The AQ-10

The AQ-10 Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ-10) is a brief autism screening questionnaire for adults. It asks just 10 questions about autistic traits and was designed as a quick way to identify whether further autism exploration or assessment may be worthwhile.

Many autistic adults come across the AQ-10 when they’re trying to understand patterns in themselves that have always felt hard to explain.

You don’t need to already suspect you’re autistic to find the AQ-10 helpful. Many people arrive here simply because they’ve always felt different and are wondering whether autism might explain some of those lifelong patterns.

They might be wondering:

• Why do I feel out of sync socially, even when I try to do everything “right”?
• Why do I process things differently from the people around me?
• Could this be autism?

The AQ-10 is one way to begin exploring those questions. It is a very short self-report questionnaire designed to identify autistic traits in adults.

Unlike the full AQ, however, the AQ-10 contains only 10 questions. This makes it quick and easy to complete, but it also means that each individual question has a much greater influence on your final score.

Take the AQ

Getting your score is free and anonymous

If you have purchased an Embrace Autism screening, please contact us before completing this test.

Reasons people take the AQ-10

People often arrive here because:

• You’ve always felt different from other people.
• Social situations leave you exhausted.
• You feel like you’re performing rather than being yourself.
• ADHD explains some things, but not everything.
• Your child was diagnosed and you recognize yourself.
• Autism keeps coming up in therapy or while reading about it.
• You want a very quick autism screener before deciding whether to explore further.
• You have taken other autism tests and want another piece of information to compare with your results.

Notes on answering the questions

A few things to keep in mind:

• The AQ-10 was developed as a very brief screening tool, rather than as a comprehensive measure of autistic experience.
• Some questions may feel unclear, overly broad, or simplified.
• If your answer feels like “it depends,” choose what is most typical for you.
• You may notice yourself interpreting questions very literally; that’s okay—answer based on how you understand the question.
• Try to answer based on your internal experience, not just how you appear to other people.
• Although there are four response choices, the AQ-10 scoring ultimately treats them as agree/disagree responses.
• Some questions reflect earlier models of autism and may not fully capture masking, burnout, sensory differences, or late identification.
• Because there are only 10 questions, misunderstanding or not relating to even one question can have a noticeable effect on your score.
• Self-report tools are not diagnostic on their own, but they can still be useful as part of exploring autistic traits and experiences.

What if I mask?

Many autistic adults—especially those identified later in life—have learned to consciously or unconsciously hide autistic traits.

When answering the AQ-10, try to answer based on what feels natural or internally true rather than what you have learned to do to fit in.

For example, if social interaction feels exhausting even though you appear socially confident, answer based on the internal experience rather than your outward appearance.

If you think masking may significantly affect how you answer autism questionnaires, the CAT-Q may also be useful. It was specifically designed to measure social camouflaging.

Scoring

Scoring range: 0–10

Suggested threshold: 6+

• 6+ — At or above the suggested screening threshold
• Below 6 — Below the suggested screening threshold

Because the AQ-10 contains only 10 questions, your score should not be interpreted in isolation.

How to interpret your score

The AQ-10 has a possible score of 0–10.

A score of 6 or higher was proposed as the threshold for considering referral for further autism assessment.

If you scored 6 or higher

Your responses include a number of traits associated with autism.

This does not mean that you are autistic, but your score suggests that exploring autism further may be worthwhile.

A good next step is the full 50-question AQ, which gives autistic traits more opportunities to show up across different questions.

You may also want to take the RAADS-R, which explores autistic experiences using a much larger set of questions.

If you scored below 6

You did not reach the suggested AQ-10 screening threshold.

However, a score below 6 does not rule out autism.

This is particularly important with the AQ-10 because there are only 10 questions.

An autistic person may not relate to a particular example used in a question, may interpret a question differently than intended, or may have learned to compensate for the trait being measured.

The AQ-10 is best understood as a starting point.

What does my score mean?

Your AQ-10 score is only one piece of the picture.

• Autism is about lifelong patterns, not a single questionnaire.
• No questionnaire can diagnose autism.
• The AQ-10 contains only 10 questions and therefore samples a relatively small part of autistic experience.
• Your score is most useful when considered alongside your broader experiences and other autism questionnaires.

Some people finish the AQ-10 feeling that their score makes sense. Others are surprised that it is higher—or lower—than they expected.

Both experiences can be a reason to keep exploring.

AQ-10 Frequently Asked Questions

Can the AQ-10 diagnose autism?

No.

The AQ-10 is a screening questionnaire, not a diagnostic assessment. It identifies patterns of autistic traits that may suggest further exploration is worthwhile, but it cannot determine whether someone meets the diagnostic criteria for autism.

Its results are most useful when considered alongside your lifelong experiences, developmental history, and other information.

Can I be autistic if my AQ-10 score is below 6?

Yes.

The suggested AQ-10 threshold is 6, but scoring below this does not mean that you cannot be autistic.

There are only 10 questions, so the result is particularly sensitive to individual answers.

Masking, interpreting questions differently, not relating to the specific examples used, and differences in how autistic traits present can all influence your score.

I scored 5. Does being one point below the cutoff matter?

Not nearly as much as the number might make it seem.

A score of 5 falls below the suggested threshold and a score of 6 reaches it, but the difference between those scores is one answer on a 10-question test.

It would therefore be inappropriate to conclude that a person scoring 5 is not autistic while someone scoring 6 is.

If autism otherwise seems to fit your experiences, taking the full AQ or another autism questionnaire can provide considerably more information.

Does masking affect AQ-10 scores?

It can.

Many autistic adults have learned to consciously or unconsciously compensate for their autistic traits.

If you answer according to how you appear to other people rather than what happens internally, some of those traits may not be reflected in your answers.

When completing the AQ-10, try to think about what comes naturally to you rather than only what you have learned to do successfully.

The CAT-Q may be useful if you want to explore masking and camouflaging specifically.

Should I take the full AQ if I took the AQ-10?

If you are exploring whether you might be autistic, yes, it can be very useful.

The AQ-10 gives you a quick indication of whether autistic traits may be present.

The full AQ gives those traits many more opportunities to appear.

This is particularly useful if your AQ-10 score was close to the threshold or if some of the questions didn’t seem to represent your experience very well.

If you are looking for an autism/AuDHD assessment,
our (autistic) assessment team can offer help!

You can find more information here:

Autism/AuDHD assessments