from January 1990. From January 1999, the practice of rounding to the nearest five Elo points was discontinued, and ratings were then rounded to the nearest Elo point for publication. From July 2000 onwards, the ratings are available from the FIDE website. In January 2010 former World Champion Boris Spassky criticized the current emphasis on ratings rather than World Champions. Although Spassky was World Champion during the inception of the FIDE rankings in 1971, he never became the number - one rated player in the world ; since July 1971 he and Vladimir Kramnik are the only undisputed World Champions to never become ranked world number - one during their tenure as champions. List of world number ones The following is a list of the players ranked number one on the FIDE rating system from the first official list in July 1971 to the present day, along with their ratings during the periods in question. Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 1971 before official FIDE ratings Bobby Fischer ( 2760 ) 1972 Bobby Fischer ( 2785 ) 1973 Bobby Fischer ( 2780 ) Bobby Fischer ( 2780 ) Bobby Fischer ( 2780 ) 1976 Karpov ( 2695 ) 1977 Karpov ( 2690 ) 1978 Karpov ( 2725 ) supplementary list 1979 Karpov ( 2705 ) supplementary list 1980 Karpov ( 2725 ) supplementary list 1981 Karpov ( 2690 ) Karpov ( 2690 ) 1982 Karpov ( 2700 ) Karpov ( 2700 ) Karpov ( 2710 ) Karpov ( 2710 ) 1984 Kasparov ( 2710 ) Kasparov ( 2715 ) 1985 Kasparov ( 2715 ) Karpov ( 2720 ) 1986 Kasparov ( 2720 ) Kasparov ( 2740 ) Kasparov ( 2735 ) Kasparov ( 2740 ) 1988 Kasparov ( 2750 ) Kasparov ( 2760 ) 1989 Kasparov ( 2775 ) Kasparov ( 2775 ) 1990 Kasparov ( 2800 ) Kasparov ( 2800 ) 1991 Kasparov ( 2800 ) Kasparov ( 2770 ) 1992 Kasparov ( 2780 ) Kasparov ( 2790 ) 1993 Kasparov ( 2805 ) Kasparov ( 2815 ) 1994 Kasparov ( 2815 ) Kasparov ( 2815 ) 1995 Kasparov ( 2805 ) Kasparov ( 2795 ) Kramnik ( 2775 ) Kasparov ( 2785 ) 1997 Kasparov ( 2795 ) Kasparov ( 2820 ) 1998 Kasparov ( 2825 ) Kasparov ( 2815 ) 1999 Kasparov ( 2812 ) Kasparov ( 2851 ) 2000 Kasparov ( 2851 ) Kasparov ( 2849 ) Kasparov ( 2849 ) 2001 Kasparov ( 2849 ) Kasparov ( 2827 ) Kasparov ( 2838 ) Kasparov ( 2838 ) 2002 Kasparov ( 2838 ) Kasparov ( 2838 ) Kasparov ( 2838 ) Kasparov ( 2836 ) 2003 Kasparov ( 2847 ) Kasparov ( 2830 ) Kasparov ( 2830 ) Kasparov ( 2830 ) Kasparov ( 2831 ) Kasparov ( 2817 ) Kasparov ( 2817 ) Kasparov ( 2813 ) 2005 Kasparov ( 2804 ) Kasparov ( 2812 ) Kasparov ( 2812 ) Kasparov ( 2812 ) 2006 Kasparov ( 2812 ) Topalov ( 2804 ) Topalov ( 2813 ) Topalov ( 2813 ) 2007 Topalov ( 2783 ) Anand ( 2786 ) Anand ( 2792 ) Anand ( 2801 ) 2008 Kramnik ( 2799 ) Anand ( 2803 ) Anand ( 2798 ) Topalov ( 2791 ) 2009 Topalov ( 2796 ) Topalov ( 2812 ) Topalov ( 2813 ) Topalov ( 2810 ) Carlsen ( 2810 ) Carlsen ( 2813 ) Carlsen ( 2826 ) Anand ( 2817 ) 2011 Carlsen ( 2814 ) Anand ( 2817 ) Carlsen ( 2821 ) Carlsen ( 2823 ) Carlsen ( 2826 ) 2012 Carlsen ( 2835 ) Carlsen ( 2837 ) Carlsen ( 2843 ) Carlsen ( 2848 ) 2013 Carlsen ( 2861 ) Carlsen ( 2872 ) Carlsen ( 2868 ) Carlsen ( 2864 ) Carlsen ( 2862 ) Carlsen ( 2870 ) Carlsen ( 2872 ) 2014 Carlsen ( 2872 ) Carlsen ( 2881 ) Carlsen ( 2882 ) Carlsen ( 2881 ) Carlsen ( 2877 ) Carlsen ( 2870 ) Carlsen ( 2863 ) Carlsen ( 2862 ) 2015 Carlsen ( 2862 ) Carlsen ( 2865 ) Carlsen ( 2863 ) Carlsen ( 2876 ) Carlsen ( 2853 ) Carlsen ( 2850 ) Carlsen ( 2834 ) 2016 Carlsen ( 2844 ) Carlsen ( 2851 ) Carlsen ( 