The core distinction
Visual memory refers to the brain's ability to remember what something looks like — its color, shape, texture, and visual identity. When you remember that your friend's car is a red sedan, or recognize a face you've seen once, you're relying on visual object memory processed primarily through the ventral ("what") visual stream via the temporal cortex.
Spatial memory refers to the brain's ability to remember where things are and how they relate to each other in space. When you navigate home without consciously thinking about it, or remember which side of the parking lot you parked on, you're using spatial memory — processed primarily through the dorsal ("where") stream and the parietal cortex, with heavy involvement of the hippocampus and grid cells in the entorhinal cortex.
The confusion arises because many real-world tasks blend both systems. Remembering "a blue mug on the second shelf from the left" involves both object identity (visual) and location (spatial). The Visual Memory test primarily loads spatial memory — you must recall where the squares were, not what color or shape they are. Naming it "visual" is somewhat imprecise from a strict neuroscience perspective.
A useful analogy
Think of a museum. Visual memory is remembering what each painting looks like — its colors, subjects, and composition. Spatial memory is remembering which room each painting is in and how the rooms connect. Both feel like "remembering what you saw," but they use different cognitive machinery.
Different brain systems, different vulnerabilities
Because visual object memory and spatial memory rely on partially distinct neural circuits, they are differentially affected by brain damage, aging, and training.
| Feature | Visual object memory | Spatial memory |
|---|---|---|
| Primary pathway | Ventral (temporal cortex) | Dorsal (parietal + hippocampus) |
| Stores | What: identity, color, shape | Where: location, layout, routes |
| Age decline | Moderate; face memory robust | Earlier and steeper decline |
| Damaged by | Right temporal lesions | Hippocampal atrophy, parietal lesions |
| Gender differences | Small or none | Males slightly advantage on average |
| Trainable? | Yes, via recognition practice | Yes, via navigation and Corsi tasks |
This is why people with Alzheimer's disease often get lost in familiar environments (spatial memory damage) before they stop recognizing familiar faces (visual object memory preserved longer). It also explains why certain neurological insults produce very selective impairments — a patient with right temporal damage may be unable to recognize faces (prosopagnosia) while having perfectly intact navigation ability.
Which Human Benchmark tests measure which system?
Most of the tests on Human Benchmark that involve visual information blend both systems to varying degrees. Here's a practical breakdown:
Visual Memory test — primarily spatial
Spatial dominantThe grid squares are identical — what you must remember is their location, not their appearance. This is a near-pure spatial working memory task, closely modeled on the Corsi block-tapping paradigm. Strong performers tend to have high spatial navigation ability in real life.
Sequence Memory — sequential spatial
Spatial + serial orderThe Sequence Memory test adds an ordered recall dimension: not only must you remember where each square was, but in what order they were highlighted. This recruits additional dorsolateral prefrontal circuits for serial order maintenance alongside spatial memory.
Chimp Test — object identity + spatial
MixedThe Chimp Test presents numbered squares: you must remember both the numbers (visual object identity) and their locations (spatial). It loads both systems more evenly than the Visual Memory test and is one of the most cognitively demanding tests on the platform.
Pattern Recognition — visual object dominant
Visual dominantThe Pattern Recognition test requires identifying which pattern was shown before — this loads visual object recognition and long-term visual memory more than spatial location memory.
Training implications: does improvement in one transfer to the other?
The research on transfer between visual object memory and spatial memory training is nuanced. Training on one spatial task (e.g., the Corsi block task) does show some transfer to other spatial tasks, but transfer to visual object memory is limited. This suggests that if your goal is to improve specifically at the Human Benchmark Visual Memory test, you should focus on spatial training activities (navigation, Corsi practice, mental rotation) rather than object recognition tasks.
Conversely, if you want to improve your ability to remember what things look like — faces, objects, scenes — recognition memory practice and drawing-from-memory exercises are more relevant than grid-based spatial tasks. See our visual memory improvement guide for specific drills targeting the spatial subsystem that the test measures. Our article on location memory explores individual differences in the spatial system further.
Practical takeaway
For most real-world goals, improving both systems matters. Navigation apps have weakened spatial memory in many adults; deliberately navigating without GPS is one of the best free exercises for the spatial system. Reading and visual art exposure support the visual object system.
Test your spatial memory now
Take the Visual Memory test and discover how many spatial locations you can reliably hold in working memory.
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