Sixteen cells, roughly 8 to 15 seconds a round. The 4×4 is the size to use when you want volume: it's short enough to run ten rounds without your attention degrading, but large enough that technique still decides your time.
No account? It takes less than 10 seconds.
Most people should do the bulk of their practice here rather than on the 5×5. A 4×4 round costs you a fraction of the time, so you get several times the repetitions per session — and repetitions are what move the number. The 5×5 is the size you benchmark on; the 4×4 is the size you train on.
Observed ranges from ordinary play on this site, in number mode — not records, and not a scoring scale. Your own first session is the only baseline that matters.
| Level | Typical time |
|---|---|
| First few attempts | 15–25 seconds |
| After a week of daily practice | 10–15 seconds |
| Comfortable regular | 8–11 seconds |
| Fast | under 7 seconds |
No, but it trains something slightly different. Because 16 cells fit inside most people's usable visual field, the 4×4 isolates pure recognition and reaction speed rather than search strategy. That's a real skill and it's the one that transfers to reading. If you want the search-strategy component, go to 6×6 or larger.
Most people start around 15–25 seconds and reach 10–15 seconds within a week of daily practice. Under 7 seconds is genuinely fast. These are observed bands from ordinary play, not records — treat your own first session as your real baseline.
Both, for different reasons. Do your volume on the 4×4 because you can fit far more rounds into the same time. Use the 5×5 as your benchmark, since it's the size everyone else quotes times for and the only one that makes your results comparable.
Eight to twelve. Stop when your times start drifting upward within the session — that's your attention giving out, and rounds after that point aren't training anything.