2855 ) Carlsen ( 2857 ) Carlsen ( 2853 ) Carlsen ( 2840 ) 2017 Carlsen ( 2840 ) Carlsen ( 2838 ) Carlsen ( 2832 ) Carlsen ( 2822 ) Carlsen ( 2827 ) Carlsen ( 2826 ) Carlsen ( 2837 ) 2018 Carlsen ( 2834 ) Carlsen ( 2843 ) Carlsen ( 2842 ) Timeline of world number ones Player statistics As of June 2017, seven players have held the world number one ranking over a period of 46 years and 0 months, encompassing 162 rating lists. These seven players include six undisputed world chess champions, with Topalov being the only player to achieve the number one ranking without becoming undisputed world champion, though he was FIDE world champion from 2005 to 2006, and is still an active player. Kramnik and Spassky are the only world champions in the period in question to never have been world number one while being champion. Fischer was top of the lists successively five times over a period of 4.5 years, though he is considered to have already become the number one player in the world before the official list started, as he topped the unofficial list in 1970. Karpov topped the list 12 times, successively 11 times over a period of 8 years, and once for 6 months. Kasparov has been world number one on the official list 54 times over a period of 22 years, and 31 times successively over nearly a decade from July 1996 to January 2006 ; he was number one 3 times successively over 1.5 years, then 20 times successively over 10 years, then finally 31 times over 9 years and 9 months. Kramnik was world number one 2 times ( for 6 and 3 months ), for a total of 9 months. Topalov has been world number one successively 4 and 6 times ( a total of 10 times ), for 12 months and 15 months respectively ( for a total of 27 months ). Anand has been world number one successively 2 and 3 times ( a total of 5 times ), for 6 months and 9 months respectively ( for a total of 15 months ). Carlsen has been world number one a record 76 times, including a record 70 consecutive times from July 2011 until October 2017. Time at FIDE number one and youngest age at FIDE number one ( through September 1, 2018 ) Player Months at No. 1 Peak rating Age at first time No. 1 Date at first time No. 1 Rating at first time No. 1 Garry Kasparov 255 2851 7003756800000000000 ♠ 20 years, 263 days January 1, 1984 2710 Anatoly Karpov 102 2780 7003898900000000000 ♠ 24 years, 223 days January 1, 1976 2695 Magnus Carlsen 98 2882 7003697200000000000 ♠ 19 years, 32 days January 1, 2010 2810 Bobby Fischer 54 2785 7004103410000000000 ♠ 28 years, 114 days July 1, 1971 2760 Veselin Topalov 27 2813 7004113400000000000 ♠ 31 years, 17 days April 1, 2006 2804 Viswanathan Anand 21 2817 7004136250000000000 ♠ 37 years, 111 days April 1, 2007 2786 Vladimir Kramnik 9 2811 7003749500000000000 ♠ 20 years, 190 days January 1, 1996 2775 Women List of world female number ones The following is a list of the players ranked number one female on the FIDE rating system from the first official list in July 1971 to the present day, along with their ratings during the periods in question. Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 1971 before official FIDE ratings Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2390 ) 1972 Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2450 ) 1973 Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2420 ) Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2405 ) Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2410 ) 1976 Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2440 ) 1977 Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2445 ) 1978 Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2425 ) supplementary list 1979 Nona Gaprindashvili ( 2405 ) supplementary list 1980 Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2400 ) supplementary list 1981 Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2425 ) Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2405 ) 1982 Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2390 ) Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2385 ) Pia Cramling ( 2355 ) Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2380 ) 1984 Pia Cramling ( 2405 ) Susan Polgar ( 2405 ) 1985 Susan Polgar ( 2430 ) Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2450 ) 1986 Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2455 ) Susan Polgar ( 2455 ) Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2530 ) Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2550 ) 1988 Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2560 ) Maia Chiburdanidze ( 2555 ) 1989 Judit Polgar ( 2555 ) Judit Polgar ( 2555 ) 1990 Judit Polgar ( 2550 ) Judit Polgar ( 2540 ) 1991 Judit Polgar ( 2540 ) Judit Polgar ( 2550 ) 1992 Judit Polgar ( 2550 ) Judit Polgar ( 2575 ) 1993 Judit Polgar ( 2595 ) Judit Polgar ( 2635 ) 1994 Judit Polgar ( 2630 ) Judit Polgar ( 2630 ) 1995 Judit Polgar ( 2630 ) Judit Polgar ( 2635 ) Judit Polgar ( 2675 ) Judit Polgar ( 2665 ) 1997 Judit Polgar ( 2645 ) Judit Polgar ( 2670 ) 1998 Judit Polgar ( 2675 ) Judit Polgar ( 2665 ) 1999 Judit Polgar ( 2677 ) Judit Polgar ( 2671 ) 2000 Judit Polgar ( 2658 ) Judit Polgar ( 2656 ) 2001 Judit Polgar ( 2676 ) Judit Polgar ( 2678 ) Judit Polgar ( 2686 ) 2002 Judit Polgar ( 2677 ) Judit Polgar ( 2681 ) Judit Polgar ( 2685 ) 2003 Judit Polgar ( 2700 ) Judit Polgar ( 2715 ) Judit Polgar ( 2718 ) Judit Polgar ( 2722 ) Judit Polgar ( 2728 ) 2005 Susan Polgar ( 2577 ) Judit Polgar ( 2732 ) Judit Polgar ( 2735 ) 2006 Judit Polgar ( 2711 ) Judit Polgar ( 2710 ) 2007 Judit Polgar ( 2727 ) Judit Polgar ( 2707 ) Judit Polgar ( 2708 ) 2008 Judit Polgar ( 2707 ) Judit Polgar ( 2709 ) Judit Polgar ( 2711 ) 2009 Judit Polgar ( 2693 ) Judit Polgar ( 2687 ) Judit Polgar ( 2680 ) Judit Polgar ( 2682 ) Judit Polgar ( 2686 ) 2011 Judit Polgar ( 2686 ) Judit Polgar ( 2699 ) Judit Polgar ( 2701 ) Judit Polgar ( 2710 ) 2012 Judit Polgar ( 2710 ) Judit Polgar ( 2709 ) Judit Polgar ( 2698 ) Judit Polgar ( 2705 ) 2013 Judit Polgar ( 2696 ) Judit Polgar ( 2689 ) J. Polgar ( 2693 ) 2014 Judit Polgar ( 2693 ) Judit Polgar ( 2685 ) Judit Polgar ( 2676 ) Judit Polgar ( 2675 ) 2015 Judit Polgar ( 2675 ) Hou Yifan ( 2686 ) Hou Yifan ( 2676 ) J. Polgar ( 2675 ) Hou Yifan ( 2671 ) Hou Yifan ( 2683 ) 2016 Hou Yifan ( 2673 ) Hou Yifan ( 2667 ) Hou Yifan ( 2663 ) Hou Yifan ( 2658 ) Hou Yifan ( 2649 ) Hou Yifan ( 2635 ) Hou Yifan ( 2651 ) 2017 Hou Yifan ( 2651 ) Hou Yifan ( 2649 ) Hou Yifan ( 2652 ) Hou Yifan ( 2666 ) Hou Yifan ( 2652 ) Hou Yifan ( 2670 ) Hou Yifan ( 2678 ) Hou Yifan ( 2680 ) 2018 Hou Yifan ( 2680 ) Hou Yifan ( 2654 ) Hou Yifan ( 2657 ) Hou Yifan ( 2658 ) Timeline Women statistics Time at FIDE number one and youngest age at FIDE number one ( through September 1, 2018 ) Player Months at No. 1 Peak rating Age at first time No. 1 Date at first time No. 1 Rating at first time No. 1 Judit