Severity snapshot
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Quick 7-item insomnia check-in for the last 2 weeks.

  • Answer for your usual pattern, not one unusually good or bad night.
  • The original 0 to 4 ISI response anchors stay intact for every item.
  • Responses stay in this browser unless you export or share the URL.
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Share result

Share this result page with someone you trust to review your answers and result.

Severity gauge
Item severity map
What this result suggests

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The gauge keeps the official ISI total on the original 0 to 28 scale. Use it with the band boundary notes and item review below; the ISI is interpreted as one screening score rather than a set of official subscales.

Cutoff and boundary context

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Score Band Interpretation Copy
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Highest-scored items

These items are carrying the most weight on this run. They are practical review cues, not official ISI subscales.

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Recommended next actions

The item severity map keeps every ISI item on the original 0 to 4 scale so higher-intensity contributors and lower-intensity anchors stay visible in one place.

Suggested next steps
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Monitor
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Bring into follow-up
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Seek support sooner if

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Higher/lower item focus

ISI is interpreted as one total score. This comparison only shows which prompts were more or less endorsed on this run.

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Answer review
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Tags: Psychometrics, Sleep Hygiene
Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes About Sleep (DBAS-16) Assessment Assess DBAS-16 sleep beliefs, compare the 0 to 10 mean with the 3.8 reference, and rank the strongest beliefs to revisit next.
Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) Assessment Assess usual daytime dozing with the ESS, then review the 0-24 band, driving caution, top situations, browser charts, and shareable exports.
Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index Assessment Assess past-month sleep quality with PSQI scoring, component drivers, the >5 review cue, efficiency math, and optional observer notes.
EPW-Style Daytime Sleepiness Proxy Assess usual daytime sleepiness with eight EPW-style ratings, then review the 0-24 score, reference zone, safety cue, and context map.
Customize
Advanced
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Sleep trouble becomes harder to judge when the night problem and the day problem do not move together. Someone may spend hours trying to fall asleep but still function reasonably the next day. Another person may sleep in short broken stretches and feel unsafe driving, irritable at work, or unable to concentrate. The Insomnia Severity Index, usually shortened to ISI, gives those recent experiences a common 0 to 28 score.

The ISI is a self-report measure, so it records how the last 2 weeks have felt from the sleeper's point of view. It does not measure brain waves, breathing, movement, or exact hours asleep. Its strength is different: it asks about the main insomnia complaints and the daytime burden in one short format, which makes it useful for screening, symptom tracking, and preparing for a clinical or CBT-I discussion.

ISI area What it asks about Why it matters
Night symptoms Falling asleep, staying asleep, and waking too early. Shows whether the burden is mainly at bedtime, during the night, or near morning.
Sleep appraisal Satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the current sleep pattern. Captures the person's own judgment of whether sleep feels acceptable.
Day impact Interference with daily functioning and how noticeable the problem feels. Keeps work, school, mood, quality of life, and safety from being ignored.
Distress Worry or strain caused by the sleep problem. Recognizes that frustration and fear about sleep can become part of the burden.
Seven ISI item ratings combine into one total score from 0 to 28 across four severity bands.
The ISI total is one score, but the item pattern helps explain whether the burden is mostly nighttime symptoms, daytime impact, dissatisfaction, or distress.

A common mistake is treating the band label as the whole story. A total of 14 and a total of 15 sit on different sides of a published boundary, but the lived difference may be small. The reverse can also happen: two people can have the same total while one is mainly distressed by long sleep-onset delay and the other is struggling most with daytime interference.

The ISI does not diagnose the cause of insomnia. Stress, pain, medication effects, mood symptoms, substance use, shift work, caregiving, breathing-related sleep disorders, restless legs, and medical illness can all affect sleep. A high score is a reason to take the burden seriously; it is not proof that insomnia is the only explanation or that self-management is enough.

How to Use This Tool:

Answer the ISI as a recent check-in for your usual sleep pattern over the last 2 weeks. Use the result to organize what changed, what stands out, and what may need follow-up.

