Free · takes about 5 minutes
Free Adult Dyslexia Indicator
A short, free set of questions to help you explore patterns in your own experience of reading, spelling, writing, memory and organisation.
An indicator, not a diagnosis. This is an indicator, not a diagnostic test. It cannot diagnose dyslexia, and difficulties can have other explanations. A full diagnostic assessment considers a much wider range of information and standardised evidence.
Before you start
- 24 short questions about your own experience, about five minutes.
- Completely free. No email address, account or phone number required.
- Your answers stay in your browser. Nothing is sent to us or stored.
- You can go back, change an answer, or start again at any point.
- At the end you get a profile across several areas, with guidance, not a score or a diagnosis.
About this indicator
What this free check can and cannot tell you
Online dyslexia checklists can be a useful starting point, but dyslexia is more complex than a simple score. A comprehensive assessment considers patterns across literacy, cognitive processing and developmental history, alongside professional judgement.
This free indicator cannot measure those things directly or diagnose dyslexia. What it can do is help you explore patterns in your own experiences across areas commonly associated with dyslexia, so you can decide whether further exploration would be useful.
By adulthood, many people have spent years developing ways of working around the things they find difficult. Reading may be accurate but slow. Spelling may be handled by spellcheck. Ideas may come across clearly in conversation but take far longer to get into writing. That is why this indicator looks for a pattern rather than one particular sign.
Your privacy. Your answers stay in your browser. They are not sent to Defining Dyslexia, not saved to any database, and not used for marketing. We do not ask for your name, employer, university or any other identifying information.
Common questions
- Can this tell me whether I am dyslexic?
- No. It is an indicator, not a diagnostic test. It summarises the patterns you report, which is a useful starting point, but a diagnosis of dyslexia can only follow a full diagnostic assessment carried out by a qualified specialist assessor using standardised measures.
- Is it really free, and do I need to give an email address?
- It is completely free, and no email address, account or phone number is required. Your result appears on screen as soon as you finish, and you can print or save it if you want to keep a copy.
- What happens to my answers?
- They stay in your browser and are used only to work out your profile on your own device. They are not sent to Defining Dyslexia and are not stored in any database.
- Am I too old to be assessed?
- No. Many people are assessed for the first time in adulthood, often after years of wondering, or after a child or colleague was assessed. Understanding your own profile can be useful at any age, and an assessment report can support conversations about adjustments at work or in study.
- I read well. Does that mean this is not dyslexia?
- Not necessarily. Years of experience build a large bank of words that are recognised automatically, so reading can be accurate while still taking far more time and effort than it does for other people. Difficulties are often more noticeable with unfamiliar or technical vocabulary, under time pressure, or with spelling and written work.
- Could these difficulties be something other than dyslexia?
- Yes. Similar patterns can arise for a range of reasons, including other specific learning differences, attention difficulties, gaps in earlier teaching, language differences, or periods of poor health or stress. This indicator looks only at patterns associated with dyslexia and does not attempt to screen for anything else. A full assessment is designed to distinguish between those possibilities.