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Watch the Signal – Attention Span Test
Letters appear one a second. Press only when you see X, and let every other letter pass. It sounds easy; the hard part is staying sharp for 5, 10 or 15 minutes. At the end you see minute by minute whether your attention faded.
Paused because you left the tab.
(Esc) · counts if you played at least a minute
Targets caught
Score /100
New personal best!
- Hits
- Missed (lapses)
- False presses
- Average speed
Reaction time, minute by minute
A line rising to the right means you were slowing down: attention fading. Misses per minute are the bars.
More Watch the Signal
More focus games
These are practice games for training and tracking your own focus, based on well-known attention and memory tasks. They are not medical or psychological tests and can’t diagnose anything, such as ADHD. If you are worried about your attention or memory, talk to a doctor.
About the Attention Span Test
How long can you stay focused? Letters appear one a second, and you press only when you see X. It sounds easy, and for the first minute it is. Over 5, 10 or 15 minutes, though, attention drifts: you miss an X, or press on the wrong letter out of habit. This is a version of the continuous performance test (CPT), called Watch the Signal here. At the end you see your hits, misses, false presses and your reaction time minute by minute, so you can see whether you slowed down as the test went on. The harder level counts X only when it comes straight after A.
How to use it
- 1 Choose the target (X, or X after A) and a length: 5, 10 or 15 minutes.
- 2 Press Start. Tap the box or press Space only for the target.
- 3 Keep going until the end. Leaving the tab pauses the test.
- 4 See your misses, false presses and speed minute by minute.
Frequently asked questions
What is a sustained attention test?
A test of how well you keep focus on a dull, steady task over time. Continuous performance tests like this one have been used in attention research since the 1950s.
What is a good score?
Most people catch over 90% of targets in the first few minutes with few false presses. What matters most is the minute-by-minute chart: a flat line means you held your focus, a rising one means you slowed as attention faded.
What is the difference between a miss and a false press?
A miss is a target you didn’t press for: usually a moment your mind wandered. A false press is pressing for a letter that wasn’t the target: usually acting on impulse before checking.
Can this test diagnose ADHD?
No. Doctors use tests like this as one small part of an assessment, with standard equipment and comparison data. This is a practice tool to track your own focus. If you are worried, talk to a doctor.
Why does leaving the tab pause the test?
A test you can’t see isn’t measuring your attention, so the run pauses and you carry on when you come back.
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