  1. Select Begin Assessment. The opening note reminds you to answer for the usual pattern, not one unusually good or bad night.
  2. Work through all seven radio-button questions. The progress bar and item navigator show how many answers are complete, and completed items receive a check mark.
  3. If the result does not appear, look for an item without a check mark. The Severity snapshot appears only after every answer has a 0 to 4 response.
  4. Read the Severity snapshot first. It shows the total out of 28, the published band, top area, cutoff context, support urgency, and high-intensity item count.
  5. Use the Severity gauge and Item severity map to compare the total band with the seven individual item scores. The map is often where one strong contributor becomes obvious.
  6. Review What this result suggests, Highest-scored items, Recommended next actions, and Higher/lower item focus before copying or exporting anything.
  7. Use Copy result link, CSV, chart images, or DOCX export only when you are comfortable preserving the answers and score in that format.

For repeat checks, keep the same 2-week recall frame. Comparing a stressful travel week with an ordinary work week may still be useful, but it is weaker evidence of true change.

Interpreting Results:

The total score and band are the main ISI result. Scores of 0 to 7 fall below the published insomnia bands, 8 to 14 is subthreshold insomnia, 15 to 21 is clinical insomnia of moderate severity, and 22 to 28 is clinical insomnia in the severe band. Boundary scores are included in their stated ranges, so 8 enters the subthreshold band, 15 enters the moderate band, and 22 enters the severe band.

Do not overread the top area, highest item, or support urgency cue as separate diagnoses. They are reading aids built from the same seven answers. They help decide what to discuss first, while the official scoring still rests on the total score and published band.

Result pattern What to verify
Low total with one elevated night item Check whether the issue is concentrated in falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking too early.
Subthreshold total with high day impact or distress Write down concrete daytime effects, because the band may sound mild while the lived burden is not.
Moderate or severe total with several 3 or 4 responses Treat the pattern as broad enough for structured follow-up rather than trying one bedtime habit at random.
Same total on two different checks Compare the item severity map, because the total can stay stable while the dominant sleep problem changes.

If the number and your real-life functioning do not match, recheck the answers before acting on the label. A low score should not dismiss unsafe sleepiness, mood changes, or work and driving concerns, and a high score should be discussed in the context of health history, medication, schedule, and other sleep symptoms.

Technical Details:

The ISI is scored by adding seven ordinal ratings. Each item contributes 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4 points. None of the items is reverse scored, and a partial questionnaire is not enough for a final total. The maximum total is 28 because seven items can each contribute up to 4 points.

The published band is based on the total only. Item groupings can help explain the shape of a result, but they are not official ISI subscales. A strong day-impact pattern and a strong nighttime-symptom pattern can produce the same total while pointing to different follow-up conversations.

Formula Core

The total score is the sum of the seven item ratings. A separate group proportion can be used as a reading aid when comparing areas with different maximum scores.

T = ∑ i=1 7 xi Pg = ∑ i∈g xi Mg
Symbol Meaning
T Total ISI score, from 0 to 28.
xi The 0 to 4 response score for item i.
Pg Proportion of a grouped area's maximum score, used only as a reading aid.
Mg Maximum possible score for a grouped area: 12 for night symptoms, 4 for sleep appraisal, 8 for day impact, and 4 for distress.

For example, responses of 3, 2, 2, 3, 3, 2, and 3 sum to 18. That falls inside the 15 to 21 moderate band. The night-symptom group contributes 7 out of 12, day impact contributes 5 out of 8, sleep appraisal contributes 3 out of 4, and distress contributes 3 out of 4, so the group pattern is not the same as the raw total.

Band Lower bound Upper bound Interpretation
No clinically significant insomnia 0 7 Recent insomnia burden is low on the ISI.
Subthreshold insomnia 8 14 Insomnia symptoms are present but below the clinical bands.
Clinical insomnia, moderate severity 15 21 The score is in the moderate clinical range on the ISI.
Clinical insomnia, severe 22 28 The score is in the highest published ISI severity range.
Reading aid Rule used How to treat it
Top area Compares each item group as a share of its own maximum score. Useful for review focus, not an official ISI subscale.
High-intensity items Counts answers scored 3 or 4 out of 4. Shows whether the burden is broad or concentrated in a few severe responses.
Cutoff context Reports how far the total sits from the nearest relevant published band boundary. Most useful near 8, 15, and 22, where a one-point change changes the band label.
Support urgency Raises concern for severe scores, moderate scores with strong day impact or distress, and subthreshold scores with notable day impact or distress. A practical cue for timing follow-up, not a clinical triage decision.

