Common Likert scales — a list with English wordings

A collection of the scales we've kept running into over 22 years — with notes on when they fit and when they're better avoided.

Likert scales are among the most popular response formats in survey research. Originally developed to measure attitudes, they've long since become established for capturing many other concepts in a structured and comprehensible way, too. No wonder: they're simple, versatile — and still deliver meaningful, easily interpretable results.

We keep getting questions like:

"Which wordings are suitable for my scale?"
"Are there standard wordings for agreement, frequency, or importance?"

That's why we've put together a practical overview for you: in this article you'll find 57 common Likert scales, clearly organized into 14 categories. Ideal for looking things up, getting inspired — or dropping straight into your survey.

👉 For anyone who wants to dig deeper into the topic: in a separate blog article we explain what Likert scales actually are and what to keep in mind when choosing one (e.g. an even or odd number of response options, how to word the poles, and so on) — and how to avoid common mistakes.

But now, without further ado: here is the overview of the most common Likert scales:

Quick navigation:

Agreement
Importance
Probability
Satisfaction
Attitude
Preference
Frequency
Quantity
Intentions
Usefulness
Credibility
Difficulty
Efficiency
Self-Comparison

Measured construct	Scale items
Agreement
Agreement 5 Point Scale	Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree
Agreement 7 Point Scale	Strongly disagree Disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Agree Strongly agree
Importance
Importance 5 Point Scale	Not at all important Unimportant Neither important nor unimportant Important Very important
Importance 5 Point Scale (Importance-Centered)	Unimportant Somewhat unimportant Important Very important Extremely important
Importance 7 Point Scale	Not at all important Very unimportant Somewhat unimportant Neither important nor unimportant Somewhat important Quite important Extremely important
Probability
Probability 5 Point Scale	Unlikely Somewhat unlikely Neither likely nor unlikely Somewhat likely Likely
Probability 7 Point Scale	Very unlikely Unlikely Somewhat unlikely Undecided Somewhat likely Likely Very likely
Likelihood / Probability / Chance – 4 Point Scale	Definitely not Probably not Probably yes Highly likely
Satisfaction
Satisfaction 5 Point Scale	Extremely dissatisfied Somewhat dissatisfied Neutral Somewhat satisfied Extremely satisfied
Satisfaction 7 Point Scale	Extremely dissatisfied Dissatisfied Somewhat dissatisfied Neutral Somewhat satisfied Satisfied Extremely satisfied
Life Satisfaction (Unhappy–Happy) 7 Point Scale	Extremely unhappy Unhappy Somewhat unhappy Neither happy nor unhappy Somewhat happy Happy Extremely happy
Life Satisfaction / Joy (Terrible–Wonderful) 7 Point Scale	Terrible Unhappy Mostly dissatisfied Mixed Mostly satisfied Satisfied Thrilled
Attitude/Satisfaction/Joy (Satisfied–Dissatisfied) 7 Point Scale	Very angry Angry Somewhat angry Neutral Somewhat satisfied Satisfied Very satisfied
Attitude
Attitude (Bad–Good) 5 Point Scale	Very bad Bad Neutral Good Very good
Attitude (Bad–Good) 7 Point Scale	Very bad Bad Inadequate Neither good nor bad Acceptable Good Very good
Attitude (Best–Worst) 5 Point Scale	One of the worst Below average Average Above average One of the best
Attitude (Best–Worst) 5 Point Scale (Variant)	Probably the worst Very bad Neutral Very good Probably the best
Attitude (Best–Worst) 7 Point Scale	Probably the worst Very bad Bad Neither good nor bad Good Very good Probably the best
Attitude/Comparison (Worse–Better) 7 Point Scale	Much worse Worse Somewhat worse About the same Somewhat better Better Much better
Attitude (Poor–Excellent) 5 Point Scale	Lousy Fair Good Very good Excellent
Attitude (Very Bad–Very Good) 5 Point Scale	Extremely bad Bad Fair Good Extremely good
Attitude/Quality (Below–Above Average) 3 Point Scale	Below average Average Above average
Attitude/Quality (Appropriate–Inappropriate) 7 Point Scale [[FLAG: DE says "3-Punkte-Skala" but this scale has 7 items; matched to the published EN name which is a 7 Point Scale]]	Very inappropriate Inappropriate Somewhat inappropriate Neither appropriate nor inappropriate Somewhat appropriate Appropriate Very appropriate
