The AUDIT score is a 10-item World Health Organization questionnaire that screens for hazardous drinking, harmful alcohol use, and possible dependence. Items cover how often you drink, how much you drink, binge patterns, loss of control, morning drinking, guilt, blackouts, injuries, and concern from others. Totals range from 0 to 40. Higher scores usually mean greater alcohol-related risk and should prompt brief advice or specialist review rather than a stand-alone diagnosis. Use the free AUDIT alcohol calculator to total the items, then interpret the result with local standard-drink definitions and a clinical conversation.
Definitions
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| AUDIT | Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test; a 10-item WHO screening tool |
| AUDIT-C | A three-item short form that focuses on consumption (items 1–3) |
| Hazardous drinking | Drinking above recommended limits with raised risk of future harm |
| Harmful drinking | Alcohol use that is already causing health or social harm |
| Possible dependence | Patterns that suggest alcohol dependence and need specialist assessment |
| Standard drink | A local unit of pure alcohol; size differs by country (for example, about 8 g in the UK and 14 g in the US) |
What does each AUDIT item ask?
The full AUDIT has three domains:
Consumption (items 1–3)
- How often do you have a drink containing alcohol?
- How many drinks containing alcohol do you have on a typical drinking day?
- How often do you have six or more drinks on one occasion?
Dependence symptoms (items 4–6)
- How often during the last year were you unable to stop drinking once you had started?
- How often during the last year did drinking stop you from doing what was normally expected?
- How often during the last year did you need a morning drink to get going after heavy drinking?
Alcohol-related problems (items 7–10)
- How often during the last year did you feel guilt or remorse after drinking?
- How often during the last year were you unable to remember the night before because of drinking?
- Have you or someone else been injured because of your drinking?
- Has a relative, friend, doctor, or other health worker been concerned about your drinking or suggested you cut down?
Items 1–8 usually use a 0–4 frequency or quantity scale. Items 9–10 commonly score 0 (no), 2 (yes, but not in the last year), or 4 (yes, in the last year). Add all ten answers for a total from 0 to 40.
How do you interpret AUDIT results?
A widely used four-band map from WHO guidance is:
| Score | Typical label | Practical next step |
|---|---|---|
| 0–7 | Low risk | Reinforce lower-risk drinking advice; reassess if patterns change |
| 8–15 | Increasing / hazardous risk | Brief intervention: feedback, goal setting, and a clear cut-down plan |
| 16–19 | Higher / harmful risk | Structured brief intervention plus referral for fuller assessment |
| 20–40 | Possible dependence | Refer for specialist assessment and treatment planning |
An AUDIT total of 8 or higher is a common primary-care flag for risky drinking that deserves a conversation. Bands guide priority. They do not decide diagnosis alone. Always match item 2 and binge thresholds to the local standard-drink size.
When should you escalate after an AUDIT screen?
Escalate sooner when:
- The total is high (often 16–40) or daily function at work, school, or home is clearly impaired
- Morning drinking, withdrawal symptoms, seizures, or blackouts are present
- There is suicidal thinking, self-harm risk, or inability to keep safe
- Alcohol is mixed with sedatives, opioids, or other substances that raise overdose risk
- Liver disease, pregnancy, driving risk, or violence related to drinking is part of the story
- Prior quit attempts failed and drinking is escalating
Safety comes first. A questionnaire never replaces urgent review when someone is withdrawing, confused, injured, or cannot stop despite clear harm.
What are the limitations of the AUDIT?
It is a screen, not a full diagnosis of alcohol use disorder. Culture, stigma, and under-reporting can lower scores even when risk is real. Standard-drink size varies by country, so the same number of “drinks” can mean different amounts of pure alcohol.
False reassurance is possible. Someone who binge drinks rarely may score modestly on frequency items yet still face high acute risk. False alarms happen too: a short holiday with heavier drinking can lift a yearly recall score without long-term dependence.
Mood and anxiety often travel with alcohol use. When low mood or worry is part of the story, add the PHQ-9 depression test and the GAD-7 anxiety calculator rather than reading AUDIT in isolation.
How should you use AUDIT in practice?
- Explain that most items ask about the last year, not only last week.
- Agree which standard-drink definition you are using before scoring quantity items.
- Let the person complete it privately when possible, then review answers together.
- Total the score and name the band in plain language.
- Ask about function: sleep, work or study, relationships, driving, and medication use.
- For busy clinics, AUDIT-C (items 1–3) can open the door, then complete the full AUDIT when consumption looks risky.
- Agree a plan: brief advice, structured cut-down support, referral, or urgent care if withdrawal or safety is at risk.
- Re-score after a few weeks of change to track progress, not only to label a single visit.
Key takeaways
- AUDIT totals ten WHO items for a maximum of 40.
- Higher scores suggest greater hazardous, harmful, or dependence-level risk and usually need clinical follow-through.
- A common action threshold in primary care is 8 or above, with 20–40 treated as possible dependence.
- Pair with PHQ-9 and GAD-7 when mood or anxiety also matter.
- Use the free calculator, then decide next steps with a clinician rather than from the number alone.
Frequently asked questions
What is a normal AUDIT score?
Scores of 0–7 are usually labeled low risk. That does not mean zero alcohol use. It means this screen did not flag hazardous patterns under common WHO cut points.
Is AUDIT a diagnosis of alcohol use disorder?
No. It supports screening and risk banding. Diagnosis needs a clinical interview that checks control, craving, tolerance, withdrawal, and impairment over time.
What is the difference between AUDIT and AUDIT-C?
AUDIT-C uses only the three consumption items. It is faster for busy visits. A raised AUDIT-C usually leads to the full 10-item AUDIT and a fuller conversation.
Does standard drink size change my score?
Yes. Item 2 and the “six or more drinks” binge item depend on what counts as one drink where you live. Always score with a local definition so the total stays meaningful.
How often should AUDIT be repeated?
Many clinics re-score every few weeks during active cut-down or treatment, or sooner if drinking spikes. Avoid daily retesting, which adds noise without clearer decisions.
Try the calculator
Score the ten items in minutes with the free AUDIT alcohol calculator, then discuss the result with a qualified clinician if drinking is affecting your health, safety, or daily life.
Source note: Scoring bands and item structure follow the World Health Organization AUDIT manual (2nd edition, 2001). No other studies are claimed here.
