Dan Heisman (danheisman.com) review: scores and evidence
Dan Heisman (NM, CM) gives private lessons over Teams/Zoom or in person at $125/h, with 60-70% of the time spent reviewing the student’s slow games, and publishes books, 400+ free videos and Chessable/ChessReps courses. The site offers no software tooling: no import, no engine analysis, no interactive exercises.
Read on August 30, 2026 from the service’s public pages — every score cites the page read.
Overall score
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Not scored overall
Rank
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Languages
1
Listed price
$125/hour (seniors $90/h, juniors $100/h) ≈ €115/h. No annual package. Free content: over 400 videos.
What the service is
danheisman.com is the personal website of Dan Heisman, a USCF National Master and FIDE Candidate Master who coaches full time from Wynnewood, Pennsylvania (United States). The "About Dan" page (danheisman.com/about-dan.html) describes him as a full-time instructor since 1996 (the homepage says 1994), a USCF member since 1966, the author of 14 books including "Elements of Positional Evaluation" (1990) and "Looking for Trouble" (3rd edition 2022), host of the "Ask the Renaissance Man" show on ICC (2002-2009) and Chess Journalist of the Year 2010. The service is one-to-one human teaching: private lessons over Teams or Zoom or in person, with 60 to 70 percent of lesson time spent reviewing the student’s slow games, "think out loud" exercises (de Groot) and homework (slow games, tactics, annotated games, reading). The model is hourly payment: $125 (seniors $90, Top Junior programme $100), 11 lessons for the price of 10, and a money-back guarantee claimed at the end of a lesson (danheisman.com/fees.html). The site freely publishes more than 400 YouTube videos, articles and principles, and points to Chessable and ChessReps courses. It offers no software tooling: no game import, no engine analysis, no interactive exercises, and no privacy policy was found.
Activity history
- 2026-06On 9 June 2026, "News and Notes" announces repertoire courses on chessreps.com: "Introduction to the French Defense", with "The Traxler Counterattack in the Two Knights Defense" in preparation.
- 2025-08On 1 August 2025, three Chess Journalists of America awards: Best Instructive Lesson ("The 3 Ply for Checks, Captures, Threats"), Best Educational Lesson ("Recognizing Common Chess Patterns") and Best Twitter Feed ("Chess Tip of the Day", third time).
- 2025-03On 10 March 2025, the Dan Heisman Chess Support Fund (Philadelphia Foundation) awards two grants totalling $1,300 to the Villanova University chess club and the MasterMinds Summer Scholastic Chess League.
- 2024-07On 17 July 2024, Tim Tusing receives the Dan Heisman Award for Excellence in Chess Instruction, the fourth recipient of this national award established in 2021.
- 2023-09On 12 September 2023, the third edition of "Looking for Trouble" goes to press, expected in the warehouse by late November 2023.
- 2022-08On 23 August 2022, the YouTube channel nears 300 videos; the homepage now counts more than 400.
- 2010Dan Heisman is named Chess Journalist of the Year 2010 by the Chess Journalists of America ("About Dan" page).
- 1996Full-time chess instructor since 1996 according to the "About Dan" page; USCF member since 1966.
The scores, evidence by evidence
Every score points to the page read and the fact found there. A fact documented nowhere is not credited: document it, then write to us.
APersonalized diagnosis
0.4A1 :1Importing your games (Chess.com, Lichess, PGN files)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — the student brings their slow games for review in the lesson; no import tool.
A2 :0Automatic engine analysis of every game
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no engine analysis provided by the service; human review only.
A3 :0Recurring mistakes identified across all your games
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — "Is it a common, classifiable mistake?" asked orally; nothing aggregated or counted
A4 :0Types of mistakes covered (tactics, strategy, endgame, time…)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no published typology
A5 :0Written explanation of each mistake
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — human explanation during the lesson, no written example per mistake
A6 :0Stated verification of the diagnoses (procedure, rates)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no information on reliability; money-back guarantee only.
