The honest answer to it is No!
unless you are very young with super high fide, it's extremely unlikely to make chess your career as a player, The current competitive landscape of chess is so broken, that kids are pushing and grinding for breaking records, and even if you are an extremely good player it's pretty hard to go chess fulltime and expect a good income.
Streaming or content creation may be a more viable option, Right now chess is the largest its ever been and millions of players are flocking to various platforms to learn chess and watch chess.
The reason some people dedicate their entire life to chess, is they could be a top player who makes a living out of this, or as I mentioned a creator who makes content, or they will definitely have a source of livelihood and then pursue chess out of passion which seems more plausible
Is Chess a Viable Career Choice for Everyday Players?
No. Not at all. You can barely get a meal out of chess. Coaching is a viable option though. Try to get CM and then you can try coaching.
NO CHESS IS NOT VIABLE CARRER FOR AVERAGE TO BASIC COUNTY STANDARD, YOU STAND ZERO CHANCE OF MAKING A EARNING CAREER FROM CHESS AT THAT LEVEL, UNLESS YOU CAN RALEACH A LEGITIMATE FIDE ELO OF 2300 AS A JUNIOR THEN I WOULD JUDGE A NEED FOR ANOTHER EASIER WAY TO EARN A LIVING, MAYBE BECOME AN ACCOUNTANT, OR POLITICIAN... YEAH AND GET PAID FOR BEING BAD AT ONES JOB!!?
You are indirectly "earning" from chess by sharpening your mind's features which directly influence your real job and everyday's performance.
Chess is a great game, but a lousy profession.
2700+ grandmasters live well from it, but less than stars in golf, tennis, soccer...
2600+ grandmasters barely live from it
2500+ grandmasters scrape to make ends meet
For all the rest it is no profession at all.
Like any professional sport, very few ever become good enough to make a living from it.
even the elite players will tell you there is more money in book endorsements, speaking engagements, and publicity stunts like simuls than in actually playing chess for prize money.
Hello, I'm curious about the viability of pursuing chess as a career. I've noticed individuals investing significant time and effort to excel in chess, and I'm not referring to Grandmasters and elite players, but rather ordinary players like myself. While I acknowledge that chess is a beneficial game for mental development, I still view it as just a game. I wonder why some people are willing to dedicate their entire lives to a game and how they manage to make a living from it.