How to practice reaction time

Choose a drill

Wait for green and GO, then respond. Do not guess when the cue will appear.

Open this reaction drill

Make two runs comparable

1. Keep the same device, browser and input. Do not compare a phone tap with yesterday’s mouse click as if only your reaction changed.
2. Finish a set without switching tabs. The test discards an interrupted set.
3. Record the median, average and false starts. A guessed start does not count as a valid attempt.
4. Repeat with the same settings when you want a comparison. Stop if the motion feels uncomfortable.

The browser records the time between its cue and received input. Display, audio and input delays are included. A changed score alone cannot show which part changed.

Look past a lucky attempt

A fastest attempt tells you what happened once. The median gives the middle of the set, while the spread shows how far the attempts varied. Keep a slow valid attempt in the record instead of deleting it to make the score look better.

For example, 210, 225, 240, 260 and 415 ms gives a 240 ms median. The slowest attempt raises the mean to 270 ms. Neither number is a target for everyone else.

What practice here can tell you

These drills let you repeat the same browser task and watch your own results. They do not establish a health benefit or guarantee faster reactions in a game. An improvement on this cue may not carry over to decisions, movement or aiming.

When you want to add pointer movement, try the 2D aim drill. Keep those scores separate from the reaction test. See what the clock can and cannot separate from your reaction.