SWLS: Satisfaction with Life Scale

What this assessment is

The five-item SWLS measures global life satisfaction and produces a summed total from 5 to 35. The developer uses six interpretation bands, from extremely dissatisfied to very high life satisfaction. These labels describe a broad life judgment, not a mental health diagnosis or a treatment threshold.

Ed Diener, Robert Emmons, Randy Larsen, and Sharon Griffin introduced it in a 1985 validation study. The scale asks a person to judge their life as a whole rather than rate separate areas such as work, health, or relationships.

It measures life satisfaction. It does not diagnose a mental health condition.

Who it was designed for

The original study included university students and older adults. Later research has used the SWLS across many ages, cultures, and health settings.

A study of adolescents across 24 countries and regions found that some items did not perform identically across cultures. Use a suitable translation and local evidence before comparing groups.

The scale is often used in research and outcome tracking. It is not a clinical triage tool.

How it is administered

The standard SWLS has five items, each scored from 1 to 7, and takes about one minute according to the developer's current page. No items are reverse scored.

It does not specify a fixed recall period. The respondent makes a broad judgment based on their own standards for a satisfactory life.

Modified five-point versions and shorter forms exist. Their totals and interpretation cannot be substituted for the original five-item form with its seven-point response scale.

What it measures

The SWLS measures the cognitive part of subjective wellbeing: a person's overall evaluation of their life.

It does not directly measure positive mood, negative mood, loneliness, depression, anxiety, or satisfaction with one specific domain.

The WHO-5 asks a different question. It measures positive mental wellbeing during the past two weeks, while the SWLS asks for a broader life judgment without a fixed timeframe.

How scoring works

Add the five responses. The total runs from 5 to 35, with higher scores indicating greater life satisfaction.

The developer's scoring guide also permits averaging the five responses. An average score runs from 1 to 7.

Name the method when reporting a result. A sum of 25 and an average of 5 describe the same response pattern, but the numbers require conversion before comparison.

The published 5-to-35 method requires five answered items. The developer materials reviewed here do not specify an imputation rule, so do not report an incomplete form as a standard SWLS total.

How to interpret an SWLS score

A developer-authored interpretation guide proposes six descriptive bands for the summed total:

• 5 to 9: extremely dissatisfied
• 10 to 14: dissatisfied
• 15 to 19: slightly below average
• 20 to 24: average
• 25 to 29: high
• 30 to 35: very high

These labels describe life satisfaction relative to the developer's interpretation framework. They are not mental health diagnoses and do not set treatment thresholds.

A score near a boundary should not be treated as categorically different from a score one point away. The person's reasons for the rating matter more than the label alone.

When tracking change, consider whether a difference reflects a lasting shift, a recent event, or ordinary variation.

What the score cannot tell you

The SWLS cannot show which parts of life are going well or poorly. Two people can report the same total for different reasons.

It cannot determine whether depression, anxiety, trauma, pain, financial strain, relationship problems, or another factor is present.

A clinical assessment needs direct questions about symptoms, function, context, and safety. The SWLS can add a broad view of life satisfaction, but it cannot replace that work.

Evidence and limitations

According to the original study, coefficient alpha was .87 in its 176-student sample. Among 76 students retested two months later, the correlation was .82. These estimates do not guarantee the same performance in every population or translation.

The single total keeps the measure focused, but it can hide important differences between life areas and cannot explain why a person's judgment changed.