Number Memory Test

This test measures your short-term memory. A number appears for three seconds, then disappears.

Type the number you saw. Get it right and one more digit is added. A wrong answer ends the test.

Digits: 1

What number memory is

Number memory (digit span) is a core measure of short-term memory. It is a standard subtest in the Wechsler intelligence scales.

George Miller's classic 1956 paper showed the human mind can hold about 7±2 items at once, the "magical number seven". This test puts your own span to the test, one digit at a time.

Questions

How many digits do most people remember?

Most people hold 7±2 digits (Miller, 1956). Below 5 is low, 9 or more is high capacity.

What does this test measure?

Short-term (working) memory and attention. It follows the same principle as the Wechsler Digit Span subtest.

Can I improve with practice?

Only a little. Chunking (grouping digits) can help, but biological capacity is largely fixed.