Polgar 312 2735 7003454500000000000 ♠ 12 years, 162 days January 1, 1989 2555 Nona Gaprindashvili 102 2495 7004110160000000000 ♠ 30 years, 59 days July 1, 1971 2390 Maia Chiburdanidze 78 2560 7003692300000000000 ♠ 18 years, 349 days January 1, 1980 2400 Hou Yifan 41 2686 7003767200000000000 ♠ 21 years, 2 days March 1, 2015 2686 Susan Polgar 18 2577 7003555200000000000 ♠ 15 years, 73 days July 1, 1984 2405 Pia Cramling 12 2550 7003719300000000000 ♠ 19 years, 253 days January 1, 1983 2355 List of junior world number ones FIDE publishes lists of highest - rated junior chess players ; a `` junior '' is defined as being a player who is aged under 20 at the start of the year. The following is a list of the players ranked number one junior in the FIDE rating system from July 2000 to the present day, along with their ratings during the periods in question. Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2000 Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2630 ) Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2624 ) 2001 Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2677 ) Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2673 ) Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2684 ) Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2684 ) 2002 Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2727 ) Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2743 ) Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2743 ) Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2743 ) 2003 Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2734 ) Ruslan Ponomariov ( 2718 ) Alexander Grischuk ( 2732 ) Alexander Grischuk ( 2732 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2656 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2670 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2664 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2663 ) 2005 Andrei Volokitin ( 2685 ) Andrei Volokitin ( 2679 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2682 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2704 ) 2006 Teimour Radjabov ( 2700 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2717 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2728 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2729 ) 2007 Teimour Radjabov ( 2729 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2747 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2746 ) Teimour Radjabov ( 2742 ) 2008 Magnus Carlsen ( 2733 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2765 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2775 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2786 ) 2009 Magnus Carlsen ( 2776 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2770 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2772 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2801 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2810 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2813 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2826 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2802 ) 2011 Fabiano Caruana ( 2721 ) Fabiano Caruana ( 2716 ) Fabiano Caruana ( 2714 ) Le Quang Liem ( 2711 ) Anish Giri ( 2722 ) Fabiano Caruana ( 2727 ) 2012 Fabiano Caruana ( 2736 ) Fabiano Caruana ( 2767 ) Fabiano Caruana ( 2770 ) Caruana ( 2775 ) Fabiano Caruana ( 2773 ) Caruana ( 2772 ) Caruana ( 2786 ) Caruana ( 2782 ) 2013 Giri ( 2726 ) Giri ( 2722 ) Giri ( 2729 ) Giri ( 2727 ) Anish Giri ( 2734 ) Anish Giri ( 2737 ) Giri ( 2749 ) Giri ( 2732 ) Giri ( 2734 ) 2014 Giri ( 2734 ) Giri ( 2746 ) Anish Giri ( 2745 ) Giri ( 2746 ) Giri ( 2752 ) Giri ( 2750 ) Giri ( 2745 ) Giri ( 2758 ) Giri ( 2768 ) Giri ( 2776 ) Giri ( 2768 ) 2015 Rapport ( 2716 ) Rapport ( 2703 ) Rapport ( 2709 ) Rapport ( 2710 ) Wei Yi ( 2718 ) Wei Yi ( 2721 ) Wei Yi ( 2724 ) Wei Yi ( 2725 ) Wei Yi ( 2734 ) Wei Yi ( 2737 ) Wei Yi ( 2730 ) 2016 Richárd Rapport ( 2721 ) Rapport ( 2720 ) Rapport ( 2717 ) Richárd Rapport ( 2731 ) Richárd Rapport ( 2752 ) Rapport ( 2729 ) Rapport ( 2730 ) Rapport ( 2717 ) 2017 Wei Yi ( 2706 ) Wei Yi ( 2725 ) Wei Yi ( 2727 ) Wei Yi ( 2732 ) Wei Yi ( 2728 ) Wei Yi ( 2738 ) Wei Yi ( 2753 ) Wei Yi ( 2748 ) Wei Yi ( 2740 ) Wei Yi ( 2739 ) Wei Yi ( 2743 ) 2018 Wei Yi ( 2743 ) Wei Yi ( 2734 ) Duda ( 2737 ) Duda ( 2740 ) List of girl world number ones FIDE publishes lists of highest - rated girl chess players ; a `` girl '' is defined as being a player who is aged under 20 at the start of the year, and female. The following is a list of the players ranked number one girl in the FIDE rating system from July 2000 to the present day, along with their ratings during the periods in question. Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2000 Hoang Thanh Trang ( 2489 ) Hoang Thanh Trang ( 2493 ) 2001 Xu Yuanyuan ( 2437 ) Viktorija Čmilytė ( 2464 ) Viktorija Čmilytė ( 2464 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2484 ) 2002 Humpy Koneru ( 2539 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2486 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2473 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2484 ) 2003 Humpy Koneru ( 2496 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2496 ) Kateryna Lagno ( 2486 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2484 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2498 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2513 ) Alexandra Kosteniuk ( 2511 ) Alexandra Kosteniuk ( 2508 ) 2005 Humpy Koneru ( 2512 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2508 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2531 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2540 ) 2006 Humpy Koneru ( 2537 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2548 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2545 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2545 ) 2007 Humpy Koneru ( 2567 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2575 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2572 ) Humpy Koneru ( 2606 ) 2008 Hou Yifan ( 2527 ) Hou Yifan ( 2549 ) Hou Yifan ( 2557 ) Hou Yifan ( 2578 ) 2009 Hou Yifan ( 2571 ) Hou Yifan ( 2590 ) Hou Yifan ( 2584 ) Hou Yifan ( 2585 ) Hou Yifan ( 2588 ) Hou Yifan ( 2590 ) Hou Yifan ( 2570 ) Hou Yifan ( 2589 ) Hou Yifan ( 2577 ) Hou Yifan ( 2578 ) Hou Yifan ( 2591 ) 2011 Hou Yifan ( 2602 ) Hou Yifan ( 2612 ) Hou Yifan ( 2575 ) Hou Yifan ( 2578 ) 2012 Hou Yifan ( 2605 ) Hou Yifan ( 2639 ) Hou Yifan ( 2623 ) Hou Yifan ( 2617 ) Hou Yifan ( 2599 ) Hou Yifan ( 2605 ) Hou Yifan ( 2606 ) 2013 Hou Yifan ( 2603 ) Hou Yifan ( 2617 ) Hou Yifan ( 2595 ) Hou Yifan ( 2600 ) Hou Yifan ( 2609 ) Hou Yifan ( 2621 ) Hou Yifan ( 2629 ) 2014 Hou Yifan ( 2629 ) Hou Yifan ( 2618 ) Hou Yifan ( 2629 ) Hou Yifan ( 2661 ) Hou Yifan ( 2663 ) Hou Yifan ( 2673 ) 2015 Aleksandra Goryachkina ( 2451 ) Goryachkina ( 2456 ) Goryachkina ( 2473 ) Goryachkina ( 2474 ) Goryachkina ( 2486 ) Goryachkina ( 2474 ) Goryachkina ( 2497 ) Goryachkina ( 2480 ) Goryachkina ( 2478 ) Goryachkina ( 2493 ) 2016 Goryachkina ( 2502 ) Goryachkina ( 2509 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2504 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2487 ) Goryachkina ( 2482 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2480 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2473 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2468 ) 2017 Lei Tingjie ( 2467 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2480 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2471 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2482 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2488 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2522 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2514 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2534 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2528 ) 2018 Goryachkina ( 2493 ) Goryachkina ( 2491 ) Goryachkina ( 2495 ) Goryachkina ( 2496 ) Goryachkina ( 2505 ) Goryachkina ( 2509 ) Goryachkina ( 2535 ) Rapid and Blitz ratings Since January 2012, FIDE has also calculated ratings for Rapid and Blitz chess, and has published top player rating lists for these time controls since July 2014. Rapid chess Top players Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2014 N / A Fabiano Caruana ( 2858 ) 2015 Fabiano Caruana ( 2856 ) Carlsen ( 2855 ) Hikaru Nakamura ( 2850 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2873 ) 2016 Magnus Carlsen ( 2878 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2894 ) Carlsen ( 2906 ) 2017 Magnus Carlsen ( 2896 ) Carlsen ( 2919 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2909 ) Carlsen ( 2908 ) 2018 Magnus Carlsen ( 2880 ) Top women Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2014 N / A Judit Polgar ( 2646 ) 2015 Judit Polgar ( 2646 ) Hou Yifan ( 2614 ) Hou Yifan ( 2625 ) 2016 Hou Yifan ( 2625 ) Hou Yifan ( 2631 ) Hou Yifan ( 2645 ) 2017 A. Muzychuk ( 2611 ) Hou Yifan ( 2611 ) Hou Yifan ( 2617 ) Hou Yifan ( 2618 ) 2018 Hou Yifan ( 2618 ) A. Muzychuk ( 2611 ) Anna Muzychuk ( 2597 ) A. Muzychuk ( 2609 ) Top juniors Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2014 N / A Rapport ( 2717 ) Richárd Rapport ( 2724 ) 2015 Richárd Rapport ( 2724 ) Richárd Rapport ( 2736 ) 2016 Richárd Rapport ( 2729 ) 2017 Vladislav Artemiev ( 2706 ) Vladislav Artemiev ( 2719 ) Artemiev ( 2708 ) Artemiev ( 2712 ) Artemiev ( 2687 ) 2018 Vladislav Artemiev ( 2767 ) Vladislav Artemiev ( 2733 ) Top girls Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2014 N / A Hou Yifan ( 2600 ) 2015 Guo Qi ( 2426 ) Goryachkina ( 2429 ) Aleksandra Goryachkina ( 2453 ) 2016 Lei Tingjie ( 2445 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2446 ) Goryachkina ( 2456 ) Goryachkina ( 2466 ) 2017 Aleksandra Goryachkina ( 2462 ) Goryachkina ( 2487 ) Goryachkina ( 2460 ) 2018 Aleksandra Goryachkina ( 2476 ) Aleksandra Goryachkina ( 2477 ) Blitz chess Top players ( blitz ) Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2014 N / A Magnus Carlsen ( 2948 ) 2015 Magnus Carlsen ( 2948 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2933 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2914 ) Hikaru Nakamura ( 2884 ) 2016 Magnus Carlsen ( 2890 