How to Improve Reaction Time

Reaction time is how long it takes you to respond after something happens, such as a light changing colour or an enemy appearing on screen. Many websites promise you can cut it dramatically with a few tricks. The research is more modest. This guide explains what a normal reaction time is, what actually changes it, and what you can realistically improve.

Measure yourself first with the Reaction Time Test or the F1 Reaction Test.

What is a normal reaction time?

The simplest kind of reaction time test asks you to respond as fast as possible when a single signal appears. In a large study of 1,469 adults aged 18 to 65, the average simple visual reaction time was 231 milliseconds, or 213 ms after subtracting the delay added by the computer’s screen and mouse. The youngest group averaged about 218 ms.

So if your result on an online test is somewhere between 200 and 260 ms, you are in the normal range. Results below about 180 ms over several tries are very fast.

Why your score can differ from someone else’s

  • Hardware delay. In the same study, the screen and mouse together added about 18 ms. Other setups can add much more. A slow monitor, a wireless mouse in power saving mode or a busy computer all make your score worse without your reflexes changing.
  • Age. Simple reaction time slows only a little with age, by about half a millisecond per year in that study, and large population data shows little slowing before about 50.
  • Sound vs light. People generally react faster to a sound than to a visual signal, so audio and visual tests are not directly comparable.
  • Tiredness. This has one of the clearest effects of all (see below).

What actually improves reaction time

Sleep

Sleep loss is one of the best documented ways to make your reactions slower. A meta-analysis of short-term sleep deprivation found the largest effects on simple attention and reaction time tasks, including more lapses where people miss the signal entirely. If you want your best score, be well rested.

Caffeine

Reviews of the research report that moderate doses of caffeine, roughly 40 to 300 mg, can improve reaction time and alertness, especially when you are tired. The improvement is modest, and more is not better. Do not rely on it, and avoid it if you are sensitive to caffeine.

Your setup

You cannot train your nerves to be faster, but you can remove delay from your equipment:

  • Use a monitor with a high refresh rate and turn on its game or low latency mode if it has one.
  • Use a wired mouse, or a wireless gaming mouse in performance mode.
  • Set your mouse to a polling rate of at least 1000 Hz. Our polling rate guide explains why.
  • Close heavy programs while you test or play.

These changes can lower your measured time by several milliseconds or more, which is often more than any training will give you.

Focus and readiness

Simple reaction time depends a lot on attention. Keep your eyes on the place where the signal will appear, rest your finger on the button and avoid distractions. Do not anticipate: guessing leads to false starts.

What does not help as much as people think

  • Practising a simple reaction test. Research suggests repeated testing gives little or no lasting improvement in simple reaction time. In long sessions people often get slower because of fatigue. Practice mostly helps you become more consistent and avoid false starts.
  • Video games. Some studies found that people who play fast action games respond faster in certain tasks, and one training study reported improvements after 50 hours of action game play. However, later reviews disagree on how large and reliable the effect is, and one found no evidence of a causal link. Games are fun practice, but not a guaranteed fix.
  • Exercise right before a test. A single bout of exercise has only a small effect on mental performance overall, and the evidence for reaction time in particular is limited. Regular exercise is good for you, but it is not a quick way to a faster score.

A simple routine for better scores

  1. Test when you are rested, not late at night.
  2. Check your setup: wired or performance mode mouse, high refresh monitor, 1000 Hz polling.
  3. Take a few practice tries to get comfortable.
  4. Then take five tries and look at your average, not your single best.
  5. Compare results only on the same device.

Want to train skills that build on reaction time? Try the Aim Trainer, which combines reacting with accurate mouse movement.

Sources

Frequently asked questions

What is a good reaction time?

On a simple visual test, an average of around 200 to 250 ms is normal for adults. Consistently under 200 ms is fast.

Can you train your reaction time?

Only a little. Being rested, focused and using low latency equipment usually makes a bigger difference than practice.

Why is my reaction time slower on my phone?

Touch screens and phone browsers often add more input delay than a wired mouse and a desktop monitor.

Is 150 ms possible?

Occasional single results that fast happen, often from anticipating the signal. Averages that low over several honest tries are rare.