PCL-5 PDF: Print the 20-Item PTSD Checklist for DSM-5
The PCL-5 is a twenty-question form that records how much each of the DSM-5 post-traumatic stress symptoms has bothered you in the past month, in relation to one stressful experience you choose. This page carries the checklist itself to print or fill in by hand, with the response options, the cluster scoring and what the total means.
Reviewed byMichael Callans, MSWThe twenty items
- Repeated, disturbing, and unwanted memories of the stressful experience?
- Repeated, disturbing dreams of the stressful experience?
- Suddenly feeling or acting as if the stressful experience were actually happening again (as if you were actually back there reliving it)?
- Feeling very upset when something reminded you of the stressful experience?
- Having strong physical reactions when something reminded you of the stressful experience (for example, heart pounding, trouble breathing, sweating)?
- Avoiding memories, thoughts, or feelings related to the stressful experience?
- Avoiding external reminders of the stressful experience (for example, people, places, conversations, activities, objects, or situations)?
- Trouble remembering important parts of the stressful experience?
- Having strong negative beliefs about yourself, other people, or the world (for example, having thoughts such as: I am bad, there is something seriously wrong with me, no one can be trusted, the world is completely dangerous)?
- Blaming yourself or someone else for the stressful experience or what happened after it?
- Having strong negative feelings such as fear, horror, anger, guilt, or shame?
- Loss of interest in activities that you used to enjoy?
- Feeling distant or cut off from other people?
- Trouble experiencing positive feelings (for example, being unable to feel happiness or have loving feelings for people close to you)?
- Irritable behavior, angry outbursts, or acting aggressively?
- Taking too many risks or doing things that could cause you harm?
- Being "superalert" or watchful or on guard?
- Feeling jumpy or easily startled?
- Having difficulty concentrating?
- Trouble falling or staying asleep?
How to answer
Write the worst event at the top of the printed page, then keep that one event in mind for every question. Read each problem carefully and write beside it how much you have been bothered by it in the past month: Not at all, A little bit, Moderately, Quite a bit, or Extremely. Some of these questions touch on difficult material. You can stop at any point, and you can bring a partly completed sheet to an appointment.
The five response options and their points: Not at all (0), A little bit (1), Moderately (2), Quite a bit (3), Extremely (4).
How to score it
- Score each item: Not at all = 0, A little bit = 1, Moderately = 2, Quite a bit = 3, Extremely = 4.
- Add all 20 items for a total symptom severity score. The range is 0 to 80.
- Cluster scores are the sums within each DSM-5 symptom cluster: Cluster B, intrusion, items 1 to 5; Cluster C, avoidance, items 6 to 7; Cluster D, negative alterations in cognitions and mood, items 8 to 14; Cluster E, alterations in arousal and reactivity, items 15 to 20.
- For the provisional diagnosis method, treat an item rated 2, Moderately, or higher as an endorsed symptom. The DSM-5 rule then requires at least 1 B item, 1 C item, 2 D items and 2 E items.
- If an item is left blank, leave the total incomplete and say so, rather than counting the blank as 0. This missing-answer instruction is an editorial safeguard, not part of the published scoring.
What the score means
Initial research suggests that a PCL-5 total score between 31 and 33 is indicative of probable PTSD across samples. That is a screening threshold for further evaluation, not a diagnosis, and it is a range rather than a single line.
The cluster scores show where the symptom load sits: re-experiencing, avoidance, changes in beliefs and mood, or arousal and reactivity. Two people with the same total can need quite different support.
The National Center for PTSD advises interpreting the PCL-5 in light of the setting and purpose of the assessment, so a score collected at home on a printed sheet is a starting point for a conversation. A formal diagnosis requires a clinical interview, often a structured one such as the CAPS-5, and confirmation that the symptoms follow a traumatic event. A score below the threshold does not mean the experience was not serious or that support would not help.
Source and permission
Weathers, F.W., Litz, B.T., Keane, T.M., Palmieri, P.A., Marx, B.P., & Schnurr, P.P. (2013). The PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) - Standard [Measurement instrument]. Available from www.ptsd.va.gov.
Developed by staff at the US Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for PTSD. Version date: 29 August 2023.
Psychometric validation: Blevins CA, Weathers FW, Davis MT, Witte TK, Domino JL. The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5): development and initial psychometric evaluation. Journal of Traumatic Stress. 2015;28(6):489-498. doi:10.1002/jts.22059. Bovin MJ, Marx BP, Weathers FW, et al. Psychometric properties of the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 in veterans. Psychological Assessment. 2016;28(11):1379-1391. doi:10.1037/pas0000254.
