How our tests work,
and where they stop.
Short version: honest tasks, transparent scoring, every limit written down. Here is the long version.
Cognitive tasks are rebuilt from classic experiments described in research. Personality statements are written by us. We never copy commercial tests or use their trademarked names.
Scoring runs in your browser, and each test page shows its formula. Reaction time, for example, is the average of five timed tries. Nothing you answer is sent to us.
A result describes how you did on one task, on one day, on one device. We show ranges, not verdicts, and never claim to measure clinical conditions or certify IQ.
What each test does, and doesn't.
The maths, in plain words.
- Reaction time
- The average of five timed tries, in milliseconds. A press under 100 ms counts as a guess, and that try is repeated.
- Enneagram
- You rate 45 statements from 1 to 5, five for each of the nine types, so each type scores 5 to 25. If your top types are very close, a short tie-break round follows.
- Photographic memory
- Level 1 lights 3 tiles for 1.2 seconds, and each level adds one. A wrong tile costs one of your three lives. Your score is the highest level you fully completed.
- Number memory
- The number starts at 3 digits and grows by one each time you type it back correctly. A wrong answer costs one of your two lives. Your score is the longest number you got right.
- Attention span
- Of 80 circles, 60 are green and 20 are red. Your score out of 100 is the average of two percentages: greens you caught in time and reds you held back on. Your speed is shown but does not change the score.
- Stroop test
- Of 40 words, half match their ink colour and half clash. Your Stroop effect is your average time on clashing words minus your average time on matching words, counting correct answers only.
- Emotional intelligence
- You rate 28 statements from 1 to 5, seven in each of four areas, and some are scored in reverse. Each area becomes a score from 0 to 100, and your overall score is the average of the four.
Your own number, not a league table.
A band is a label for your own number: what that range usually looks like, and what could change it. We never rank you against other people, because a ranking needs a fair, representative sample we don’t have, and results from different devices can’t be compared fairly.
Tell us, and we fix it.
If you find a mistake, tell us on the contact page. We check it and fix it, and an article shows its new date.
Every six months, or sooner.
Each test page lists its sources, and every article shows the date we last updated it. We re-read every test and article about every six months, and sooner if new research changes something.
- Test for depression, anxiety, ADHD or any clinical condition
- Sell “certified” IQ scores
- Lock results behind an email or payment
- Store your answers on our servers
Each test page lists the research it draws on. We review our pages every six months and whenever someone reports a problem.
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