Online rapid chess is a format played on the internet with a time control typically ranging from 10 to 30 minutes per player for the entire game.
It is one of the most popular formats on chess platforms, striking a balance between quick play and meaningful thinking time. Unlike blitz (under 5 minutes) or bullet (under 3 minutes), online rapid gives players enough time to form a plan, calculate a few variations, and recover from early mistakes. The most common time controls are 10+0 (10 minutes, no increment) and 10+5 (10 minutes with a 5-second increment per move).
In practice, online rapid is widely considered the best format for improvement among club-level players. Games last long enough for errors to stem from technical weaknesses rather than pure time pressure, making post-game analysis far more instructive. It is also the format used for the official rapid ELO rating on most major platforms.