PCL-5
Still carrying a very stressful experience? The validated PCL-5 checklist, privately.
If a very stressful experience is still affecting your days — unwanted memories, avoiding reminders, feeling on edge or cut off — this free PTSD test can help you put a measure on it. It uses the PCL-5, the standard 20-item checklist developed by the US VA National Center for PTSD and used across trauma research and clinics worldwide.
You'll rate how much each symptom has bothered you over the past month, and get an instant, private result across all four DSM-5 symptom clusters: intrusion, avoidance, negative mood and thoughts, and arousal. It's a screen, not a diagnosis — but scores above the validated threshold are a solid, concrete reason to talk with a trauma-informed professional.
No. Only a clinician can diagnose PTSD. The PCL-5 is the screening tool professionals themselves use — a high score is meaningful information to bring to that conversation.
The PCL-5 refers to an event involving actual or threatened death, serious injury, or violence — experienced, witnessed, or learned about. Answer with your most distressing experience in mind.
Yes. Your responses are private, never sold or shared, and you can take the preview without an account.