PSS-10 (Perceived Stress Scale)
Scores the ten-item Perceived Stress Scale (Cohen 1983).
Open the calculator → Runs in your browser. Data leaves only if you deliberately send a problem report from the interactive tool.
Example
- Item 1
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 2
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 3
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 4
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 5
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 6
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 7
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 8
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 9
- 2 (sometimes)
- Item 10
- 2 (sometimes)
Result: PSS-10 20 of 40 - higher is more perceived stress. No cutoff is published for this scale, so no threshold is applied.
The tool opens with these values already filled in. Replace them with your own.
What the result means
- Reverse scored
- Items 4, 5, 7 and 8 are positively worded and reversed, so answering every item the same way does NOT give a uniform total.
- No cutoff
- The developer has never published score cut-offs and the scale is not diagnostic. Bands circulating online are not theirs, and none is applied here.
- Scope
- A self-reported appraisal of the past month. Not a diagnosis, and a high score is not by itself a disorder.
What you enter
- Item 1 (as worded)
- Item 2 (as worded)
- Item 3 (as worded)
- Item 4 (reverse)
- Item 5 (reverse)
- Item 6 (as worded)
- Item 7 (reverse)
- Item 8 (reverse)
- Item 9 (as worded)
- Item 10 (as worded)
How this is calculated
- Scoring
- Ten items 0 (never) to 4 (very often), total 0 to 40. Higher is more perceived stress.
Cohen S, Kamarck T, Mermelstein R. A global measure of perceived stress. J Health Soc Behav. 1983;24(4):385-396. Read the source ↗
A reference and educational tool. Not medical, legal, or financial advice, and not a substitute for clinician judgment.