Adult ADHD Test: The ASRS v1.1 Screener
This free adult ADHD test uses the ASRS v1.1 Screener, the six-question adult ADHD screener developed with the World Health Organization. Get your result instantly. Your answers never leave your device.
At a glance
- 6 screening questions, plus 2 optional follow-ups
- About 2 minutes to finish
- Built on the ASRS v1.1 Screener, developed with the World Health Organization
- Private: scored in your browser. We never see, store, or email your answers.
- Results you can use: your official screener result, plus attention versus restlessness symptoms
- For adults 18 and older
Take the free adult ADHD test
This free adult ADHD test uses the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS v1.1) Screener. It’s six questions, chosen from an 18-question symptom checklist because researchers found them the most predictive of adult ADHD. It’s widely used in primary care and psychiatry.
We use the screener word for word, with its official scoring. Then our results go further: we show whether your answers lean toward attention or restlessness, and we add two optional questions clinicians ask during an ADHD evaluation.
What does the adult ADHD test measure?
The six ASRS questions cover the two sides of adult ADHD:
- Attention and organization (questions 1–4): finishing projects, getting organized, remembering obligations, and avoiding tasks that take sustained mental effort
- Restlessness and drive (questions 5–6): fidgeting and feeling driven by a motor
Each question asks how often something has happened over the past six months, from “Never” to “Very Often.” Our two optional follow-ups ask whether these problems began in childhood and whether they affect more than one area of your life. Those aren’t part of the official score.
How is the ASRS screener scored?
The ASRS uses shaded answer boxes. For questions 1 to 3, answering “Sometimes” or more often lands in the shaded area. For questions 4 to 6, it takes “Often” or “Very Often.” You’ll see the shading as you answer.
- 4 or more shaded answers: symptoms highly consistent with adult ADHD, and further evaluation is warranted
- 3 or fewer: below the screening threshold
Harvard’s 2024 scoring update also adds up all six answers on a 0–24 scale, where 14 or higher counts as a positive screen. Your results show both.
How accurate is the ASRS adult ADHD test?
The ASRS v1.1 is one of the most widely used adult ADHD screeners. It was developed by a World Health Organization workgroup and published by Kessler and colleagues in 2005.
Like any screener, it can miss people with ADHD and flag people who don’t have it. Anxiety, depression, trauma, burnout, and poor sleep all affect focus and can raise scores. A positive screen means a full evaluation is worth it, not that you have ADHD.
We use the six-question screener because its authors make it free for this kind of use, as long as it isn’t altered. The longer 18-question checklist requires a license.
How our team reads ADHD screener results
Here’s what our clinicians pay attention to after a positive screen.
When it started. ADHD begins in childhood, even if nobody noticed. Attention problems that showed up for the first time in adulthood usually have another cause.
Where it shows up. ADHD affects more than one area of life, like work, home, and relationships. Trouble focusing only at one job may point to something about that situation.
What else could explain it. Anxiety, depression, trauma, and sleep problems often look like ADHD, and they often travel with it too.
The cost of going undiagnosed. Many adults, especially women, spend years being told to try harder. The shame and burnout that leaves behind are part of what therapy addresses.
Inattentive ADHD vs. hyperactive ADHD
Adult ADHD can look mostly inattentive (disorganized, forgetful, easily distracted), mostly hyperactive-impulsive (restless, driven, interrupting), or combined. Inattentive ADHD is especially easy to miss in adults because it doesn’t look disruptive from the outside.
Can ADHD be diagnosed online?
A screener like this one can be done online, but an ADHD diagnosis requires a clinician’s evaluation, including your history, how long symptoms have been present, and whether something else explains them better.
What to do with your results
- 4 or more shaded answers: Talk with a clinician about a full ADHD evaluation, especially if your symptoms started in childhood.
- 3 or fewer, but focus is still a struggle: Anxiety, depression, burnout, or sleep could be involved. A consultation can help you sort it out.
- Already diagnosed: ADHD therapy builds practical strategies and helps with the frustration and shame years of struggling can leave behind.
Adult ADHD care at My Denver Therapy
Our team supports adults with ADHD through:
- ADHD therapy for focus, planning, follow-through, and emotional regulation
- Psychiatric medication management with our psychiatric nurse practitioner
- Neurodivergent-affirming therapy that works with how your brain works
- ADHD therapy for men, for the pressures men with ADHD often carry
We see clients in person in Denver, Greenwood Village, and Lone Tree, and online anywhere in Colorado. Most new clients start within a week, and our phones are answered 24/7. Book a free 15-minute consultation below to get started.
Frequently asked questions
Is this adult ADHD test free and private?
Yes. The test is free, and it runs entirely in your web browser. Your answers are never sent to us or stored anywhere, and we don’t ask for your name or email. When you close the page, your answers are gone unless you print or save them.
What is the ASRS v1.1?
The Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS v1.1) is a screening tool for adult ADHD developed with the World Health Organization. Its six-question screener includes the questions researchers found most predictive of adult ADHD.
What score on the ASRS indicates ADHD?
Four or more answers in the shaded boxes indicates symptoms highly consistent with adult ADHD and means further evaluation is warranted. Harvard’s 2024 scoring update also treats a total of 14 or higher, on a 0–24 scale, as a positive screen.
Can I be diagnosed with ADHD online?
A screener can be done online, but an ADHD diagnosis requires an evaluation by a qualified clinician who reviews your history and rules out other explanations.
Can anxiety or depression look like ADHD?
Yes. Anxiety, depression, trauma, burnout, and poor sleep all affect focus and memory, and they can raise ADHD screener scores. They also commonly occur alongside ADHD, which is why a full evaluation matters.
Can you develop ADHD as an adult?
ADHD starts in childhood, though many people aren’t diagnosed until adulthood. Attention problems that first appear in adulthood usually have another cause, such as anxiety, depression, or sleep problems.
How is adult ADHD treated?
Adult ADHD is usually treated with a combination of practical strategies, therapy for the emotional toll of ADHD, and, for many people, medication. Treatment is tailored to which symptoms cause the most trouble.
What should I do after a positive ADHD screen?
Talk with a clinician about a full evaluation. Bring your results, and think about whether your symptoms started in childhood and affect more than one area of your life.
If you’re in crisis
This test and our website aren’t meant for emergencies. If you’re in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988, or call Colorado Crisis Services at 1-844-493-8255 (text TALK to 38255). Both are free, confidential, and open 24/7. In an emergency, call 911.
Source: Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS v1.1) Screener. Copyright © New York University and President and Fellows of Harvard College. All rights reserved. Kessler, R.C., Adler, L., Ames, M., et al. (2005). The World Health Organization Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS). Psychological Medicine, 35(2), 245–256. This screening is for educational purposes only. It doesn’t diagnose any condition, and taking it doesn’t create a therapist-client relationship with My Denver Therapy.
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