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All Free Mental Health Screening Tools and Self-Checks

Last updated: August 2, 2026. Reviewed by Jason Ramirez, CADC-II.

Important: This directory includes both published screening instruments and original educational self-checks. Each tool page identifies its basis and limits. No result is a diagnosis.

MindCheck Tools currently lists 35 maintained screening and self-check pages, plus practical calculators, worksheets, and coping-skill tools. Some pages implement published screening instruments; others are explicitly labeled educational reflection tools and do not claim clinical validation.

For source studies, validated populations, reported accuracy, and licensing notes for the published instruments we document, see the clinical evidence page. For how the site selects instruments, preserves scoring, and handles your responses, see the methodology page.

Which mental health screening tool should I use?

Start with the concern you want to explore. This table maps common concerns to published screening instruments; it is not a diagnosis or a personalized clinical recommendation. A healthcare professional may choose a different tool based on age, history, safety, symptoms, and care setting.

Swipe horizontally to see what each tool covers and its evidence source.

Common concerns and screening tools that may fit them
ConcernStart withWhat it coversSource
Low mood, reduced interest, or other depressive symptoms over the past two weeksPHQ-9A published nine-item depression symptom screener for adults.Evidence
Persistent worry or generalized anxiety symptoms over the past two weeksGAD-7A published seven-item generalized anxiety symptom screener.Evidence
A very brief combined check for depression and anxiety symptomsPHQ-4Four items: two about depressive symptoms and two about anxiety symptoms.Evidence
A brief initial check for PTSD symptoms after a potentially traumatic eventPC-PTSD-5A published five-item primary-care PTSD screen for adults.Evidence
A more detailed review of PTSD symptoms over the past monthPCL-5A published 20-item PTSD symptom checklist for adults.Evidence
Alcohol use patterns and possible alcohol-related riskAUDITThe World Health Organization's full 10-item alcohol use screen.Evidence
A brief check focused on alcohol consumptionAUDIT-CThe three consumption items from the full AUDIT.Evidence
Possible problems involving alcohol or other drug useCAGE-AIDA published four-item screen covering alcohol and other drugs.Evidence
Adult ADHD symptomsASRSAn adult self-report symptom checklist for people age 18 and older.Evidence

Comparing related tools? See PHQ-9 vs GAD-7 or AUDIT vs AUDIT-C.

Depression

Self-checks for depressive symptoms in the past two weeks, including population-specific versions. Scores are educational and do not diagnose major depressive disorder.

Anxiety

Generalized anxiety, social anxiety, and combined depression-anxiety-stress checks. Useful as a starting point for a conversation with a clinician about anxious symptoms.

Trauma and PTSD

Post-traumatic stress symptom checks plus a screen for adverse childhood experiences. PTSD diagnosis requires a clinical interview, not a self-report screen.

Alcohol and substance use

Brief screens used in primary care, addiction medicine, and recovery support. Screening identifies risk patterns, not a substance use disorder diagnosis.

ADHD

Adult ADHD screens including the ASRS plus population-framed versions. ADHD diagnosis requires a clinical evaluation, including history and rule-outs.

Eating disorders

Brief screens to surface possible disordered eating. Eating disorder diagnosis requires evaluation by a clinician with training in eating disorders.

Borderline personality

Brief screens for borderline personality traits. BPD diagnosis requires a structured clinical interview and longitudinal observation, not a self-report screen.

Autism spectrum

Adult autism screening. A positive screen suggests further evaluation by a clinician experienced in autism spectrum assessment, not a diagnosis.

Personality and self-concept

Educational self-reflection tools. These are not clinical diagnostics. They are intended for personal insight and conversation, not for hiring, custody, or other consequential decisions.

Stress, burnout, and resilience

Stress load, burnout, and resilience checks. Burnout is a workplace phenomenon described by the World Health Organization, not a medical diagnosis on its own.

General mental health and wellbeing

Brief positive-functioning checks. These complement deficit-focused screens by tracking what is going well.

Loneliness and social

Loneliness self-checks. The UCLA scale is the most cited measure of loneliness in research.

Sleep

Brief sleep self-checks. Insomnia diagnosis requires a clinical interview that includes sleep schedule, daytime impairment, and rule-outs.

  • Athens Insomnia Scale

    AISPublished measure

    Eight-item insomnia symptom scale aligned with ICD-10 sleep criteria.

    Population
    Adolescents and adults
    Length
    8 items
    Time
    Under 3 minutes
    Take the self-check

  • Sleep and Mood Check

    Educational self-check

    Combined sleep and mood reflection for tracking the bidirectional link between the two.

    Population
    General adults
    Length
    About 12 items
    Time
    About 3 minutes
    Take the self-check

Grief

Grief self-reflection. Most grief is not a disorder. Prolonged grief disorder, defined in the DSM-5-TR, requires clinical evaluation.

  • Grief and Mood Check

    PHQ-9 depression screener

    PHQ-9 depression self-screen with grief-specific context. It does not assess prolonged grief disorder.

    Population
    Bereaved adults
    Length
    9 items
    Time
    About 3 minutes
    Take the self-check

Clinical guides and comparisons

Use these guides to choose an appropriate screener, understand how related instruments differ, and prepare to discuss a result with a healthcare professional.

Calculators and practical tools

Educational calculators and reference timelines. These are not screening instruments and do not produce a score against published cutoffs.

Coping and skills practice

Brief skills tools drawn from CBT, DBT, motivational interviewing, and relapse prevention literature. They are practice aids, not screeners and not therapy.

About this index

Published and maintained by MindCheck Tools. Reviewed for source alignment, limitations, and safety language by Jason Ramirez, CADC-II. For instrument source studies see the clinical evidence page. For selection and scoring standards see the methodology page. To report an error, contact us.