🌤️ PHQ-9 Test

About This Screener

Our Mission

PHQ-9 Test exists to put the standard clinical depression screening tool — the PHQ-9 — in front of anyone who needs it, free of charge, with the crisis-resource support that the original authors recommend. We believe that a brief, honest self-check can be a meaningful first step toward understanding what you are experiencing and deciding what to do about it.

The Science Behind This Screener

This tool uses the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), developed by Drs. Kurt Kroenke, Robert Spitzer, and Janet Williams of Columbia University and Indiana University. The validation paper was published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine in 2001 and the PHQ-9 has since become one of the most widely used depression screening instruments in primary care, research, and population health.

The PHQ-9 maps directly to the nine DSM-IV/DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for a major depressive episode, asking how often each symptom has been present over the previous two weeks. Total scores range from 0 to 27 with the following severity bands, drawn from the original validation study:

  • 0–4 — Minimal depression
  • 5–9 — Mild depression
  • 10–14 — Moderate depression
  • 15–19 — Moderately severe depression
  • 20–27 — Severe depression

A 2007 meta-analysis by Manea, Gilbody, and McMillan found that a cutoff of 10 has sensitivity of 88% and specificity of 88% for detecting major depressive disorder, which is why scores at or above 10 typically prompt further clinical evaluation.

Why We Retain Item 9

The PHQ-9 includes one item — Item 9 — about thoughts of being better off dead or hurting yourself. Some online versions remove that item to create a shorter form (the PHQ-8). We do not do that, for two reasons.

First, removing Item 9 changes the instrument. The validated tool that maps to clinical severity bands is the PHQ-9, not the PHQ-8. The PHQ-8 has its place — it was designed by Kroenke and colleagues in 2009 for population epidemiology where clinical follow-up is not possible — but it is not the right tool for a screener someone takes on their own.

Second, Item 9 is one of the most clinically important questions a depression screener can ask. The original authors recommend that any non-zero response on Item 9 should trigger immediate follow-up assessment. Our quiz interface integrates that recommendation directly: any indication of suicidal thoughts surfaces crisis resources within the quiz, and the result page leads with those resources before showing any score or affiliate content.

What This Screener Is — and Is Not

This tool is a screening instrument, not a diagnostic one. A high score on the PHQ-9 strongly suggests that a clinical evaluation is worth pursuing, but only a qualified healthcare professional can diagnose major depressive disorder or any other mental health condition. The PHQ-9 also does not distinguish between depression and other conditions that share overlapping symptoms (such as bipolar depression, grief, or medical causes of fatigue).

If you are experiencing thoughts of self-harm, hopelessness, or are in immediate danger, please reach out for help. In the US, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline). Text HOME to 741741 for Crisis Text Line. For international helplines, visit findahelpline.com.

Privacy by Design

Your responses to the PHQ-9 are processed entirely within your browser using client-side JavaScript. No answers are transmitted to our servers or stored anywhere. Once you close the browser tab, your data is gone. We do not collect any health information that could be used to identify you.

How We Are Funded

This site is free to use and is supported by two revenue streams: Google AdSense (contextual display advertising) and affiliate partnerships with licensed online therapy providers. When you click an affiliate link and sign up for a service, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. These relationships do not influence the screening tool, the scoring algorithm, or the crisis-resource integration.

References

  • Kroenke, K., Spitzer, R. L., & Williams, J. B. W. (2001). The PHQ-9: Validity of a brief depression severity measure. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 16(9), 606–613. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1525-1497.2001.016009606.x
  • Kroenke, K., Strine, T. W., Spitzer, R. L., Williams, J. B. W., Berry, J. T., & Mokdad, A. H. (2009). The PHQ-8 as a measure of current depression in the general population. Journal of Affective Disorders, 114(1–3), 163–173. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2008.06.026
  • Manea, L., Gilbody, S., & McMillan, D. (2012). Optimal cut-off score for diagnosing depression with the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9): A meta-analysis. CMAJ, 184(3), E191–E196. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.110829
  • Levis, B., Benedetti, A., & Thombs, B. D. (2019). Accuracy of Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for screening to detect major depression: Individual participant data meta-analysis. BMJ, 365, l1476. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l1476
  • American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.). APA Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425596

Contact

Questions, feedback, or media inquiries? Reach us at hello@phq9test.org