---
url: "https://questionstar.com/blog/common-likert-scales/"
title: "Common Likert scales — a list with English wordings"
description: "Agreement, importance, frequency, probability — a curated list of common Likert scales with English wordings."
lastmod: "2026-07-11"
type: "blog"
---

# A list of common Likert scales

*Which Likert scale fits which question?*

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.

> 💡
> 
> **Tip:** With QUESTIONSTAR you can add all of these scales to your questions with just the [**Magic wand**](/help/getting-started/productivity-tips#skalenbeschriftung) — quickly, consistently, and professionally.

👉 For anyone who wants to dig deeper into the topic: in a separate blog article we explain what [Likert scales actually are](/blog/likert-scales-explained) and [what to keep in mind when choosing one](/resources/likert-scales-five-aspects) (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](#zustimmung)
- [Importance](#wichtigkeit)
- [Probability](#wahrscheinlichkeit)
- [Satisfaction](#zufriedenheit)
- [Attitude](#einstellung)
- [Preference](#praferenz)
- [Frequency](#haufigkeit)
- [Quantity](#menge-quantitaet)
- [Intentions](#absichten)
- [Usefulness](#nutzlichkeit)
- [Credibility](#glaubwurdigkeit)
- [Difficulty](#schwierigkeit)
- [Efficiency](#effizienz)
- [Self-Comparison](#selbstvergleich)

