What Is a Good Chimp Test Score?
The chimp test shows numbers on a grid, hides them when you click the first one, and asks you to click the rest in order from memory. Most people reach 7 to 9 numbers. Here is what each score means, where the test comes from, and the techniques that push you past 10.
The short answer
- Most people score 7 to 9, the classic working memory span. Under 7 is below average and usually improves with a few rounds.
- 10 to 13 is above average and means you are using a strategy such as chunking or tracing a path. 14 or more is exceptional.
- The test is named after Ayumu, a young chimpanzee in Kyoto who could remember 9 numbers flashed for a fraction of a second, faster than the students tested against him.
- Remember the shape of the path, not the numbers, and group squares into chunks of three or four.
Try it in your browser
Chimp TestNumbers hide when you click 1: tap them in order from memory, one more each level.How the chimp test works
The chimp test starts with 4 numbers placed at random on a grid. You click 1, and the other numbers turn into blank squares. Now you click the squares in order, 2, 3, 4, from memory. Get it right and the next round adds one more number. Click a square out of order and you get a strike; three strikes and the game ends.
Your score is the number of squares in the last round you were playing. A score of 9 means your game ended during the 9-number round.
The test mixes two skills: remembering where things are (visual-spatial memory) and in what order (sequence memory). Speed matters less than you might think, because you can look at the numbers as long as you like before clicking 1.
Chimp test scores and what they mean
| Score | Rating | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Under 7 | Below average | Common on a first try. Most people pass 7 after a few rounds. |
| 7 to 9 | Average | The classic "seven plus or minus two" span of working memory. |
| 10 to 13 | Above average | You are chunking positions or tracing a path through them. |
| 14 to 20 | Exceptional | Usually after a lot of practice with a fixed strategy. |
| Over 20 | Rare | Memory sport level. Few people get here. |
Scores move a lot in your first ten games, often by 3 or 4 numbers, because you discover a method. Compare yourself after a few sessions, not on the first try. Tiredness, distractions and a small phone screen all lower scores by a number or two.
Ayumu, the chimp behind the test
In 2007, researchers at Kyoto University's Primate Research Institute published a study with young chimpanzees, including one called Ayumu. The chimps saw the numbers 1 to 9 scattered on a touch screen. After touching the first, the rest were covered by white squares, and the chimp had to touch them in order.
The surprise was the speed. In one version the numbers were shown for only about 0.2 seconds before being covered. Ayumu kept a high accuracy at that speed, while university students tested on the same task did much worse. The result made headlines as "chimps beat humans at memory".
Later work showed the picture is more balanced. People who practice the task for a long time get far closer to Ayumu's level, and the chimps had trained on it for years. The test online is also easier than the original: you can look at the numbers for as long as you like, so it measures how many positions you can hold, not how much you can take in at a glance.
How to get a higher score
- Remember the path, not the numbers. Before clicking 1, trace a line through the squares from 1 to the last number with your eyes, and rehearse the shape of that line.
- Chunk. Group the squares into sets of three or four that form a simple shape: a triangle, an L, a diagonal. Remembering four shapes is easier than twelve points.
- Say it to yourself. Above about 10 numbers, naming the positions ("top left, center, bottom right") brings in verbal memory as a second store.
- Take your time before the first click. The numbers stay until you click 1. Use that time to rehearse the path two or three times.
- Look ahead. While clicking one square, move your eyes to the next, so you never stop and lose your place.
- Practice little and often. Five games a day for a week builds the method faster than an hour once.
What the score does and does not say
The chimp test is a good game and a fair measure of short-term visual memory under these conditions. It is not an IQ test, and it is not a test for any condition. A low score on a tired evening says nothing about your intelligence or memory health.
It does respond to practice, which makes it a nice way to see training work. For a fuller picture, try the other memory tests: the visual memory test (positions without order), the sequence memory test (order without numbers) and the number memory test (digit span). Most people find one of the three much easier than the others.