The PCL-5 is available free from the National Center for PTSD at https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/assessment/adult-sr/ptsd-checklist.asp. Reproduction here does not imply endorsement of Psychology.com by the National Center for PTSD, the Department of Veterans Affairs or the United States Government.
Reproduced because the National Center for PTSD states that the measure was developed by its staff and is in the public domain and not copyrighted, with the VA's own citation retained and its guidance that the instrument is intended to be interpreted by a qualified health professional stated on the sheet.
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About this tool
The PCL-5 PDF on this page is the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5, standard version. Twenty items correspond to the twenty symptom criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder in the DSM-5, each rated for the past month on a five-point scale from Not at all to Extremely. The total runs from 0 to 80. One feature sets it apart from most symptom checklists: every item is answered in relation to a single stressful experience that the person names at the top of the page, so the form measures symptoms tied to one event rather than distress in general.
Weathers, Litz, Keane, Palmieri, Marx and Schnurr released the measure in 2013, revising the earlier PTSD Checklist for DSM-IV to match the DSM-5 criteria. The revision was not cosmetic: DSM-5 moved PTSD out of the anxiety disorders, split the old three-cluster structure into four, and added symptoms covering persistent negative beliefs, distorted blame and reckless or self-destructive behavior. Blevins, Weathers, Davis, Witte and Domino published the first psychometric evaluation in the Journal of Traumatic Stress in 2015, across two samples of trauma-exposed college students, reporting strong internal consistency in the first sample of 278 and test-retest reliability of 0.82.
The four clusters are worth knowing before you read a total, because two people can reach 40 by entirely different routes. Cluster B, intrusion, is items 1 to 5: unwanted memories, nightmares, the sense of reliving the event, and emotional and physical reactions to reminders. Cluster C, avoidance, is items 6 and 7 only. Cluster D, negative alterations in cognitions and mood, is items 8 to 14. Cluster E, alterations in arousal and reactivity, is items 15 to 20. Adding each cluster separately shows where the load actually sits, and that is usually what shapes the treatment plan.
For a screening threshold, the National Center for PTSD points to early research suggesting that a total between 31 and 33 is indicative of probable PTSD across samples, and validation studies have proposed cutoffs anywhere from the high twenties to the high thirties depending on the population. Bovin and colleagues examined the measure in veterans in 2016 and found the optimally efficient range sat around 31 to 33. It is a band rather than a line, and the right place to put it depends on the setting and on whether the aim is to miss as few cases as possible or to avoid false positives.
The checklist also exists to be repeated. The National Center for PTSD says plainly that there is limited evidence to guide decisions about response and meaningful improvement. Its current suggestion, drawn from data on both the DSM-IV checklist and the PCL-5, is to read a decrease of about 10 points as an indicator of response, and it cites one study using a PCL-5 below 28 as an indicator of clinically significant change. Treat those as rough markers rather than a verdict: a drop from 48 to 44 across a course of therapy may be real but modest, while 48 to 28 is the kind of movement a person usually notices in their own life as well as on the sheet.
What the PCL-5 cannot do by itself is establish the event. DSM-5 Criterion A requires exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual violence, directly, as a witness, by learning it happened to someone close, or through repeated work exposure to the details. The form takes your word for the index event and never evaluates it, which means a high score can be produced by a very distressing experience that does not meet Criterion A. Clinicians often pair the checklist with a trauma exposure measure, and a formal diagnosis uses a structured interview such as the CAPS-5.
Two patterns push the score the wrong way. Avoidance, cluster C, is itself a symptom, so the people most organized around not thinking about an event sometimes rate the intrusion items low simply because they have arranged their lives to avoid triggering them. And several items overlap with other conditions: poor sleep, irritability, concentration problems, loss of interest and feeling cut off from people all appear in depression, in the aftermath of a head injury, in chronic pain and in ordinary grief. A total alone cannot say which of those is doing the work.
The National Center for PTSD states that the instrument is intended to be interpreted by a qualified health professional, and that the setting and purpose of the assessment shape what a score means. A sheet filled in at a kitchen table is a starting point for a conversation, not a result. If you are answering it for yourself, the useful products are the total, the four cluster scores, and a note of which items you rated 3 or 4, because those specifics are what an appointment can actually work with.
Print the sheet, write the index event at the top, and answer the twenty items for the past month. Some of these questions touch on difficult material, and you can stop partway and bring an incomplete sheet to an appointment; that is a legitimate use of it. If you would rather answer on screen and have the clusters totaled for you, the interactive version is at PTSD Test (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), and for mapping what sets the symptoms off day to day, Trauma Triggers Worksheet is built for that.
