Reaction time by age
Simple reaction time is fastest in the late teens and twenties, changes little through middle age and slows more clearly after about 60. In large studies the average slowing is gradual, a few milliseconds per decade at first; individual differences within each age group are much larger than the differences between groups.
Updated Nov 5, 2026
Reaction Time · mouse
Take the testMedian
273 ms
Reference values from published research and large online samples, until this device group has enough MindSpeed results.
What is a good score?
| Better than | Score |
|---|---|
| 10% of people | 340 ms |
| 25% of people | 308 ms |
| 50% of people | 273 ms |
| 75% of people | 238 ms |
| 90% of people | 206 ms |
| 99% of people | 152 ms |
By age group
Groups appear once they have at least 30 people. Add your age group and country on your result page to help.
Reaction Time · touchscreen
Take the testMedian
306 ms
Reference values from published research and large online samples, until this device group has enough MindSpeed results.
What is a good score?
| Better than | Score |
|---|---|
| 10% of people | 380 ms |
| 25% of people | 345 ms |
| 50% of people | 306 ms |
| 75% of people | 267 ms |
| 90% of people | 232 ms |
| 99% of people | 171 ms |
By age group
Groups appear once they have at least 30 people. Add your age group and country on your result page to help.
What research says about age
The Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging followed more than a thousand adults for years and found simple reaction time slowing by about half a millisecond per year from age 20, with more variable responses in older age.
Choice reaction time, where you must decide between several responses, slows more with age than simple reaction time.
Voluntary online results are not a representative sample of any population. Use them to compare yourself, not to compare countries or age groups scientifically. How we measure
Frequently asked questions
At what age is reaction time fastest?
Usually between the late teens and the late twenties.
Can older people improve their reaction time?
Practice, regular physical activity and good sleep all help, and the differences between people of the same age are larger than the age effect itself.