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For many people with mental retardation, little correlation exists between IQ level and actual level of everyday functioning. To explore the role of experience in everyday functioning, a study was designed comparing the everyday function of adults with mental retardation with children of comparable mental age (MA-matched). Adults with mild and moderate mental retardation were found to function significantly better than MA-matched children on all aspects of daily living as measured by the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales. These findings provide experimental support to the little explored claim that people with mental retardation function better than MA-matched younger persons on tasks where experience is crucial. Moreover, they demonstrate the limitations of using the MA-match methodology in a domain that is so clearly dependent upon experience.