Dual N-Back · Stroop test
Stroop test online
A 30-second color-word sprint that tests how well you resist an automatic response. Playable here with no account and no download — the same rules as the free Stroop test in the Dual N-Back app's Lab.
A word appears in a color. Read the instruction above it: “INK COLOR” means answer with the color the letters are printed in; “WORD MEANING” means answer with what the word says, whatever color it is. Be fast and accurate — a streak of correct answers raises your score multiplier, and a wrong answer resets it.
Your Stroop result
- Final score
- Accuracy
- Best streak
- Correct answers
Keep training on iPhone
The Stroop test is one of the 12 free, unlimited Lab tests in the Dual N-Back app, alongside the chimp test and the Schulte table. Dual N-Back itself is free at levels 1 and 2; higher levels and other modes are in-app purchases.
Free download on the App StoreHow to play
- Press Start. A word made of a color name appears immediately, printed in a color that may or may not match what it says.
- Read the label above the word first: “INK COLOR” asks for the color the letters are printed in; “WORD MEANING” asks for what the word actually says.
- Tap or click the matching button among the four colors, or use the number keys 1 to 4. The next word appears immediately, for 30 seconds in total.
- The instruction changes as you go: mostly “INK COLOR” in the first ten seconds, then an even mix of both for the rest of the 30 seconds.
How the score works
A correct answer is worth 100 points times your current multiplier, and extends your streak; a wrong answer resets the streak to zero and subtracts 50 points (never below zero). The multiplier is 1, then rises by 1 for every 5 correct answers in a row.
Accuracy at the end is correct answers ÷ total answers. Because the ink color and the word's meaning are chosen independently, about a quarter of words match their own color by chance — the rest set up the classic Stroop conflict.
Keep training on iPhone
The Stroop test is one of the 12 free, unlimited Lab tests in the Dual N-Back app, alongside the chimp test and the Schulte table. Dual N-Back itself is free at levels 1 and 2; higher levels and other modes are in-app purchases.
Free download on the App StoreQuestions
Why is this hard even though it looks simple?
Reading a word is automatic, so when the instruction asks for the ink color, your brain still reads the word first and has to override that reflex. That conflict, and how fast you resolve it, is what the Stroop test measures.
Is this the same test as in the app?
Yes: same four colors, the same two instructions, the same 30-second timer and the same scoring — taken from the Dual N-Back app's Lab. The app saves your history across sessions; this page does not.
Is my score saved?
No. This page keeps nothing and sends nothing about your answers; it forgets your session when you leave. The iPhone app stores your Lab results on your device.
Is this test colorblind-friendly?
The four colors (red, blue, green, purple) are chosen to stay as distinguishable as possible under the common forms of color blindness, the same palette as in the app. Every button is also labeled with its color name in text, so “WORD MEANING” questions never depend on telling colors apart.