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Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS)3

Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) Test

Understand your level of depressive symptoms in about 15 minutes. A 20 item scale built for screening, tracking change over time, and supporting clinical research and early evaluation.

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Questions: 2015 minutes

08:30

June 16, 2025

June 16, 2025
Material has been updated

June 16, 2025
Material has been published

21,425 views

2,524 completions

1,855 likes

Verified by Daniel Hall

Psychologist with 25 years of experience

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

50/80

Depression Level (DL)

Measures the overall severity of depressive symptoms based on the total score across 20 self-rated items.

Low

Moderate

High

20 – 39: Low | 40 – 59: Moderate | 60 – 80: High

A score of 50 falls in the Moderate range, indicating a mid-level presence of depressive symptoms on this scale.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

People feeling persistently low

41%OF USERS

They want a quick, structured way to gauge how strong their depressive symptoms have been recently.

Clients starting therapy

34%OF USERS

They take it to provide a baseline that can be discussed with a psychologist or psychiatrist during an initial assessment.

Clinicians and researchers tracking change

25%OF USERS

They use it repeatedly to monitor symptom severity over time in clinical practice, screenings, or medication studies.

BASED ON AGGREGATED, ANONYMIZED DATA FROM TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FREUDLY USERS.

Benchmarking

See How You Compare

Once you complete the test, your results are compared with real-world data from people in your country.
Below is a preview of how scores are typically distributed across each scale.

Depression Level (DL)

Average

41.6

Normal range

33.9 — 49.3

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

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SAMPLE QUESTIONS

Example Questions From the Test

- A little of the time
- Some of the time
- Good part of the time
- Most of the time
- A little of the time
- Some of the time
- Good part of the time
- Most of the time
- Very rarely
- Rarely
- Often
- Most of the time or constantly

These are 3 of the 20 real questions — the rest appear in the test. No sign-up needed to start.

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WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) Test - Symptoms and Signs

depression

This self-report instrument is used to quantify the severity of depressive symptoms, with attention to core affective, cognitive, and somatic features. The Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) was developed by William W. K. Zung and is commonly used in clinical and research contexts as a brief screening measure and for monitoring symptom change over time.

The measure consists of 20 items and typically requires about 15 minutes to complete. Scores from the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) are interpreted as an index of depressive symptom burden and should be considered alongside clinical interview findings, relevant history, and other assessment data rather than used as a stand-alone diagnostic determination.

Author: William W. K. Zung