- ECO code
- C10
- Moves
- 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3
- Family
- French Defense
- To move
- Black
- Master games
- 3,079
- Average game length
- 43 moves
- Years covered
- 1862–2026
French Defense: Paulsen Variation is the opening filed under ECO code C10, reached after 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3. It belongs to the French Defense family and is known as the Paulsen Variation; in the resulting position it is Black to move.
Katuranga's collection of 138,070 master games contains 3,079 games on this line — the 43rd most played opening in the collection. The oldest game on this line is from 1862 and the most recent from 2026. The busiest decade in this collection is the 2020s, with 817 games. An average game here lasts 43 moves.
White wins 41% of those games, 33% end in a draw, and Black wins 26%. That is close to the collection average (White 37%, draws 35%, Black 28%).
From this position the most popular move is 3...Nf6, played in 1,548 games, followed by 3...Bb4 (1,129) and 3...dxe4 (307). 3...Nf6 leads into French Defense: Classical Variation. After 3...Nf6 White scores 39% and Black 28%.
The name that appears most often on the White side of this line is Caruana,F (128 games); on the Black side, Kortschnoj, Viktor (133).
13 named variations branch off this position and have their own page here, among them French Defense: Classical Variation; French Defense: Winawer Variation; French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation.
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Results in master games
- White 41% (1,260)
- Draws 33% (1,007)
- Black 26% (812)
Most played continuations
| Move | Games | White / draws / Black | Leads into |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3...Nf6 | 1,548 | 39/33/28 | French Defense: Classical Variation |
| 3...Bb4 | 1,129 | 41/32/27 | French Defense: Winawer Variation |
| 3...dxe4 | 307 | 47/38/15 | French Defense: Rubinstein Variation |
| 3...Nc6 | 51 | 45/33/22 | — |
| 3...h6 | 15 | 33/13/54 | — |
| 3...c5 | 10 | 30/30/40 | — |
| 3...Be7 | 9 | 56/22/22 | — |
| 3...a6 | 8 | 50/25/25 | — |
Variations from this position
- French Defense: Classical Variation · 3...Nf6 · 1,548 games
- French Defense: Winawer Variation · 3...Bb4 · 1,129 games
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation · 3...Bb4 4.e5 · 855 games
- French Defense: Classical Variation · 3...Nf6 4.Bg5 · 756 games
- French Defense: Classical Variation, Steinitz Variation · 3...Nf6 4.e5 · 731 games
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation · 3...Bb4 4.e5 c5 · 592 games
- French Defense: Steinitz Variation · 3...Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 · 582 games
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation · 3...Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 · 535 games
- French Defense: Steinitz Variation, Boleslavsky Variation · 3...Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 · 512 games
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation · 3...Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 · 456 games
- French Defense: Classical Variation, Burn Variation · 3...Nf6 4.Bg5 dxe4 · 406 games
- French Defense: Rubinstein Variation · 3...dxe4 · 307 games
- French Defense: Winawer Variation, Advance Variation · 3...Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Ne7 · 302 games
How the position is reached
- King's Pawn Game · 1.e4 · 62,859 games
- French Defense · 1.e4 e6 · 6,176 games
- French Defense: Normal Variation · 1.e4 e6 2.d4 · 5,579 games
- French Defense · 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 · 5,533 games
Played most often by
As White
- Caruana,F 128
- Karjakin,Sergey 112
- Hou Yifan 97
As Black
- Kortschnoj, Viktor 133
- Erigaisi,Arjun 127
- Ivanchuk,V 77
Games per decade
- 1860s 12
- 1870s 20
- 1880s 10
- 1890s 30
- 1900s 81
- 1910s 65
- 1920s 105
- 1930s 77
- 1940s 51
- 1950s 82
- 1960s 119
- 1970s 80
- 1980s 118
- 1990s 276
- 2000s 572
- 2010s 564
- 2020s 817
Master games on this line
| White | Black | Result | Year | Events |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rustamov,Rustam | Nakamura,Hi | 0-1 | 2026 | 1st 3-0 Thu 5th Mar 2026 |
| Vakhlamov,I | Caruana,F | 1/2-1/2 | 2026 | 1st 3-0 Thu 29th Jan 2026 |
| Vokhidov,Shamsiddin | Erigaisi,Arjun | 1-0 | 2026 | 1st 3-0 Thu 12th Mar 2026 |
| Caruana,F | Gharibyan,Mamikon | 1-0 | 2026 | 3rd 3-0 Thu 19th Feb 2026 |
| Daneshvar,Bardiya | Aronian,L | 1-0 | 2026 | Chess.com Open PlayIn2 |
| Pranesh,M | Erigaisi,Arjun | 0-1 | 2026 | Titled Tue 19th May 2026 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the French Defense: Paulsen Variation?
It is the opening with ECO code C10, reached after 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3. It belongs to the French Defense family.
Is the French Defense: Paulsen Variation good for White or for Black?
In 3,079 master games on this line White wins 41%, 33% are drawn and Black wins 26%. The collection average is White 37%, draws 35%, Black 28% — so this line is no worse than usual for White than the field as a whole.
What is the main continuation of the French Defense: Paulsen Variation?
3...Nf6 — played in 1,548 of the master games on this line, which leads into French Defense: Classical Variation.
Which grandmasters play the French Defense: Paulsen Variation?
On the White side Caruana,F (128), Karjakin,Sergey (112), Hou Yifan (97); on the Black side Kortschnoj, Viktor (133), Erigaisi,Arjun (127), Ivanchuk,V (77).
Every number on this page is computed from Katuranga's master game collection; names and ECO codes follow the lichess opening book (CC0).
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