A7 :0Tracking each weakness over time
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no dashboard or indicator history.
A8 :0Comparison with players of the same rating
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no comparison with a rating band.
BOpenings
2.2B1 :1Building a personal repertoire
https://www.danheisman.com/news-and-notes — fixed repertoire courses on ChessReps (French, Traxler); no editor.
B2 :0Training the repertoire (drills, games)
https://www.danheisman.com/index.html — drill hosted by ChessReps/Chessable (host platforms, not rated); nothing on the site.
B3 :0Spotting where you left your repertoire in your games
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no deviation detection.
B4 :1Verification of the lines taught (engine, practice)
https://www.danheisman.com/about-dan.html — NM/CM author; no announced engine check of his lines.
B5 :0Opening explorer and statistics
https://www.danheisman.com/chess-analysis--games.html — points to external Chessgames/365Chess; no explorer of its own.
B6 :2Explanation of opening plans and ideas
https://www.danheisman.com/more.html — written "Opening Principles" + Openings videos; no structured traps/model games.
CTargeted training
2.6C1 :1Exercises drawn from your own games
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — review of the missed moves in the student’s games; no bank or generated exercise.
C2 :0Bank of tactical exercises (size, themes, rating)
https://www.danheisman.com/more.html — "Chess Exercises" as text/video; no tactics bank with counts.
C3 :1Endgame training
https://www.danheisman.com/videos.html — endgame videos; no interactive module.
C4 :1Strategic and positional training
https://www.danheisman.com/dans-books.html — book "Elements of Positional Evaluation": passive content
C5 :1Training defense and alertness
https://www.danheisman.com/dans-books.html — "Is Your Move Safe?", "Looking for Trouble": books, no interactive exercise
C6 :1Training calculation and visualization
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — de Groot "think out loud" exercises during the lesson; no published progressive programme.
C7 :0Difficulty matched to your real level
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — level chosen by the coach; no adaptive rating.
C8 :0Spaced repetition (named algorithm)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no spaced repetition
C9 :2Personalized training plan
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — homework with a fixed split (~55% slow games, tactics, annotated games, reading) identical for everyone; no adjustable budget
DPrice and value
6.7D1 :2What the free plan actually lets you do
https://www.danheisman.com/videos.html — 400+ free YouTube videos, free articles and principles; paid lessons.
D2 :1Annual price of the full plan
https://www.danheisman.com/fees.html — per-session pricing: $125/h (seniors $90, juniors $100), lowest displayed price $90 ≈ €83; scored on the displayed session price (€76-150).
D3 :2Commercial transparency (price shown, trial, cancellation)
https://www.danheisman.com/fees.html — fees displayed, money-back guarantee at the end of the lesson, no subscription or renewal.
D4 :3Number of paid tiers (how simple the offer is)
https://www.danheisman.com/fees.html — a single rate of $125/h, discounts (seniors $90, juniors, 11 for 10) with no separate tier
EEvidence and transparency
5.0E1 :1Published evidence of effectiveness
https://www.danheisman.com/about-dan.html — "from 1450 to 2000+ ICC Standard rating in 1 year", NM students; no method.
E2 :2Chess verification of the content (positions, lines)
https://www.danheisman.com/about-dan.html — content written and reviewed by an NM/CM; no published protocol.
E3 :1Transparency of the method (algorithms, code)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — method described (Socratic, de Groot, game review) without parameters.
E4 :2Marketing claims that can be checked (no overselling)
https://www.danheisman.com/index.html — factual wording ("1,000+ private students"); no quantified promise on the homepage.
FContent and method
4.0F1 :0Courses organized by rating level
https://www.danheisman.com/videos.html — videos by theme, no level label; no structured course.
F2 :1Course authors named and titled
https://www.danheisman.com/about-dan.html — Dan Heisman NM (USCF) / FIDE CM; no FM/IM/GM.