References
- Weathers FW, Litz BT, Keane TM, Palmieri PA, Marx BP, Schnurr PP. The PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5). National Center for PTSD; 2013. https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/assessment/adult-sr/ptsd-checklist.asp
- Blevins CA, Weathers FW, Davis MT, Witte TK, Domino JL. The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5): development and initial psychometric evaluation. Journal of Traumatic Stress. 2015;28(6):489-498. doi:10.1002/jts.22059
- Bovin MJ, Marx BP, Weathers FW, et al. Psychometric properties of the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 in veterans. Psychological Assessment. 2016;28(11):1379-1391. doi:10.1037/pas0000254
- American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed, text revision. American Psychiatric Association Publishing; 2022.
Cite this source
Psychology.com. (2026, November 6). PCL-5 PDF. Psychology.com. https://psychology.com/tools/pcl-5-pdf
PCL-5 PDF FAQ
Is the PCL-5 PDF free to use?
Yes. The PCL-5 was developed by staff at the National Center for PTSD, which states that the measure is in the public domain and not copyrighted, and it is available free from the VA. Anyone reproducing it is asked to keep the developers' citation and to leave the item wording alone, since the scoring and the proposed cutoffs only apply to the published questions. The VA also notes that the instrument is intended to be interpreted by a qualified health professional, and that reproduction by a third party does not imply any endorsement by the VA.
How do I score the PCL-5?
Scoring the PCL-5 is addition. Each of the twenty items gets 0 for Not at all, 1 for A little bit, 2 for Moderately, 3 for Quite a bit and 4 for Extremely, and the twenty numbers add up to a total between 0 and 80. Then add the four cluster subtotals separately: items 1 to 5 for intrusion, 6 and 7 for avoidance, 8 to 14 for negative changes in beliefs and mood, and 15 to 20 for arousal and reactivity. If an item was skipped, do not score it as 0. Note how many were answered and mark the total incomplete.
What is a positive PCL-5 score?
On the PCL-5 the figure most often quoted is 31 to 33, which early research suggests is indicative of probable PTSD, and validation studies have suggested thresholds both lower and higher depending on the group being screened. Positive here means worth a proper evaluation, nothing more. There is also a second method: count every item rated 2 or higher as present, and check whether the pattern meets the DSM-5 requirement of at least one intrusion symptom, one avoidance symptom, two negative mood or belief symptoms and two arousal symptoms. Both approaches point to the same next step, which is an appointment.
Does the PCL-5 diagnose PTSD?
No. The PCL-5 is a self-report screen and symptom monitor, and PTSD is diagnosed by a clinician through an interview, often a structured one such as the CAPS-5. The checklist cannot confirm that the symptoms are tied to a qualifying traumatic event, which the DSM-5 requires, and it cannot distinguish post-traumatic stress from depression, grief, the aftermath of a head injury or a sleep disorder, all of which share several of the twenty items. A high total is a good reason to be assessed. It is not the assessment.
Which event should I think about when answering the PCL-5?
The PCL-5 asks you to pick one event, write it at the top of the sheet, and keep it in mind for all twenty questions. Choose the one that bothers you most now, not necessarily the one that sounds worst on paper or the one that happened first. Mixing events across items is the most common way a sheet becomes hard to interpret, because the clusters stop describing a single pattern. If several experiences weigh on you, a common approach is to complete one sheet per event, or to name the main one here and tell the clinician about the others.
How much does a PCL-5 score need to change to matter?
The National Center for PTSD says there is limited evidence to guide decisions about response and meaningful improvement; its current suggestion, drawn from data on both the DSM-IV checklist and the PCL-5, is to read a decrease of about 10 points as an indicator of response, and it cites one study using a PCL-5 below 28 as an indicator of clinically significant change. In practice that means a two or three point difference between two sheets is not news, while a sustained drop of fifteen points over a course of therapy is the kind of change people tend to notice in daily life as well.
Can I fill in the PCL-5 on my own, without a therapist?
You can, and many people do, but handle it with some care. The PCL-5 asks you to hold one distressing event in mind for twenty questions, which can stir things up, so pick a time with some room afterward rather than ten minutes before a meeting. You are allowed to stop partway. What is worth taking from a self-administered sheet is not a verdict but material: the total, the four cluster scores, and the items you rated Quite a bit or Extremely, all of which make the first appointment considerably more productive.