Frequently Asked Questions

What is included in my free trial?
AARP® Staying Sharp® is an award-winning digital program offering content about brain health, including meditations, health information, exercise videos, recipes with healthy ingredients, activities and more. Make time to focus on your brain health today! 

●      Cognitive Assessment, Lifestyle Check-Ins and Additional Tests
Try the Cognitive Assessment, which can give you a view into how you’re performing today and enable you to learn about strategies to help support brain health as you age. You may take the assessment every 30 days. 

●      Challenges
Explore topics such as memory, problem-solving, focus and mental well-being in a series of challenges designed to help you learn about building healthy habits. 

●      Daily Activities
Follow simple prompts that encourage you to take action toward achieving a goal you may have. There are Daily Activities on several topics that cover the six pillars of brain health.

●      Recipes, Exercise Videos and More

●      Insights on the six pillars of brain health and healthy habits that may have an impact on brain health. 

●      Try a different spin on a favorite recipe or learn some new yoga poses. There are far too many great activities to list here, so you’ll have to take our word for it. 

And don’t forget our Games and Puzzles, which offer a fun diversion when you need a break. 

Do I need to provide a credit card to access the free trial?
No credit card is required to join the 30-day free trial.   

How much will it cost to maintain access to Staying Sharp after my trial?
Your access to Staying Sharp will continue after your 30-day free trial. However, you will no longer be able to access content and features that are only available to AARP members. Full access to all Staying Sharp content and features is a benefit of AARP membership. You can select from various membership pricing and term length options here.

Are there limitations to my use of Staying Sharp during the free trial?
During the 30-day free trial you are free to explore all of the content and features found within Staying Sharp — with no limitations.

Do I need to join AARP to enjoy the free trial?
No membership is required to enjoy the 30-day free trial. You will be required to register for an AARP digital account, as that is required to access Staying Sharp.

How will I know when my free trial ends?
Your free trial terms, provided to you when you registered, noted the end date of your trial. Also, after you registered, you’ll see a countdown time on the Staying Sharp homepage as well as various other pages.

And, as an extra reminder, we’ll send you an email on the day your 30-day free trial expires.

Continue enjoying limited access to Staying Sharp. To unlock full access to all features and content, you need to become an AARP.

You can select from various membership pricing and term length options here.

Can I cancel my free trial?
You cannot cancel your free trial. However, if you would like cancel your AARP digital account, which is the login associated with your free trial, please contact customer care: https://help.aarp.org/s/ccpa-request-page. Canceling your AARP digital account will remove your access to Staying Sharp as well as the additional AARP resources provided with your digital account.

Can I access Staying Sharp without accepting the Legal Disclaimer?
No, you must accept the Legal Disclaimer, Terms of Service and Privacy Policy to access Staying Sharp. 

What is Staying Sharp?
Staying Sharp is an online program from AARP that offers science-based resources on the six pillars of brain health and other aspects of cognitive aging. You can also unwind with fun games, but research shows lifestyle behaviors may have the biggest effect on brain health. That’s why we aim to make it easy to learn about healthy habits.

What does the Staying Sharp app offer?
The app features several challenges, including Memory Loss — Is It Inevitable?, Faces & Names and Digital Declutter. The app also features Games, which offer a fun diversion when you need a break. Be sure to allow push notifications from the app for alerts when new challenges are available.

How do I get access to the Staying Sharp app?
Please log in with the email and password you created for the 30-day trial.

Does the Staying Sharp app work with my iPhone?
Yes, the Staying Sharp app is compatible with iOS devices 14.2 and above.

Does the Staying Sharp app work with my Android device?
Yes, the Staying Sharp app is compatible with most devices running Android Oreo 8.0 and above.

Does the Staying Sharp app work on my tablet?
Currently the Staying Sharp app is optimized for small-screen devices (phones and small tablets).  

Have more questions about the app?
Visit the Staying Sharp Mobile App FAQs.

Where do I start?
We recommend that you start by taking the Cognitive Assessment and Lifestyle Check-Ins. Doing so will provide a starting point to understand how your brain is performing today and how your lifestyle may support brain health. Or explore Staying Sharp on your own. Staying Sharp includes content and features that can ground you in the six pillars of brain health.

What are the Cognitive Assessment, Lifestyle Check-Ins and Additional Tests?
The Cognitive Assessment gives you a snapshot of how your brain is performing today, based on five cognitive tests: working memory, processing speed, sustained attention, cognitive flexibility and recognition memory.

Lifestyle Check-Ins allow you to understand your personal habits around the six pillars of brain health: Be social, Engage your brain, Manage stress, Ongoing exercise, Restorative sleep and Eat healthy.

There are eight Additional Tests that allow you to explore even more elements of cognition. They include tests in three areas: nonverbal reasoning, spatial processing and verbal reasoning. You’ll get scores for each area.

How should I prepare for the Cognitive Assessment and Lifestyle Check-Ins?
To prepare for the assessment, please consider that stress and lack of sleep may impact many mental activities, so make sure you are well-rested and follow these guidelines.

