Will brain training make me smarter?

You will get better at the games you practise, but evidence that general intelligence or academic ability improves is weak.

Can brain training prevent dementia?

There is no evidence that it prevents dementia. One long-term trial found fewer diagnoses after a specific training, but overall certainty is low and the WHO recommendation is conditional.

Is there any point, then?

Yes — as enjoyment and as a daily reference. Just don't treat it as a substitute for exercise or managing blood pressure.

Does brain training work? What the research does and doesn't show

This article is general information, not medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. If you are worried about symptoms, please talk to a doctor or a local support service.

Short answer: If you keep practising a brain game, you will almost certainly get better at that game. Evidence that the improvement spreads to memory, reasoning or everyday life is weak, and researchers disagree about it. For dementia risk, one long-running trial found fewer diagnoses after a specific kind of training, but the overall certainty of the evidence is rated low.

"Does brain training work?" is really three questions: (1) do you get better at the game you practised, (2) do you get better at similar tasks, and (3) does it help your work, daily life or dementia risk? The research answers each very differently.

What counts as "brain training"?

Researchers — and the World Health Organization's guidelines — distinguish two kinds of activity:

Cognitive training — repeated practice on tasks aimed at a specific function such as memory, attention or processing speed. Most phone and computer brain games belong here.
Cognitive stimulation — broad mental engagement through conversation, discussion or creative activity, often in groups.

This article is about the first kind, especially computer- and phone-based training.

(1) You get better at the game — almost certainly

Repeat the same kind of task and your score rises. This is consistent across studies. You learn the rules, find strategies and figure out where to look. But what improves is likely to be skill at that game. Doubling your score does not mean your memory has doubled.

(2) Does it spread to similar tasks? — to close ones, yes

Improvement on a related task is called near transfer; improvement on a quite different ability — intelligence, school performance, everyday judgement — is far transfer. A 2019 second-order meta-analysis (a synthesis of many meta-analyses) found that memory training produces near transfer, but far-transfer effects were small or close to zero, especially in well-controlled studies where the comparison group also did an active task.

(3) Does it reach everyday life? — weak evidence, divided opinion

In 2014, more than 70 psychologists and neuroscientists signed a statement organised by the Stanford Center on Longevity and the Max Planck Institute: the evidence did not support brain-training companies' claims of improving general cognition or delaying age-related decline. A few months later, 133 scientists and practitioners responded that some training regimens do show benefits that generalise.

A large review published in 2016 examined the studies cited by brain-training companies. It found plenty of evidence that people improve on trained tasks, less for closely related tasks, and little for distantly related tasks or everyday performance — and it highlighted design problems in many studies, such as weak control groups and participant expectations.

What about dementia risk?

The ACTIVE trial (USA)

Adults aged 65 and over were randomly assigned to about ten sessions of speed-of-processing, memory or reasoning training, or to a no-contact control group. A 10-year analysis (2017) reported a 29% lower risk of dementia in the speed-training group.

A 20-year analysis published in 2026, using insurance-claims diagnoses, found a lower risk of diagnosed dementia (hazard ratio 0.75) only in participants who received speed training plus booster sessions. Speed training without boosters, memory training and reasoning training showed no clear difference. Important caveats:

The effect appeared only for one kind of training under specific conditions — not brain games in general
Dementia was identified from billing records, which can be affected by access to care
It is a single trial; large replications are still limited

Cochrane review (2020)

A Cochrane review of computerised training lasting 12 weeks or more in healthy older adults found a possible slight improvement in overall cognition at the end of training, with low-certainty evidence, and no clear evidence that it lasted a year.

WHO guidelines (2019)

The WHO said cognitive training may be offered to older adults with normal cognition or mild cognitive impairment, but rated the recommendation conditional and the evidence very low to low.

Be careful with advertising claims

In 2016 the US Federal Trade Commission required the maker of the Lumosity app to pay $2 million over claims that its games improved work and school performance and could delay age-related memory decline, dementia and Alzheimer's disease without adequate scientific support. In Japan, the Consumer Affairs Agency reviewed advertising for food products claiming "cognitive function" benefits in 2022 and instructed 115 companies to correct claims on 131 products. Products that promise to "rejuvenate your brain" or "prevent dementia" deserve the closest look.

How to use brain games sensibly

Play for enjoyment. Things you enjoy, you keep doing; expecting less helps you keep going.
Treat scores as a daily snapshot. Sleep and health move results; compare under the same conditions.
Don't rely on games alone. The factors most strongly linked to dementia risk include physical activity, blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar, hearing and social connection (see What science says about dementia prevention).
If something worries you, see a doctor, not a game. Scores are not a diagnosis (see Forgetfulness vs dementia).

Where MIKIRI stands

MIKIRI is a free browser game collection built around split-second judgement. Some games use processing speed and attention, but they are not the training programs used in the studies above. We do not claim that MIKIRI improves cognitive function or prevents dementia. It is a game to enjoy, with scores you can use as your own daily reference.

FAQ

Will brain training make me smarter?: You will get better at the games you practise, but evidence that general intelligence or academic ability improves is weak.
Can brain training prevent dementia?: There is no evidence that it prevents dementia. One long-term trial found fewer diagnoses after a specific training, but overall certainty is low and the WHO recommendation is conditional.
Is there any point, then?: Yes — as enjoyment and as a daily reference. Just don't treat it as a substitute for exercise or managing blood pressure.

Sources

WHO. Risk reduction of cognitive decline and dementia: WHO guidelines (2019). https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241550543
Gates NJ, et al. Computerised cognitive training for 12 or more weeks for maintaining cognitive function in cognitively healthy people in late life. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD012277.pub3
Simons DJ, et al. Do "Brain-Training" Programs Work? Psychol Sci Public Interest. 2016;17(3):103-186. https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100616661983
Sala G, et al. Near and far transfer in cognitive training: A second-order meta-analysis. Collabra: Psychology. 2019;5(1). https://doi.org/10.1525/collabra.203
Stanford Center on Longevity / Max Planck Institute. A Consensus on the Brain Training Industry from the Scientific Community (2014). https://longevity.stanford.edu/a-consensus-on-the-brain-training-industry-from-the-scientific-community-2/
Edwards JD, et al. Speed of processing training results in lower risk of dementia. Alzheimers Dement (N Y). 2017;3(4):603-611. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trci.2017.09.002
Coe NB, et al. Impact of cognitive training on claims-based diagnosed dementia over 20 years: evidence from the ACTIVE study. Alzheimers Dement (N Y). 2026;12:e70197. https://doi.org/10.1002/trc2.70197
U.S. Federal Trade Commission. Lumosity to Pay $2 Million to Settle FTC Deceptive Advertising Charges (2016). https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2016/01/lumosity-pay-2-million-settle-ftc-deceptive-advertising-charges-its-brain-training-program
Consumer Affairs Agency, Japan. Guidance on labelling of foods claiming cognitive-function benefits (31 March 2022, in Japanese). https://www.caa.go.jp/notice/assets/representation_cms214_220331_01.pdf

This article is general information, not medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. If you are worried about symptoms, please talk to a doctor or a local support service.

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