No online test can diagnose dementia. A diagnosis needs a doctor, who looks at your history, daily life, a physical exam and often blood tests, not just one score. What a free online test can do is give you a baseline to compare against later, and a prompt to start a conversation with a doctor.
If you are worried about your own memory or someone else’s, book an appointment with your GP or primary care doctor. Take notes on what has changed and when, and bring someone who knows you well. If someone suddenly becomes confused, get emergency help right away.
What a free online test can and can’t do
It can:
- Give you a starting score to compare against in six months or a year.
- Show you, in a low-stress way, whether one kind of recall feels harder than it used to.
- Turn a vague worry into something specific to tell a doctor.
It can’t:
- Tell you whether you have dementia, Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment.
- Rule dementia out. A good score doesn’t cancel out real changes in daily life that you or your family have noticed.
- Find the cause. Memory problems have many causes, and some of them are treatable.
The screening tests doctors actually use
These are short screening tests. A screening test flags who might need a fuller check. It doesn’t give a diagnosis. All of the tests below are copyrighted or have their own terms of use, so this page describes them and links to the official sources rather than copying any questions.
| Test | Who gives it | About how long | What it checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAGE | You take it, a doctor scores it | 10 to 15 minutes, no time limit | Memory, language, reasoning, problem-solving, orientation, visual-spatial skills |
| Mini-Cog | A trained care professional | About 3 minutes | Short word recall and a clock drawing |
| MoCA | A clinician, often certified | About 10 minutes | Short-term memory, attention, language, problem-solving, orientation, visual-spatial skills |
| MMSE | A trained professional | 10 to 15 minutes (standard version) | Orientation, memory, attention and simple language tasks |
SAGE (Self-Administered Gerocognitive Exam)
SAGE was developed by Dr. Douglas Scharre and his team at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. It is a pen-and-paper test you can take at home, with four interchangeable forms. It’s free for individual and non-commercial educational use. Ohio State also lists a digital version through BrainTest.
You take SAGE yourself, but your doctor scores it and explains the result. Ohio State says plainly that SAGE does not diagnose any specific condition. It tells a doctor whether a closer look is worth it.
Mini-Cog
The Mini-Cog is a very short screen. It pairs a short word-recall task with drawing a clock, and takes about three minutes. Its makers describe it as a tool for trained care professionals that helps decide when a fuller evaluation is needed.
MoCA (Montreal Cognitive Assessment)
The MoCA covers six areas: short-term memory, visual-spatial skills, executive function (planning and problem-solving), attention and working memory, language, and orientation to time and place. Nurses, doctors, psychologists and therapists use it. MoCA Test Inc. owns the test and runs a training and certification program, which it says is required for some clinicians who give the paper version.
MMSE (Mini-Mental State Examination)
The MMSE is an older 30-point questionnaire, first published by Folstein and colleagues in 1975. Its current edition, the MMSE-2, is sold by the publisher PAR to trained professionals. The standard version takes about 10 to 15 minutes.
Other names you may see
- “12 question Alzheimer’s test”: this usually means SAGE. Cleveland Clinic notes that SAGE has 12 questions and a top score of 22. Other online quizzes borrow the name. If a quiz doesn’t say who made it and how it was tested, treat it as a self-check, not a screen.
- Babcock memory test: the Babcock Story Recall Test is a clinical test of verbal memory. An examiner reads a short story aloud, asks you to repeat it, then asks again after a delay. Research supports it as a measure of memory for structured spoken information. It’s given in a clinic, not taken online.
- “Senility test”: senility is an old word. The Alzheimer’s Association notes that dementia was often wrongly called senility, from the mistaken belief that serious mental decline is a normal part of aging. The tests above are what doctors use today.
Normal aging or a warning sign?
Some forgetting is a normal part of getting older. The National Institute on Aging (NIA) describes it as taking longer to learn new things, not recalling information as quickly, or now and then misplacing something or forgetting to pay a bill. The key difference is this: serious memory problems make everyday things hard, like driving, using the phone or finding the way home.
