Online or On the board chess: Which is better?

The pandemic induced by the Covid-19 virus has bought a stop to most chess competitions. Over the board, that is. The online chess scene has shot up exponentially, with chess.com adding over a million members last year alone, and doubling or even tripling the prize money, to attract a stronger player pool. 

Offline chess with chess elite has been rare, with less than 10 taking place in 2020.

While there are many that welcome this change, and manage having a clean transition to online chess, offline chess purists, or at least the ones that grew up with it are waiting for the day offline tournaments are more accessible for them.

They probably want some thing like this.

So what are the pros and cons to online chess? Here is a list:

Pros

More accessible:

Literally anyone with access to the internet can sign up on any of the free chess sites available (I recommend lichess.org) and play, or study chess. Apart from this, Youtube has thousands of quality videos, for chess players of all levels. This no longer requires paying up for a chess coach, though if you have the opportunity to, do sign up as that would be more effective.

More entertaining:

An influx of chess streamers has followed the chess craze, with players of all levels from sub 1000s to the literal World Champion showcasing their games live, mostly with commentary. A lot of them are pretty entertaining, as will agree the other 500million viewers of the top chess channels

this is not an advertisement, I am just showing you this picture because it is cool.

More convenient:

Playing chess over the board requires carrying around a chess set. and setting it up every time a game gets over. Chess played online starts almost instantaneously.

You can play with people all over the world, right from the comfort of your home, and all it takes is a click (to set up the game. Obviously more to play through the whole game.)

More Variants:

Standard chess, as we all know, is popular. But there are a lot of variants to it too. Bughouse, 3-check, atomic, Fischer random (or chess 960) and many more, just waiting to be played, just for the novelty of it, or if you are more serious about it too, is just much easier play online.

Cons

Lag:

The very reason that makes it convenient, can also sometimes be an issue. Real life has almost no lag obviously, but online chess isn't so. Playing with a poor internet connection can often lose you your game, though you might be winning in the game, either due to time outs, or forfeits. This is amplified in the case of speed chess, particularly the rather comical but entertaining hyperbullet time control (30 seconds a side with no increment).

3D chess:

Some players just prefer the feel of pieces in their hands, and the tactile feedback after smacking the clock. This could technically be fixed even online, but be prepared to shell out.

  I haven't used my clock in over a year, but I can still remember the sound it makes when you hit it.

Money:

Online chess simply doesn't have as many tournaments for the intermediate, with large enough prize pools. Maybe at the elite level, but the rest of us are left wanting for more opportunities. Add to that nearly no FIDE rated tournaments too, it makes getting into chess professionally pretty hard.

So, most of the factors for and against online chess have been considered, and while it is totally up to you to decide, here's my verdict:

''Casual players of all levels, and beginners would probably prefer online chess more than serious players, who are looking to improve their rating and become a Grandmaster, would probably benefit more from offline chess. ''