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2915 ) Ding Liren ( 2875 ) 2017 Magnus Carlsen ( 2914 ) Carlsen ( 2899 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2948 ) Carlsen ( 2986 ) 2018 Magnus Carlsen ( 2965 ) Magnus Carlsen ( 2939 ) Top women ( blitz ) Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2014 N / A Judit Polgar ( 2736 ) 2015 Judit Polgar ( 2736 ) Hou Yifan ( 2704 ) 2016 Valentina Gunina ( 2598 ) Lagno ( 2594 ) Kateryna Lagno ( 2641 ) Hou Yifan ( 2676 ) 2017 Anna Muzychuk ( 2663 ) Hou Yifan ( 2659 ) 2018 Nana Dzagnidze ( 2580 ) Hou Yifan ( 2627 ) Top juniors ( blitz ) Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2014 N / A Anish Giri ( 2757 ) 2015 Bortnyk ( 2761 ) Bortnyk ( 2762 ) Olexandr Bortnyk ( 2764 ) Vladimir Fedoseev ( 2798 ) Lu Shanglei ( 2780 ) 2016 Daniil Dubov ( 2713 ) Artemiev ( 2724 ) Olexandr Bortnyk ( 2769 ) Olexandr Bortnyk ( 2784 ) Artemiev ( 2781 ) Vladislav Artemiev ( 2847 ) 2017 Vladislav Artemiev ( 2777 ) Artemiev ( 2785 ) Vladislav Artemiev ( 2746 ) Wei Yi ( 2740 ) Artemiev ( 2729 ) Vladislav Artemiev ( 2798 ) 2018 Vladislav Artemiev ( 2834 ) Artemiev ( 2824 ) Vladislav Artemiev ( 2849 ) Top girls ( blitz ) Year January February March April May June July August September October November December 2014 N / A Hou Yifan ( 2662 ) 2015 Guo Qi ( 2396 ) Goryachkina ( 2363 ) Goryachkina ( 2377 ) Wang Jue ( 2505 ) 2016 Zhai Mo ( 2398 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2415 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2434 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2446 ) 2017 Lei Tingjie ( 2446 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2451 ) Lei Tingjie ( 2461 ) 2018 Zhansaya Abdumalik ( 2457 ) Goryachkina ( 2449 ) Goryachkina ( 2448 ) Aleksandra Goryachkina ( 2422 ) See also Comparison of top chess players throughout history Chess rating systems List of chess players by peak FIDE rating References Jump up ^ History of Elo ratings 1971 - 2001, OlimpBase Jump up ^ FIDE January 2007 Rating List : Top 100, The Week In Chess Jump up ^ History of Elo ratings 1971 - 2001, OlimpBase Jump up ^ Spassky Kings Do n't Rule Jump up ^ https://ratings.fide.com/toparc.phtml?cod=56 Jump up ^ https://ratings.fide.com/toparc.phtml?cod=404 Notes Jump up ^ FIDE erroneously states that Anna Muzychuk ( rated 2325 ) was the highest - rated girl player in October 2003, despite their official list showing sixteen girl players more highly - rated than Muzychuk. Jump up ^ FIDE did not release an official list of top girl players in May 2016, perhaps as a reference to the HTTP 404 computer error : such a list, if published, would have been numbered 404 on the FIDE website. External links All Time Rankings, includes `` Top 10 lists from 1970 to 1997 '' FIDE historical ratings ( 1970 -- 2000 ) World Top Chess players ( from FIDE, includes archive of FIDE Top Lists from July 2000 to the present ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_FIDE_chess_world_number_ones&oldid=853629457 '' Categories : Lists of chess players Chess rating systems Hidden categories : Pages using Timeline Articles with hCards Talk Contents About Wikipedia Català മലയാളം Polski தமிழ் Edit links This page was last edited on 6 August 2018, at 01 : 33 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. 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Question: who is the number one ranked chess player
Answer: Magnus Carlsen