INSTRUMENT PHQ-9 · Patient Health Questionnaire-9 · 9 items · range 0–27
This site does one thing. It gives you a validated depression screening questionnaire, adds the answers up, and places the total against the cut-offs published with the instrument — then tells you what to do about where it landed. A screening score is not a diagnosis. Only a clinician can diagnose.
These five bands are the cut-offs published with the instrument by Kroenke, Spitzer and Williams. They are the same wherever the PHQ-9 is used.
Answer for the last fourteen days, not for today and not for the worst month you have had. The recall window is part of the instrument; changing it changes the number.
Your score is already shown above and costs nothing. An account keeps it, so a second reading in two weeks can be compared with this one — which is the only way a single total becomes a direction.
This is a screening questionnaire for education and self-awareness. It is not a diagnosis. If you are struggling, consult a qualified mental-health professional. If you are in danger, call emergency services — 1122 in Pakistan.
| Instrument | Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) |
|---|---|
| Authors | Kroenke, Spitzer & Williams |
| Items | 9 |
| Answer scale | 0 not at all · 1 several days · 2 more than half the days · 3 nearly every day |
| Total range | 0 to 27 — nine items, maximum 3 each |
| Recall window | The last 2 weeks — not the last year, not today |
| Severity bands | 5 — listed in row 03 |
| Also on this site | GAD-7, the seven-item anxiety questionnaire — range 0 to 21, 4 bands |
| Time to complete | About two minutes |
| Cost | Free. No signup needed to see your score. |
| What is stored | Nothing, unless you choose to save the result to an account. |
| Status of the result | A screening score. Not a diagnosis. |
These are the instrument's own cut-offs, not this site's opinion of them.
| PHQ-9 total | Band | What it usually means next |
|---|---|---|
| 0–4 | Minimal | Below the screening threshold. A total here does not point to depression. If you feel unwell anyway, the questionnaire is not the last word — say so to a clinician. |
| 5–9 | Mild | Some symptoms most days. Usually watched rather than treated straight away: take it again in two weeks and see whether the number moves. |
| 10–14 | Moderate | Ten is where most clinics start a conversation about treatment. Worth taking to a doctor rather than waiting. |
| 15–19 | Moderately severe | Active treatment is normally discussed at this level — talking therapy, medication, or both. |
| 20–27 | Severe | The top band. Do not wait for a routine appointment. If item 9 was anything other than "not at all", treat it as urgent — 1122 in Pakistan. |
GAD-7 (anxiety), for comparison: 0–4 minimal · 5–9 mild · 10–14 moderate · 15–21 severe.
How far a screening score can be trusted → · What else it could be →
Questions people sent after taking the test, answered and published anonymously. Names are always changed.
A score is only useful if it changes what happens next. There are three things to do with one, depending on where it landed.