How many objects can most people track?

In the classic version of this task, typical adults reliably track 3 to 5 moving objects at once. Above that, accuracy falls off quickly. The exact number depends on how fast the objects move and how close together they get.

What is this test actually measuring?

It measures the capacity of your visual attention to be split across several moving locations at the same time and sustained over a few seconds. It is related to, but not the same as, working memory span.

Why does it get harder and easier as I play?

The test is adaptive. Each round it adjusts the number of targets based on your last answer, closing in on the count you can just barely track. Your score is the average of those turning points.

Is tracking capacity the same as intelligence?

No. It correlates modestly with fluid intelligence and working memory but measures something more specific - how many moving locations your attention can index at once. Two people with the same IQ can have noticeably different tracking capacity.

Multiple Object Tracking Test - Attention Capacity

Track a set of identical moving dots among distractors and find out how many objects you can follow at once. A direct measure of visual attention capacity.

How the scores are spread

Where players land on this test. Take it to see your own mark on the curve.

Higher is better · reference sample of 25,000

What this test measures

A set of identical dots appears. A few of them flash to mark them as targets, then every dot starts drifting and bouncing around the arena. When they stop, you tap the dots you think were the targets.

The number of targets goes up when you get a round fully right and down when you miss one, homing in on your personal limit. Your score is the average trackable-object count across the turning points - higher is better.

How to get a clean score

Do not try to watch each dot individually. Let your gaze sit near the centre and hold the group in peripheral awareness.
Blinking and glancing away both break tracking. Keep still.
Expect the count to bounce around 3 to 5 for most people. That is the test working as intended.

How to improve your score

Strategy matters more than you would expect. Fixing your gaze near the centre of the arena and tracking the targets in peripheral vision beats darting your eyes from dot to dot, which wastes time and breaks your hold on the others. Grouping the targets into a rough shape and tracking the shape as it deforms also helps. Beyond technique, this is one of the more trainable attention measures - regular practice, and fast action video games in particular, reliably nudge capacity upward. Fatigue and alcohol push it straight back down.

What the number tells you

Multiple object tracking is one of the cleanest laboratory measures of divided visual attention. Performance is linked to skills that need you to monitor several moving things at once - driving in traffic, team sports, air-traffic-style monitoring. It improves with practice and declines with fatigue and age.

FAQ

How many objects can most people track?: In the classic version of this task, typical adults reliably track 3 to 5 moving objects at once. Above that, accuracy falls off quickly. The exact number depends on how fast the objects move and how close together they get.
What is this test actually measuring?: It measures the capacity of your visual attention to be split across several moving locations at the same time and sustained over a few seconds. It is related to, but not the same as, working memory span.
Why does it get harder and easier as I play?: The test is adaptive. Each round it adjusts the number of targets based on your last answer, closing in on the count you can just barely track. Your score is the average of those turning points.
Is tracking capacity the same as intelligence?: No. It correlates modestly with fluid intelligence and working memory but measures something more specific - how many moving locations your attention can index at once. Two people with the same IQ can have noticeably different tracking capacity.

Reference sample: SYNTHETIC. Normal, mean 4.0 / sd 1.1 for tracked-object capacity (staircased target count). Anchored to MOT literature (typical capacity 3-5), shifted up from the original mean 3.6 after the 2026-09-07 anti-inversion fix made low-k rounds easier (fewer distractors at a given k) without a baseline retune.