| Measured construct | Scale items |
|------|------|
| Agreement |
| Agreement 5 Point Scale | Strongly disagreeDisagreeNeutralAgreeStrongly agree |
| Agreement 7 Point Scale | Strongly disagreeDisagreeSomewhat disagreeNeutralSomewhat agreeAgreeStrongly agree |
| Importance |
| Importance 5 Point Scale | Not at all importantUnimportantNeither important nor unimportantImportantVery important |
| Importance 5 Point Scale (Importance-Centered) | UnimportantSomewhat unimportantImportantVery importantExtremely important |
| Importance 7 Point Scale | Not at all importantVery unimportantSomewhat unimportantNeither important nor unimportantSomewhat importantQuite importantExtremely important |
| Probability |
| Probability 5 Point Scale | UnlikelySomewhat unlikelyNeither likely nor unlikelySomewhat likelyLikely |
| Probability 7 Point Scale | Very unlikelyUnlikelySomewhat unlikelyUndecidedSomewhat likelyLikelyVery likely |
| Likelihood / Probability / Chance – 4 Point Scale | Definitely notProbably notProbably yesHighly likely |
| Satisfaction |
| Satisfaction 5 Point Scale | Extremely dissatisfiedSomewhat dissatisfiedNeutralSomewhat satisfiedExtremely satisfied |
| Satisfaction 7 Point Scale | Extremely dissatisfiedDissatisfiedSomewhat dissatisfiedNeutralSomewhat satisfiedSatisfiedExtremely satisfied |
| Life Satisfaction (Unhappy–Happy) 7 Point Scale | Extremely unhappyUnhappySomewhat unhappyNeither happy nor unhappySomewhat happyHappyExtremely happy |
| Life Satisfaction / Joy (Terrible–Wonderful) 7 Point Scale | TerribleUnhappyMostly dissatisfiedMixedMostly satisfiedSatisfiedThrilled |
| Attitude/Satisfaction/Joy (Satisfied–Dissatisfied) 7 Point Scale | Very angryAngrySomewhat angryNeutralSomewhat satisfiedSatisfiedVery satisfied |
| Attitude |
| Attitude (Bad–Good) 5 Point Scale | Very badBadNeutralGoodVery good |
| Attitude (Bad–Good) 7 Point Scale | Very badBadInadequateNeither good nor badAcceptableGoodVery good |
| Attitude (Best–Worst) 5 Point Scale | One of the worstBelow averageAverageAbove averageOne of the best |
| Attitude (Best–Worst) 5 Point Scale (Variant) | Probably the worstVery badNeutralVery goodProbably the best |
| Attitude (Best–Worst) 7 Point Scale | Probably the worstVery badBadNeither good nor badGoodVery goodProbably the best |
| Attitude/Comparison (Worse–Better) 7 Point Scale | Much worseWorseSomewhat worseAbout the sameSomewhat betterBetterMuch better |
| Attitude (Poor–Excellent) 5 Point Scale | LousyFairGoodVery goodExcellent |
| Attitude (Very Bad–Very Good) 5 Point Scale | Extremely badBadFairGoodExtremely good |
| Attitude/Quality (Below–Above Average) 3 Point Scale | Below averageAverageAbove 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 inappropriateInappropriateSomewhat inappropriateNeither appropriate nor inappropriateSomewhat appropriateAppropriateVery appropriate |
| Attitude (Miserable–Delighted) 5 Point Scale | MiserableUnsatisfactorySatisfactoryExcellentDelighted |
| Attitude (Regretful–Delighted) 7 Point Scale | RegretfulBadFairGoodVery goodExcellentDelighted |
| Preference |
| Preference 5 Point Scale | No preferenceSlightly preferPreferStrongly preferDefinitely prefer |
| Preference (Prefer–Avoid) 7 Point Scale | Definitely avoidStrongly avoidAvoidNeutralPreferStrongly preferDefinitely prefer |
| Preference (Like–Dislike) 7 Point Scale | Strongly dislikeDislike somewhatDislike a littleNeither like nor dislikeLike a littleLike somewhatLike very much |
| Preference (Like–Dislike) 9 Point Scale | Dislike extremelyDislike very muchDislike moderatelyDislike slightlyNeither like nor dislikeLike slightlyLike moderatelyLike very muchLike extremely |
| Frequency |
| Frequency 3 Point Scale | NeverOccasionallyOften |
| Frequency 4 Point Scale | NeverOccasionallyVery oftenAlways |
| Frequency 5 Point Scale | NeverRarelySometimesMostlyAlways |
| Frequency 5 Point Scale (Alt) | NeverRarelySometimesOftenAlways |
| Frequency 5 Point Scale (Alt 2) | Almost neverSometimesUsuallyAlmost alwaysAlways |
| Frequency (Daily–Never) 7 Point Scale | NeverLess than once a monthOnce a month2–3 times a monthOnce a week2–3 times a weekDaily |
| Quantity |
| Quantity 4 Point Scale | NoneLittleSomeMany |
| Quantity (All–None) 5 Point Scale | NoneSomeQuite a lotExceptionally muchAll |
| Quantity (Too Much–Too Little) 5 Point Scale | Far too littleToo littleAbout rightToo muchFar too much |
| Quantity Comparison (Higher–Lower) 5 Point Scale | Much lowerSomewhat lowerAbout the sameHigherMuch higher |
| Quantity Comparison (Stronger–Weaker) 5 Point Scale | Much weakerWeakerNo changeStrongerMuch stronger |
| Quantity Comparison (More–Less) 7 Point Scale | Much lessLessSlightly lessSameSlightly moreMoreMuch more |
| Quantity (Expectation) 4 Point Scale | Does not meet expectations at allDoes not meet expectationsExceeds expectationsGreatly exceeds expectations |
| Quantity Comparison to Ideal 4 Point Scale | Very far from idealFar from idealClose to idealExtremely close to ideal |
| Intentions |
| Intentions 5 Point Scale | Definitely notProbably notNot sureProbablyDefinitely |
| Purchase Intentions 5 Point Scale | Definitely will not buyProbably will not buyMight buyProbably will buyDefinitely will buy |
| Usage Intentions 5 Point Scale | Definitely will not useProbably will not useMight useProbably will useDefinitely will use |
| Reuse Intentions 5 Point Scale | Definitely will not reuseProbably will not reuseMight reuseProbably will reuseDefinitely will reuse |
| Recommendation Intentions 5 Point Scale | Definitely will not recommendProbably will not recommendMight recommendProbably will recommendDefinitely will recommend |
| Usefulness |
| Usefulness (Useful–Useless) 5 Point Scale | Extremely uselessUselessRather uselessNeitherRather usefulUsefulExtremely useful |
| Credibility |
| Credibility (Credible–Not Credible) 5 Point Scale | Not credibleRather not credibleUncertainRather credibleCredible |
| Difficulty |
| Difficulty (Easy–Difficult) 7 Point Scale | Extremely difficultDifficultRather difficultNeitherRather easyEasyExtremely easy |
| Efficiency |
| Efficiency 7 Point Scale | Extremely ineffectiveIneffectiveRather ineffectiveNeither effective nor ineffectiveRather effectiveEffectiveExtremely effective |
| Efficiency 5 Point Scale | Needs urgent improvementNeeds developmentNo significant strength or weaknessA serious strengthHighly developed |
| Efficiency/Speed 5 Point Scale | Extremely slowSlowRather slowNeitherRather fastFastExtremely fast |
| Self-Comparison |
| Self-Comparison 5 Point Scale | Not like me at allNot like meSomewhat like meVery much like meExactly like me |
| Self-Comparison 7 Point Scale | Not like me at allNot like meNot very much like meNeitherSomewhat like meLike meExactly like me |
| Self-Comparison – Feelings 5 Point Scale | Does not describe my feelings at allMostly does not describe my feelingsDescribes my feelings somewhatMostly describes my feelingsDescribes my feelings exactly |

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

You might also be interested in:

- [Likert scales: everything you ever wanted to know — and never dared to ask](/blog/likert-scales-explained)
- [Aggregating multi-item (Likert) scales](/blog/aggregating-multi-item-likert-scales)

## Related articles

- [likert-scales-explained](/blog/likert-scales-explained)
- [aggregating-multi-item-likert-scales](/blog/aggregating-multi-item-likert-scales)

*Author: Dr. Paul Marx — see [About](/about).*