A repeat score is most comparable when the recall period, life context, and response style are similar. Small changes near a cutoff can be meaningful for the displayed band, but larger sustained changes and changes in the highest-scored items usually matter more for practical follow-up.

Limitations and Privacy:

The ISI is an informational screener, not a diagnosis or treatment plan. It can show recent burden and support a conversation, but it cannot identify medical causes, medication effects, sleep apnea, restless legs, circadian rhythm problems, mood disorders, or safety risk by itself.

  • Seek professional help sooner if sleep loss affects driving, work safety, mood, caregiving, or basic daily functioning.
  • Routine scoring happens in the browser, but copied result links encode the answers in the URL so the result can be reopened.
  • CSV files, chart images, DOCX exports, browser history, screenshots, and shared links can preserve sensitive sleep information.
  • CBT-I and clinical review may be more appropriate than repeated self-scoring when symptoms persist or keep worsening.

Worked Examples:

Borderline subthreshold result

Responses of 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, and 1 total 8. The Severity snapshot shows 8/28 and the band Subthreshold insomnia. Because this sits exactly at the first published boundary, the Cutoff context is important: the label changed, but the next step is still to check which item carried the score.

Moderate result with distress and day impact

Responses of 3, 2, 2, 3, 3, 2, and 3 total 18. The Overall lane reads Clinical moderate, the High-intensity items count is 4, and the Support urgency cue points toward prompt follow-up because day impact and distress are both elevated.

Same band, different focus

A 14 can come from 4, 4, 3, 1, 1, 1, and 0, where night symptoms dominate. Another 14 can come from 1, 1, 1, 3, 3, 3, and 2, where day impact and dissatisfaction are more prominent. The band remains Subthreshold insomnia, but the Item severity map points to different follow-up notes.

Missing-answer recovery

If six responses are entered, such as 2, 2, 1, 2, 2, 1, and one blank, the progress bar shows 86% and no Severity snapshot appears. Open the item navigator, select the missing response, and then recheck the total before using the answer review exports.

FAQ:

Does an ISI score diagnose insomnia?

No. The score is a self-report screening result over the last 2 weeks. Diagnosis depends on duration, daytime effects, clinical history, and whether another medical, mental health, medication, or sleep disorder issue explains the symptoms.

Why did no result appear after I started?

A result appears only after all seven items are answered. Use the progress bar and item navigator to find the question without a check mark, then choose a 0 to 4 response.

Why can the top area differ from the largest raw point total?

The areas have different maximum scores. Night symptoms can reach 12 points, day impact can reach 8, and sleep appraisal and distress can each reach 4, so the top area compares each area as a share of its own maximum.

Should I worry about a one-point band change?

Treat it as a cue to look closer, not as a sudden clinical shift. Scores of 7 and 8 or 14 and 15 are only one point apart, so compare the item map and real daytime effects before drawing a strong conclusion.

Are my ISI answers private?

Routine scoring happens in the browser, but the result link, exported files, chart downloads, screenshots, and browser history can all preserve the answers and score. Share or save them only when that is appropriate.

Glossary:

ISI
The Insomnia Severity Index, a seven-item self-report measure of recent insomnia burden.
Sleep onset
The period of trying to fall asleep after intending to sleep.
Sleep maintenance
The ability to stay asleep without repeated or prolonged awakenings.
Early-morning awakening
Waking earlier than intended and having trouble returning to sleep.
Day impact
The combined burden of daytime interference and how noticeable the sleep problem feels.
Subthreshold insomnia
The 8 to 14 ISI range where symptoms are present but below the clinical bands.
CBT-I
Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, a structured treatment approach for persistent insomnia.

References: