---
title: "Do Apps Show WXF Notation or Chinese Characters? · Xiangqi Master"
description: "Most modern platforms default to whichever suits their main audience and offer a setting to switch, since neither notation requires knowing the other to actually play the game."
url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/do-apps-show-wxf-notation-or-chinese-characters
updated: 2026-09-23
source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com)
license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
---

# Do most xiangqi apps and websites show WXF notation, Chinese characters, or both, and can players usually switch?

These answers restate the rules implemented by our open-source engine, which follows the WXF laws and is regression-tested against the official 110-diagram repetition casebook. Where an answer refers to a specific position, that position lives on the linked reference page, where the build verifies it against the engine before publishing.

> Direct answer
>
> **It depends on the platform, but most give you a choice.** Software aimed primarily at a Chinese-reading audience tends to default to Chinese characters on the pieces and in the move log, while software aimed at an international audience often defaults to Roman-letter WXF notation or simple visual piece icons instead. Most well-built modern platforms let a player switch this in a settings menu, since the underlying game and its rules are identical either way.

## Why the choice barely matters for actually playing

Both notations describe the exact same moves on the exact same board; neither is more "correct" than the other, they are simply two different written representations of identical information. A player who has never seen a Chinese character in their life can play a full game using only WXF or visual piece icons and lose nothing in the process.

## Where the choice does matter

It matters most when trying to follow along with outside material, a commentary video, a printed book, or a database of historical games, since matching the platform's notation to whatever source you are studying from saves a lot of unnecessary mental translation.

## Related questions

Can I learn to play well without ever learning Chinese characters?

Yes, completely. Plenty of strong international players never learn to read the characters and rely entirely on piece shapes or WXF notation.

Do move logs usually show algebraic-style coordinates instead of either system?

Some do, particularly software aimed at players coming from chess, though WXF-style notation remains the more common standard within the xiangqi community itself.

## Related xiangqi resources

Reading notation

炮二平五 and C2=5 — the same move, two ways

Play xiangqi

Free, in the browser, nothing to install

Play the computer

Four difficulty levels, no account needed

## Try it on a real board

Reading an answer is one thing; playing it is another. Free, instant, and nothing to install.