The six questions above are "Part A" of the ASRS v1.1, the WHO's self-report scale for adult ADHD, the form psychiatrists use at a first appointment.
What does the ADHD test measure?
It measures how often, over the past six months, six behaviors tied to inattention, restlessness and not finishing what you start have shown up. In 2005, Ronald Kessler's team showed that these six questions, picked from the eighteen on the full scale, screen for adult ADHD better than the long version.
The test does not ask about your childhood, does not measure how much this disrupts your life and does not rule out other explanations, which is why it is a screener, not a diagnosis.
How do I read the result?
There are two accepted readings, and the page shows both. The rule printed on the form counts answers above a threshold: four or more is a positive screen. The newer reading adds up points from 0 to 24, with the cutoff at 14. They almost always agree; when they differ, you are near the line.
The 4-answer rule
On the first three questions, an answer counts from "sometimes" up; on the last three, from "often" up. Four or more above the threshold means "symptoms highly consistent with ADHD in adults", in the scale's own wording.
The 0–24 sum
Each answer scores 0 (never) to 4 (very often). Harvard published this as the more stable reading, with ranges: 0–9 negative, 10–13 negative near the threshold, 14–17 positive, 18–24 high positive.
What does the test NOT tell you?
It does not tell you that you have ADHD, and it does not tell you that you don't. It was designed to rarely be wrong about people without the disorder, at the cost of missing some who have it. The numbers come from the original study, in a US population sample.
68.7%
99.5%
0
The full story of the scale, and what to do with a positive or a negative, is in the article ADHD test.
Frequently asked questions
Is this online ADHD test reliable?
Yes, within what it promises. The ASRS v1.1 was created by the WHO with Harvard researchers and is a validated screener: it is very good at clearing people who do not have ADHD (99.5% specificity) and misses about 1 in 3 adults who do (68.7% sensitivity). It tells you whether an assessment is worth it, not whether you have the disorder.
How many points on the ASRS indicate ADHD?
By the official rule printed on the form, 4 or more answers above the threshold on the 6 questions indicate symptoms highly consistent with ADHD in adults. By the 0 to 24 sum, the cutoff is 14. Neither reading is a diagnosis; both are the signal to seek an evaluation.
I screened positive. Do I have ADHD?
Not necessarily. Anxiety, depression, poor sleep and overload produce similar answers, and in general-population samples the screener flags far more people than the real prevalence. A positive means there is reason to talk to a psychiatrist or neurologist, not that it is confirmed.
I screened negative. Could I still have ADHD?
You could. The screener misses about a third of adults with ADHD. If trouble with attention, organization and impulsivity is old, persistent and gets in the way of your life, that is reason enough to see a professional, whatever the score.
What happens to my answers?
Nothing leaves your browser. The score is computed on the page itself, no answer is sent to a server, and nothing is kept after you close the tab, unless you choose to send the result to WhatsApp.