Terms of Service

By creating an account or using ChessMate (the “Service”), you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

We may update these Terms at any time. Continued use after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

You must be at least 13 years old to use ChessMate. Users under 18 must have parental or guardian consent. By using the Service, you represent that you meet these requirements.

You are responsible for maintaining the security of your account credentials. You may not share your account with others. ChessMate is not liable for losses caused by unauthorized access resulting from your failure to safeguard your credentials.

You agree to provide accurate registration information, including your US Chess member ID where required. Providing false membership information on rated events may result in account suspension.

ChessMate has three account roles: Player, Arbiter, and Tournament Director. Your role is set at registration and determines what actions you may take. Role changes are not supported after account creation.

Tournament Directors are responsible for the events they create, including entry fee collection, prize distribution, and compliance with applicable chess federation rules.

Entry fees are processed through Stripe. By registering for a paid event, you authorize the charge to your payment method. ChessMate collects a platform fee on each transaction.

Refunds are determined by the tournament director’s refund policy, not by ChessMate. ChessMate does not guarantee refunds for withdrawn registrations.

Tournament Directors receive payouts via Stripe Connect subject to Stripe’s own terms and applicable hold periods.

ChessMate integrates with US Chess to verify membership and pull ratings. Rating data is read-only. We do not submit results to US Chess — that remains the responsibility of the certified tournament director.

We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or a subsidiary of US Chess Federation.

You may not: use the Service to commit fraud; impersonate another person; manipulate pairings, results, or ratings in bad faith; harass other users; scrape or systematically extract data; or violate any applicable law.

Violations may result in immediate account suspension or termination without notice.

You retain ownership of content you submit (tournament descriptions, player bios, etc.). By submitting content, you grant ChessMate a worldwide, royalty-free license to display, store, and transmit that content as part of operating the Service.

We reserve the right to remove any content that violates these Terms or our community standards.

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. WE DO NOT GUARANTEE UPTIME, ACCURACY OF RATINGS DATA, OR UNINTERRUPTED ACCESS.

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, CHESSMATE’S LIABILITY IS LIMITED TO THE AMOUNT YOU PAID TO US IN THE 12 MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM. WE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. Any disputes shall be resolved in the state or federal courts of Delaware.

Questions about these Terms? Email us at legal@chessmate.app.