If you are feeling low or anxious and decide to visit your GP, they frequently ask you to complete a quick screening form or test about how you feel. Your doctor will often assess your symptoms using two assessments: one depression test – the PHQ9 or Patient Health Questionnaire – and one anxiety test , called the GAD7 or Generalised Anxiety Disorder Assessment. These widely used tests have been translated into many languages, and have been in use worldwide for a long time. Through a simple depression questionnaire score or anxiety GAD 7 score, they provide a simple, quick and easy picture of how much your depression or anxiety is affecting you on a daily basis. Anxiety is often associated with depression and both tests are presented together here for convenience.
These self-administered tests are helpful as they provide some basis for you to gain an indication of the severity of your symptoms. However, a written test, no matter how well validated is not a substitute to speaking to a mental health professional. It is strongly recommended that any concerns that you have should be followed up with appropriate care or consultation with a mental health professional or clinician.
Depression Test: the PHQ 9 measurement tool
Answer the questions based on how you’ve been feeling during the last two weeks.
Depression Test
Anxiety Test: the GAD 7 Anxiety Symptoms Tool
Answer the questions based on how you’ve been feeling during the last two weeks.
Anxiety Test
What do my Anxiety Test and Depression Test scores mean?
Take your scores for each completed questionnaire separately, and compare your results to the information below:
| PHQ-9 for depression (score out of 27) | GAD-7 for anxiety (score out of 21) |
| 0 – 4 None/minimal symptoms | 0 – 4 None/minimal symptoms |
| 5 – 9 Mild depression | 5 – 10 Mild anxiety |
| 10 – 14 Moderate depression | 11 – 15 Moderate anxiety |
| 15 – 19 Moderately severe depression | 15 – 21 Severe anxiety |
| 20 – 27 Severe depression |
The PHQ family of measures (including abbreviated and alternative versions as well as the GAD-7, were developed by Drs. Robert L. Spitzer, Janet B.W. Williams, Kurt Kroenke and colleagues, with an educational grant from Pfizer Inc. All of the measures are in the public domain. No permission is required to reproduce, translate, display or distribute.
The Next Step: Treating and Working Through Depression or Anxiety?
Although the symptoms of anxiety or depression have varying degrees of severity, from a practical point of view, it can be much more helpful to focus on solutions and treatment rather than to worry about any sort of medical, diagnostic label. To read more about depression and working through it, please see our depression page. For anxiety please see the anxiety counselling page.
Something Helpful if you are feeling low:
A thought-provoking video on depression. Famously, Churchill called his depression the “black dog”.
