The WHO-5 Well-Being Index is a five-question questionnaire that asks about positive feelings rather than symptoms: whether you have felt cheerful, calm, active and rested, and whether your days have held things that interest you. It was developed in the 1990s and is now published by the World Health Organization. Clinics and researchers around the world use it as a quick check on mental wellbeing.
It takes about a minute. Unlike most screening questionnaires, a higher score is better here. Each answer scores from 0 to 5, and the total of 0 to 25 is multiplied by four to give a score from 0 to 100. A low score does not diagnose any condition; it suggests that a fuller conversation with a professional could be worthwhile.
Screening, not a diagnosis. A score can point to whether it may help to talk to a professional. It cannot tell you what you have, and a low score does not mean you should ignore how you feel.
Your result
0 out of 100
This is a screening result, not a diagnosis. Only a qualified professional who talks with you can say what it means for you. Your answers have not been sent anywhere.
How the score works
Each answer scores from 5 (“All of the time”) down to 0 (“At no time”). The five answers add up to a raw score from 0 to 25, which is multiplied by four to give the score shown, from 0 to 100. Higher scores mean better wellbeing. WHO’s scoring note gives a score below 50 (a raw score below 13) as the point at which poor wellbeing is suggested and a fuller assessment, for example for depression, is worth considering. The bands below are the ones published by the questionnaire’s authors.
| Score | Band |
|---|---|
| 0–48 | Low wellbeing |
| 52–100 | No sign of low wellbeing |
When to get help
Consider speaking to a doctor or mental health professional if your score is below 50, if you answered “At no time” or “Some of the time” to several statements, or if you have felt this way for more than a couple of weeks.
Because the WHO-5 asks about positive feelings, it does not ask directly about thoughts of self-harm. If you have had thoughts of being better off dead or of hurting yourself, please talk to someone now, whatever your score. The depression self-check (PHQ-9) asks about low mood in more detail.
Finding support in Thailand
Our guide to mental health support in Thailand covers how to find a psychiatrist, psychologist or counsellor, what to ask before booking, and what to expect at a first appointment.
Sources
- World Health Organization: The World Health Organization-Five Well-Being Index (WHO-5), 2024
- WHO-5 official English form and scoring (WHO, PDF)
- Topp CW et al. The WHO-5 Well-Being Index: a systematic review of the literature. Psychother Psychosom 2015
- Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO licence
- Department of Mental Health, Ministry of Public Health: 1323 mental health hotline
- National Institute for Emergency Medicine: 1669 emergency medical service
Item wording, answer options and scoring follow the official English form published by the World Health Organization, reproduced unchanged. Suggested citation: World Health Organization. The World Health Organization-Five Well-Being Index (WHO-5). Geneva: World Health Organization; 2024. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO. WHO does not endorse this site or any provider listed on it. Last reviewed 24 October 2026.