PSS-10 — Perceived Stress Scale (10 items)
The 10-item Perceived Stress Scale measures how stressful you have found your life over the past month. One of the most widely used psychological instruments for measuring the perception of stress. Free.
Low stress (0–13)
Situations in life are generally appraised as manageable. Sense of control is intact.
Moderate stress (14–26)
Life situations feel somewhat uncontrollable or overwhelming at times.
High stress (27–40)
A high degree of perceived uncontrollability and unpredictability. Clinician follow-up may be warranted.
At a glance
About the PSS-10
Cohen, Kamarck, and Mermelstein (1983) developed the Perceived Stress Scale to assess the degree to which people appraise situations in their lives as stressful. The PSS taps into how unpredictable, uncontrollable, and overloaded respondents find their lives — the three components of perceived stress most reliably linked to health outcomes. It is not a diagnostic instrument and does not measure specific stressors, but rather the global sense that demands exceed one's capacity to cope.
The 10-item version (PSS-10) is the standard short form. Four positively framed items (4, 5, 7, 8) are reverse-scored before summing, so that the total reflects perceived stress in a consistent direction. Scores reflect the past month and can be used for single assessments or longitudinal tracking.
The PSS has been validated across a wide range of populations and is among the most cited measures in health psychology research. It correlates with physiological stress markers, health behaviors, and clinical outcomes, while remaining brief enough for routine screening.
Cohen, S., Kamarck, T., & Mermelstein, R. (1983). A global measure of perceived stress. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 24(4), 385–396.Scoring
Items 4, 5, 7, and 8 are positively stated and reverse-scored (0→4, 1→3, 2→2, 3→1, 4→0). All 10 items are then summed. Higher totals indicate greater perceived stress. Score bands follow the commonly used interpretation by Cohen & Williamson (1988): 0–13 = low stress, 14–26 = moderate stress, 27–40 = high stress. These bands are descriptive guidelines, not diagnostic thresholds.
The PSS-10 is free for academic and non-profit research use. A commercial-use grey area applies — the scale is attributed to Sheldon Cohen and administered here with attribution.
Cohen, S., & Williamson, G. (1988). Perceived stress in a probability sample of the United States. In S. Spacapan & S. Oskamp (Eds.), The social psychology of health (pp. 31–67). Sage.