F3 :2Content formats (text, video, interactive)
https://www.danheisman.com/videos.html — text (articles, books) + video (400+ YouTube); no interactive exercises.
F4 :1Published method of progression
https://www.danheisman.com/more.html — "Thought Process Principles", advice by phase; no curriculum with milestones.
F5 :2How often the content is updated
https://www.danheisman.com/news-and-notes — post of 9 June 2026; book "Maximize Your Chess Potential" awarded in 2026.
GPlaying and practice
0.8G1 :0Playing humans online (pool, anti-cheating)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — the site does not let you play; refers to third-party servers.
G2 :0Realistic artificial opponents
https://www.danheisman.com/index.html — no artificial opponent.
G3 :0Replaying one specific position against the machine
https://www.danheisman.com/index.html — no tool to practise from a position.
G4 :1Tournaments and organized competition
https://www.danheisman.com/index.html — "Holly Heisman Memorial" occasional charity tournament.
HExperience and accessibility
2.7H1 :1Platforms available (web, iOS, Android, desktop)
https://www.danheisman.com/ — website only (Weebly); lessons over Teams/Zoom; no app.
H2 :2User ratings and reviews (stores, press)
https://www.danheisman.com/about-dan.html — no store rating; CJA awards in 2010, 2021, 2023, 2025 (consistent positive third-party recognition).
H3 :0Interface languages available
a single language observed — https://www.danheisman.com/ — site and lessons in English only; no language selector.
H4 :0Accessibility (keyboard, screen reader)
https://www.danheisman.com/ — no accessibility information.
H5 :1Offline use and known incidents
https://www.danheisman.com/videos.html — depends on YouTube/ICC (ICC links affected in late 2024); text content readable.
IPreparation and study
0.0I1 :0Preparing for a named opponent
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no opponent preparation
I2 :0Annotating and sharing games (studies)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — oral review during the lesson; no annotation tool
I3 :0Entering a game played at a club (photo, scoresheet)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — the student pastes their moves into the Teams chat; no entry tool of the service’s own
I4 :0Searching your games (filters, position)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — games stored on Chess.com/Lichess; no search provided
JHuman coaching and community
5.8J1 :3Access to human coaches
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — identified NM coach, "60-70% of my lesson time is reviewing your slow games".
J2 :1Size and activity of the community
https://www.danheisman.com/index.html — Twitter "Chess Tip of the Day", YouTube; no forum or community counter.
J3 :0Tools for trainers, clubs and schools
https://www.danheisman.com/fees.html — group lessons +$15/h per student; no coach/club space.
J4 :3Engagement mechanics (streaks, virtual currency, reminders)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no gamification or leaderboard; progress tracked by the coach.
KPersonal data and interoperability
0.0K1 :0Exporting your data (games, repertoire)
https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html — no hosted data, no export.
K2 :0Protection of personal data (GDPR, hosting)
https://www.danheisman.com/privacy-policy.html → 404; no privacy policy found on the site.
K3 :0Public API and source code
https://www.danheisman.com/ — closed showcase site; no API or PGN.
Also, outside the grid
Features found that no criterion measures. They do not count towards the score.
- Discounted programme for USCF Top-100 juniors
- "Think out loud" exercise (de Groot)
- Money-back guarantee per lesson
Sources consulted
- https://www.danheisman.com/
- https://www.danheisman.com/about-dan.html
- https://www.danheisman.com/lessons.html
- https://www.danheisman.com/fees.html
- https://www.danheisman.com/news-and-notes
- https://www.danheisman.com/index.html
- https://www.danheisman.com/chess-analysis--games.html
- https://www.danheisman.com/more.html
- https://www.danheisman.com/videos.html
- https://www.danheisman.com/dans-books.html
- https://www.danheisman.com/privacy-policy.html
Services with a similar profile
The three services whose category profile is closest — a distance over the eleven scores, computed, never chosen.