Which personality test is best?
It depends on what you want the result for. If you want a measurement grounded in personality research, the best choices are trait tests built on the Big Five or HEXACO models: they score you on continuous scales instead of sorting you into a box, and they have decades of published research behind them. If you want a familiar vocabulary for talking about preferences, a four-letter type test is easy to share. If you want a prompt for reflecting on what drives you, the Enneagram is built for that, though it has far less evidence behind it.
PersonalityLoom offers all four, free to take, so this page compares them side by side — including where each one falls short.
The four tests compared
All four use the same answer format — a five-point scale from strongly disagree to strongly agree — and all four give you a free result when you finish. They differ in what they measure, how long they take, and how much research stands behind them.
- Main personality test (HEXACO) — 96 questions, about 15 minutes, with an optional 192-question sitting. Six axes and 24 narrower dimensions, mapped to one of 64 archetypes. Free result: your archetype, a summary written from your answers, and your position on all six axes. Evidence: built on the HEXACO model and on published scales from the International Personality Item Pool.
- Big Five test — 50 questions, about 7 minutes. Five broad traits (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, emotional reactivity), each scored 0 to 100. Free result: all five scores with a band and a short reading. Evidence: the most widely used framework in personality research.
- Sixteen Types test — 100 questions, about 12 minutes. Four preferences, each a pair of opposites, combined into a four-letter type. Free result: your type, its description, and a percentage for each pair. Evidence: weaker — most people sit near the middle of each pair, so a letter can flip on a retake.
- Enneagram test — 99 questions, about 12 minutes. Nine types, each organised around a core motivation and the fear it answers. Free result: your top type, your secondary lean, and all nine scores ranked. Evidence: limited — it comes from a self-development tradition rather than academic psychology.
What makes a personality test scientific
No online test is scientific just because it says so. A few things separate a research-grade instrument from a quiz, and you can check each of them before you trust a result:
- A model from research. The Big Five and HEXACO were found by studying how people describe one another across many languages, then tested for decades. Type systems mostly began as theories.
- Continuous scores. Personality varies by degree, so a good test reports how much, not just which side.
- Published reliability. The scales should come with figures showing that their items agree with one another and give similar results on a retake.
- Reverse-worded items, so that agreeing with everything does not inflate a score.
- Stated limits. A trustworthy test tells you what it cannot measure and what it must not be used for.
Which one should you take?
Pick by the question you are asking. You can take more than one — none takes more than about a quarter of an hour.
- The most detailed, research-based picture of yourself: the main personality test. Six axes, 24 dimensions and a written archetype.
- A quick, well-evidenced snapshot: the Big Five test, in about seven minutes.
- A four-letter type to compare with friends: the Sixteen Types test — read the percentages, not just the letters.
- A starting point for reflecting on what drives you: the Enneagram test, used as a prompt rather than a measurement.
What no personality test should decide
Every result here describes the answers you gave on one day. None of these tests is a clinical assessment, and none should be used to make hiring, medical or other important decisions about anyone. Used for self-understanding — and for talking with people about how you differ — they are at their best.
Questions about choosing a personality test
What is the most accurate personality test?
Tests built on the Big Five or HEXACO models have the strongest research behind them, because they measure traits on continuous scales with published reliability. Among the tests here, the main personality test is the most detailed, with 24 dimensions; the Big Five test is the quickest well-evidenced option.
Are these personality tests free?
Yes. All four tests are free to take, and each gives you a free result when you finish. A longer written report is available to buy, but it is optional.
What is the difference between HEXACO and the Big Five?
HEXACO keeps close relatives of the five Big Five traits and adds a sixth, Honesty-Humility, which covers sincerity, fairness and modesty. Our main test reports HEXACO's six factors as six named axes, each measured through four narrower scales.
Is a 16-type test scientific?
Less so than a trait test. It has to give each person one letter per pair even when their answers sit near the middle, so close cases can flip between retakes. It is useful as a shared vocabulary; look at the percentages, and take a trait test if you want continuous scores.
Can I use a personality test to choose a job or hire someone?
To understand your own working style, yes — the main test's archetypes each describe how that type tends to work. To decide about another person, no: none of these tests is validated for hiring or any decision made about someone else.