Caro-Kann Defense (3. Nc3 dxe4)
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4
The Caro-Kann Defense is a chess opening classified as ECO B15, reached after 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4. White is to move. 7 named lines continue from this position.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 46,355 times by this move order. White won 50%, 5% were drawn and Black won 45%. The most popular continuation is 4. Nxe4 (90% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.18 (Stockfish, depth 50; best line 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. h4 h6)
- ECO
- B15
- Moves
- 6 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/pp2pppp/2p5/8/3Pp3/2N5/PPP2PPP/R1BQKBNR w KQkq - 0 4- PGN
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 9,563 | |
| 1500-1999 | 25,404 | |
| 2000+ | 11,388 | |
| All | 46,355 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 4. Nxe4 | 41,889 (90%) | |
| 4. f3 Rasa-Studier Gambit | 2,192 (5%) | |
| 4. Bc4 von Hennig Gambit | 1,888 (4%) | |
| 4. Bf4 | 104 (0%) | |
| 4. d5 | 99 (0%) | |
| 4. Be3 | 78 (0%) | |
| 4. Nge2 | 30 (0%) | |
| 4. Bg5 | 19 (0%) |
Master games
16,023 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 37%, draw 27%, Black 36%). The strongest:
- Ethereal 12.01 (3810) – ScorpioNN 3.0.7.1 (3812) 1-0 · TCEC 20 Premier 2020 · 2020-04-05
- ScorpioNN 3.0.7.1 (3812) – Ethereal 12.01 (3810) 1/2-1/2 · TCEC 20 Premier 2020 · 2020-04-01
- Stockfishdev-20240513-e608eab8 (3662) – LCZero0.31-dag-5350a2e-BT4-6147500 (3634) 1-0 · TCEC 26 Superfinal 2024 · 2024-05-22
- LCZero0.31-dag-5350a2e-BT4-6147500 (3634) – Stockfishdev-20240513-e608eab8 (3662) 1-0 · TCEC 26 Superfinal 2024 · 2024-05-21
- Stockfish dev-20241122-b7f17346 (3677) – KomodoDragon 3.3 (3583) 1-0 · TCEC 27 Premier 2024 · 2024-12-03
Search all games of the Caro-Kann Defense and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- Nana_jede_cevape (2850) – GM gmbrewchess (2991) 1-0 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 0s
- Tempstream (2749) – GM RealDavidNavara (2891) 0-1 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 0s
- Lifvix01 (2809) – GM Fabsid (2818) 1/2-1/2 · 2026-09-04 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Caro-Kann Defense (2… d5 3. Nc3) 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3
Continuations
- Caro-Kann Defense: Rasa-Studier Gambit B15 · 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. f3
- Caro-Kann Defense: von Hennig Gambit B15 · 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Bc4
- Caro-Kann Defense: Alekhine Gambit B15 · 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Bd3
- Caro-Kann Defense: Bronstein-Larsen Variation B16 · 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Nxf6+ gxf6
- Caro-Kann Defense: Tartakower Variation B15 · 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Nxf6+ exf6
- Caro-Kann Defense: Alien Gambit B15 · 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Ng5 h6 6. Nxf7
- Caro-Kann Defense: Karpov Variation, Modern Variation, Kasparov Attack B17 · 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nd7 5. Nf3 Ngf6 6. Ng3
More Caro-Kann Defense lines (all)
- Caro-Kann Defense (1. e4 c6) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense (1… c6 2. Nc3) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense (2. Nc3 d5) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack (1… c6 2. c4) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack (2. c4 d5) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Modern Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Open Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Pseudo-Scandinavian B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Van Weersel Attack B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Apocalypse Attack B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Breyer Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Breyer Variation, Stein Attack B10
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.