This comparison draws on the Alzheimer’s Association’s 10 warning signs and the NIA:
| More likely normal aging | Worth checking with a doctor |
|---|---|
| Forgetting a name or appointment, then remembering it later | Forgetting recently learned information, or asking the same questions over and over |
| Making an occasional mistake with bills | Ongoing trouble managing monthly bills or following a plan |
| Forgetting what day it is and working it out later | Losing track of dates, seasons or the passing of time |
| Sometimes struggling to find the right word | Trouble following or joining a conversation |
| Losing things now and then and retracing your steps to find them | Putting things in unusual places and not being able to retrace your steps |
| A bad decision once in a while | Poor judgment much of the time, for example with money or personal care |
Dementia is more than memory. The NIA notes it can also affect language, attention and how you see things, and can change personality.
Memory problems can also come from causes that are not dementia. The NIA lists medication side effects, low vitamin B12, thyroid, kidney or liver problems, depression and anxiety, sleep problems, alcohol misuse, head injury, and infections or blood clots in the brain. Stress and big life changes, such as losing a spouse, can also make people forgetful for a while. Many of these can be treated, which is one more reason to see a doctor rather than guess.
Where this site’s tests fit
The tests on this site measure narrow skills in healthy adults: how many digits you can hold, how fast you recall a pattern, how many words you recognize. They compare your score to typical scores. They were not built or tested as medical screens, and they can’t stand in for SAGE, the Mini-Cog or a doctor’s visit.
Used with that in mind, they can still be helpful:
- For a simple, relaxed check: the memory tests for seniors page lists the clearest, self-paced tests.
- For a mixed baseline in one sitting: the memory quiz rotates through numbers, grids, sequences and words.
- For one clean measure to repeat over time: the short term memory test shows a number and you type it back, with one more digit each round.
- To read your score in context: the memory by age page shows how scores shift across the decades. Speed-based scores dip slowly with age, and that is normal.
If you use a test as a baseline, take it a few times on calm days and note your usual score. One low score on a tired day means very little. A steady drop over months, along with changes in daily life, is worth raising with a doctor.
When to see a doctor
Book an appointment with your GP or primary care doctor if:
- Memory problems are affecting day-to-day life.
- You or someone close to you keeps asking the same questions.
- You get lost somewhere you used to know well.
- Recipes, directions or bills have become hard to follow.
- You are more confused about time, people or places.
- Family or friends have noticed a change over months, even if you haven’t.
- Self-care is slipping: eating poorly, not bathing, or doing unsafe things.
Get emergency help right away if someone suddenly becomes confused. The NHS notes that sudden confusion can be caused by an infection, such as a urinary tract infection, or a stroke.
At the appointment, according to the NHS, the doctor will ask about your symptoms and daily tasks like cooking, shopping and paying bills. They may examine you, order blood and urine tests, and ask you to do a short memory test. If needed, they can refer you to a specialist or memory clinic for scans and more detailed testing. Bring someone who knows you well, since they can describe changes you may not notice yourself.
This page is general information, not medical advice.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an online memory test for dementia?
No online test can diagnose dementia. Some screening tools, such as SAGE from Ohio State, can be taken at home, but a doctor scores them and decides what the result means. Online memory quizzes, including the ones on this site, can give you a baseline score. If you are worried, see your GP or primary care doctor.
Can I take the SAGE test online for free?
The paper SAGE is free for individual use. You can download it from Ohio State Wexner Medical Center, take it at home, and bring it to your doctor to score. Ohio State also lists a digital version through BrainTest. SAGE is a screen, not a diagnosis.
What is the 12 question Alzheimer’s test?
It usually refers to SAGE, the Self-Administered Gerocognitive Exam. SAGE has 12 questions that check memory, language, reasoning, problem-solving, orientation and visual-spatial skills, and it takes about 10 to 15 minutes. A doctor scores it. It flags possible problems but can’t diagnose Alzheimer’s disease.
Are there free cognitive tests for seniors?
Yes. SAGE is free to download and take at home, then bring to a doctor. The Mini-Cog and MoCA are given by trained professionals, so ask your doctor about them. For a casual, non-medical check of recall, the memory tests for seniors on this site are free and need no sign-up.
What is the difference between normal forgetfulness and dementia?
Normal forgetfulness comes and goes. You forget a name and remember it later, or misplace your keys and retrace your steps. Dementia makes everyday life harder: asking the same questions again and again, getting lost in familiar places, or struggling with bills and directions. If changes like these are building over time, see a doctor.
Can a good score on an online memory test rule out dementia?
No. Online tests measure a narrow skill on one day. They don’t look at daily life, history or other causes. If you or your family have noticed real changes, see a doctor even if your test score looks fine.