Attitude (Miserable–Delighted) 5 Point Scale	Miserable Unsatisfactory Satisfactory Excellent Delighted
Attitude (Regretful–Delighted) 7 Point Scale	Regretful Bad Fair Good Very good Excellent Delighted
Preference
Preference 5 Point Scale	No preference Slightly prefer Prefer Strongly prefer Definitely prefer
Preference (Prefer–Avoid) 7 Point Scale	Definitely avoid Strongly avoid Avoid Neutral Prefer Strongly prefer Definitely prefer
Preference (Like–Dislike) 7 Point Scale	Strongly dislike Dislike somewhat Dislike a little Neither like nor dislike Like a little Like somewhat Like very much
Preference (Like–Dislike) 9 Point Scale	Dislike extremely Dislike very much Dislike moderately Dislike slightly Neither like nor dislike Like slightly Like moderately Like very much Like extremely
Frequency
Frequency 3 Point Scale	Never Occasionally Often
Frequency 4 Point Scale	Never Occasionally Very often Always
Frequency 5 Point Scale	Never Rarely Sometimes Mostly Always
Frequency 5 Point Scale (Alt)	Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always
Frequency 5 Point Scale (Alt 2)	Almost never Sometimes Usually Almost always Always
Frequency (Daily–Never) 7 Point Scale	Never Less than once a month Once a month 2–3 times a month Once a week 2–3 times a week Daily
Quantity
Quantity 4 Point Scale	None Little Some Many
Quantity (All–None) 5 Point Scale	None Some Quite a lot Exceptionally much All
Quantity (Too Much–Too Little) 5 Point Scale	Far too little Too little About right Too much Far too much
Quantity Comparison (Higher–Lower) 5 Point Scale	Much lower Somewhat lower About the same Higher Much higher
Quantity Comparison (Stronger–Weaker) 5 Point Scale	Much weaker Weaker No change Stronger Much stronger
Quantity Comparison (More–Less) 7 Point Scale	Much less Less Slightly less Same Slightly more More Much more
Quantity (Expectation) 4 Point Scale	Does not meet expectations at all Does not meet expectations Exceeds expectations Greatly exceeds expectations
Quantity Comparison to Ideal 4 Point Scale	Very far from ideal Far from ideal Close to ideal Extremely close to ideal
Intentions
Intentions 5 Point Scale	Definitely not Probably not Not sure Probably Definitely
Purchase Intentions 5 Point Scale	Definitely will not buy Probably will not buy Might buy Probably will buy Definitely will buy
Usage Intentions 5 Point Scale	Definitely will not use Probably will not use Might use Probably will use Definitely will use
Reuse Intentions 5 Point Scale	Definitely will not reuse Probably will not reuse Might reuse Probably will reuse Definitely will reuse
Recommendation Intentions 5 Point Scale	Definitely will not recommend Probably will not recommend Might recommend Probably will recommend Definitely will recommend
Usefulness
Usefulness (Useful–Useless) 5 Point Scale	Extremely useless Useless Rather useless Neither Rather useful Useful Extremely useful
Credibility
Credibility (Credible–Not Credible) 5 Point Scale	Not credible Rather not credible Uncertain Rather credible Credible
Difficulty
Difficulty (Easy–Difficult) 7 Point Scale	Extremely difficult Difficult Rather difficult Neither Rather easy Easy Extremely easy
Efficiency
Efficiency 7 Point Scale	Extremely ineffective Ineffective Rather ineffective Neither effective nor ineffective Rather effective Effective Extremely effective
Efficiency 5 Point Scale	Needs urgent improvement Needs development No significant strength or weakness A serious strength Highly developed
Efficiency/Speed 5 Point Scale	Extremely slow Slow Rather slow Neither Rather fast Fast Extremely fast
Self-Comparison
Self-Comparison 5 Point Scale	Not like me at all Not like me Somewhat like me Very much like me Exactly like me
Self-Comparison 7 Point Scale	Not like me at all Not like me Not very much like me Neither Somewhat like me Like me Exactly like me
Self-Comparison – Feelings 5 Point Scale	Does not describe my feelings at all Mostly does not describe my feelings Describes my feelings somewhat Mostly describes my feelings Describes my feelings exactly

Date: April 9, 2025
Author: Dr. Paul Marx