Free Big Five personality test

Thirty statements, five traits, no boxes. Rate how much each one sounds like you; you get a score for each trait and what it means in plain words.

Page 1 of 50/30 answered
I get excited by ideas that nobody around me has tried.
I leave my bed unmade and my inbox overflowing.
I start conversations with strangers without thinking twice.
I go out of my way to make newcomers feel welcome.
Small setbacks can ruin my whole day.
I prefer familiar routines to trying new things.

Answer every statement on this page to continue.

The five traits, explained

TraitHigh scorers tend to beLow scorers tend to be
Opennesscurious, imaginative, drawn to new ideas and experiencespractical, grounded, happiest with the familiar and proven
Conscientiousnessorganised, dependable, goal-driven and self-disciplinedflexible, spontaneous, relaxed about plans and deadlines
Extraversionoutgoing, talkative, energised by other peoplereserved, reflective, energised by time alone
Agreeablenesswarm, trusting, cooperative and consideratedirect, sceptical, competitive and hard to push around
Neuroticismemotionally reactive, prone to worry and mood swingseven-keeled, calm under pressure, slow to rattle

How the scoring works

Each trait has six statements. Half are worded so that agreeing means more of the trait and half so that agreeing means less, which stops a habit of saying "agree" from inflating every score. Each answer is worth 0 to 4 points (flipped for the reversed items), and your trait score is your total as a share of the maximum, from 0 to 100. A 50 means you answered right in the middle of this test's range, not that you are average compared with everyone else.

The five-factor model grew out of decades of research into the words people use to describe each other, with major work by Lewis Goldberg, and by Paul Costa and Robert McCrae. Traits are fairly stable in adults but do shift gradually over a lifetime; studies generally find agreeableness and conscientiousness rise with age.

Questions people ask

What is the Big Five personality test?

The Big Five (or five-factor model) describes personality on five continuous traits: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness and Neuroticism, often remembered as OCEAN. It is the model most used in academic personality research.

How accurate is this free personality quiz?

It uses 30 original statements, six per trait, with reverse-scored items to cancel out yes-saying. It gives a sensible snapshot but is not a validated clinical instrument; your scores are shown on a 0–100 scale of this test's range, not as population percentiles.

Is the Big Five better than Myers-Briggs?

For research, yes: the Big Five measures traits on a scale and has strong evidence for reliability, while four-letter types split people into boxes. Four-letter types are still fun and easy to talk about; try both.

Is a high Neuroticism score bad?

No trait score is good or bad. High Neuroticism means you feel emotions intensely and notice threats early; it is linked with conscientious worry as well as stress. It is not a diagnosis of anything.

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