Spaced repetition helped me learn French. It helped me learn Mandarin. Last year I started wondering whether it could also help drag my chess rating up. I'll be honest — SRS for chess isn't new, and this is a crowded space. But I felt current offerings didn't hit the spot. Sometimes you couldn't customise the SRS algorithm. Sometimes there were no community or shared-deck features. The pricier options ($15/month plus add-ons) aren't objectively expensive, but they're prohibitive for some. Free options exist but need a bit of tech know-how to set up. Hence, ChessGrains. I'm hoping for three things from this addition to the ecosystem of chess-tools: 1. It actually improves someone's chess game Well, that's why we're here, isn't it? ChessGrains is not going to turn you into Magnus Carlsen overnight. But hopefully it's a useful tool in your kit — an addition to other improvement methods, not the holy grail. 2. It's affordable This is a big one. I'm not a professional chess player, and shelling out a serious chunk of cash each month isn't what's going to make me better. $2.99/month for Pro is meant to be competitive with the other tools out there, enough to keep the lights on for the project, and low enough that almost anyone serious about chess can afford it. 3. It's collaborative I aim to support this project for as long as I can. Part of that is welcoming feedback and catering to the people who actually use it. If you have a suggestion or a bug, drop me a line at hello@chessgrains.com and I'll come back to you as soon as I can. Shared puzzles and decks, comments, and the community features are the other half of the collaborative bit. What "beta" means ChessGrains is fully open from today in beta, as opportunity to collect feedback and iterate on the project. What that means is: - The Free tier is free forever. 20 reviews and 5 new cards a day, with the SRS retention target fixed at 90%. - Pro is $2.99/month, unlocks unlimited reviews, adjustable retention, and per-deck overrides. Price is locked at that rate from launch — no introductory bait-and-switch. - Things will be rough in places. If you find a bug or something feels off, please email me at hello@chessgrains.com. Every report gets a real reply. Built on the work of others A lot of the foundations of this project come from open-source work I'm grateful for: react-chessboard for core gameplay, Lichess.org for the public puzzle database and game API, SuperMemo World for the SM-2 algorithm, and Stockfish for the engine that powers analysis in your browser. Full attributions on the Licenses page. Without these pillars, much of the wider chess and SRS communities would be worse off.