---
title: "Xiangqi Time Controls Explained · Xiangqi Master"
description: "Online blitz is typically 3+2 or 5+3, rapid 10+5 or 15+10; tournaments use longer main controls with an increment."
url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/what-time-controls-are-used-in-xiangqi
updated: 2026-09-22
source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com)
license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
---

# What time controls are used in xiangqi?

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
>
> Online: **3+2 or 5+3** for blitz, **10+5 or 15+10** for rapid. Tournaments use a longer main control plus an increment, sometimes with a move-count requirement in the first phase. There is nothing xiangqi-specific about the clocks — any chess clock works.

## Which to play for improvement

Ten minutes or longer. Blitz gives volume without decisions worth reviewing, and you cannot learn from a choice you never had time to make. Play some slow games so there is something to review, and use blitz for pattern exposure.

## Increments matter

Xiangqi endgames can require precise technique — mating with a chariot takes a handful of accurate moves, not one. An increment prevents won positions being lost to the clock, which in a game where stalemate loses is a genuinely different outcome from a draw.

## Related questions

Is there a sixty-move rule and a clock?

Both, independently. Sixty moves without a capture draws regardless of time remaining.

Do I need a special clock?

No. Any chess clock is fine.

## Related xiangqi resources

Play xiangqi

Free, in the browser, nothing to install

Perpetual check and chase

Repetition is adjudicated, not automatically drawn

How to improve

What to study, in what order

## Try it on a real board

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