What Time Control should I play?

Personally I’ve found rapid (around 15+0) the best time to improve in, as it gives me enough time to think properly about my moves but too much, so that there’s still a little bit of time pressure per move and it’s not ridiculously dragged out.

@mkubecek said in #3:

I would suggest to start with time control which gives you enough time to think about your moves, avoid (most) stupid mistakes and play decent chess (from your point of view). As you gain practice, you should be able to go faster gradually.

Most people here seem to take the opposite direction, though - and many don't get too far.
Is classical a day (like 30+20) and some blitz games is that good enough?(with tactics and studying and all that)

@Lerlas said in #12:

Is classical a day (like 30+20) and some blitz games is that good enough?(with tactics and studying and all that)
I don't think there is a universal answer. People are different and what works perfectly for one may not work at all for another. It also depends a lot on your plans and ambitions, what level you want to reach.

play hourly ultrabullet arena and zerk all your games

Something like 15+0, 10+0 or 7+increment seems to be a good starting point.

As you improve, you will be able to play faster (as pointed by @mkubecek)... but also to play slower and still meaningful. As a beginner, I remember having too much time, as my knowledge was rather shallow so my ideas after thinking one minute or an hour were the same.

Faster controls like 5+0 or 3+2 can be useful to practice openings, you will be exposed to lots of variations... here, quantity is a plus.

@Brian-E said in #4:

Agreed with mkubecek, but I would add that you don't need to gradually go faster later and your chess will continue to improve if you continue to give yourself adequate time to think.

Go for the slower time controls. And, very important, play with time increment (so not 30+0, but 30+20 for example). Zero increment means that the play will become much faster and more frantic later on. This spoils the chance to develop your endgame technique.

A tip I'll add. I seem to have better luck in getting 30+30 games I put in the lobby than using the 30+20 quick pairing. For some bizarre reason people never seem to choose that one.