1. Find a quiet room with no distractions. Put your pets in another room, and switch your phone to silent mode.
2. Pay careful attention to the instructions before each test. Don’t focus on your score. Just try to do the best you can.
3. Set aside about 40 minutes to complete the Cognitive Assessment and Lifestyle Check-Ins.

Where are my assessment results?
You should have your results in about five minutes, though sometimes it can take a few minutes longer. If your results are not available, please visit the AARP Help Center and click the chat icon so that we can help you.

What are the challenges?
The challenges are fun, guided, interactive learning activities that start with a pre-quiz. Then you’ll go through steps to learn skills and select activities to practice throughout the day. Finish the challenge by completing the post-quiz. The goal is to be smarter about brain health and find new healthy habits to help you live your best life.

What is "Best Of?"
“Best of” is a curated set of guides, including the Brain-Heart Connection, How to Talk to Your Doctor, Brain Health for Caregivers, Cooking with Brain-Friendly Foods and more. Each guide offers ways to learn more about the topic and explore activities you can incorporate into your day

How can I earn AARP Rewards points for badged Staying Sharp content?

Staying Sharp users also enrolled in AARP Rewards can earn AARP Rewards points for Staying Sharp content labeled with the AARP Rewards badge. The latest eligible content is available on the Earn List and is labeled as “Brought to you by Staying Sharp.” This content will continue to evolve, so be sure to check out the Earn List on a regular basis

Users who access Staying Sharp via their health insurance provider or other third party may not be eligible to earn AARP Rewards points.

How can I become an AARP Rewards participant?
Visit www.aarp.org/rewards/ to learn more and enroll in AARP Rewards.

How often can I earn AARP Rewards points for Staying Sharp? 
Designated Staying Sharp content will vary, so we suggest you refer to the Earn List page, which lists the frequency you can earn points for specific content.

How are AARP Rewards points allocated on Staying Sharp?
AARP Rewards points are allocated to participants to incentivize them to engage with select Staying Sharp content and features, which are badged for AARP Rewards.

I completed badged Staying Sharp content; why don't I see my points?
There are two reasons you may not see your points:

1. You’ve reached your daily max

- You may not be receiving additional points if you’ve maxed out on your daily point limit.
- Badges on content will be grayed out if you’ve reached your limit. You can get back to earning points the next day at 12:01 a.m. ET.

2. You may have not fully completed the activity. For example, badged videos have to be watched until the end in order to receive points. Quizzes require you to submit the answers or required information at the end of the Activity in order to receive points. 

If you are still experiencing issues, please visit the AARP Help Center and click the chat icon so we can help you.

What is AARP's Global Council on Brain Health?
 

AARP’s Global Council on Brain Health (GCBH) is an collaborative of scientists, doctors, scholars and policy experts that was created to provide trusted information on what research suggests you can do to maintain and improve brain health.

What are the six pillars of brain health?
The pillars of brain health are based on scientific research that shows a healthy lifestyle protects the brain. Staying Sharp helps you develop meaningful and lasting brain-healthy practices that are based on the six pillars. Practice these six pillars for better brain health.

·       Be social – have strong connections with friends, family and your community.
·       Eat right – get the right nutrients to feed your brain.
·       Manage stress – keep stress under control.
·       Ongoing exercise – stay physically active.
·       Restorative sleep – get quality sleep.
·       Engage your brain – challenge your mind.

Does Staying Sharp meet accessibility standards?
Read our Accessibility Statement. Note that Staying Sharp also has content including the Cognitive Assessment and games that require certain sensory skills. Staying Sharp also provides an array of other activities for individuals with varying abilities.

How do I unsubscribe from your email list?
Click the Unsubscribe link at the bottom of your email.

What personal information does AARP keep on file, and how is it used?
Read our Privacy Policy to understand how AARP collects, uses, shares and protects personal data.

How does AARP protect my personal information?
Read our Privacy Policy to see how we protect personal data. 

Does AARP share my personal info or sell it to any other companies?
Read our Privacy Policy to understand how AARP collects, uses, shares and protects personal data. 

Where can I read your privacy policy?
Read our Privacy Policy. 

Where can I read your terms of service?
Read our Terms of Service.

What is the relationship between Staying Sharp and AARP?
Staying Sharp was developed by AARP to provide a trusted resource that takes the latest in brain science and translates it into engaging articles, activities, recipes, challenges and more to help support brain health as you age. Full access to Staying Sharp is an AARP member benefit.

How do I bookmark Staying Sharp?
In most browsers, you can bookmark Staying Sharp by using the tools next to your web address input field.

I’m having trouble logging on to the site. Now what?
First, try resetting your password. Are you still having trouble? Reach out to us at AARP Help Center. 

What if I forget my password?
Click reset your password if you’ve forgotten your password.

What browsers are supported by Staying Sharp?
Staying Sharp supports the most recent versions of Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Safari and Firefox for the best experience.

What devices are supported by Staying Sharp?
Currently Staying Sharp supports iOS version 14 and above and Android version 9 and above.   

What if games do not play or I see a blank page?
If you find that your games are not loading properly, please check your browser settings to ensure that third-party cookies are allowed.