Discovering your enneagram type can be a little bit tricky.
There’s more to the process than just taking a test and landing on a number.
I, for instance, had mis-typed myself for over a year before I finally realized the true (and not always so pretty) motivations behind many of my decisions and actions.
That’s why it can be helpful to speak to an enneagram professional—
someone trained to understand the formation of type and what really, deep down, distinguishes one type from another.
Because it’s not always easy to see the differences.
The enneagram doesn’t put you in a box…
it helps you get OUT of the box you are already in.
Callie Ammons
The best way to find out your number is to, quite frankly, do a LOT of reading and do a typing interview with an enneagram expert.
BUT.
Some of us are not that patient. (I’m looking at you, Eights.)
Some of us think we can figure it out better. (That would be you, Ones.)
Some of us like to spend hours exploring every nook and cranny of our lives. (That would be ME. I’m a Four.)
And some of us just like to research the crap out of things. (Fives? Anyone?)
SO.
If that’s YOU, here are some of my favorite tests available, both free and at a small cost.
A few caveats before you jump in:
- There is no perfect test, largely because most tests (and people) focus on what they DO, not on WHY THEY DO IT. This does not lead to an accurate test result.
- Some people, therefore, find it helpful to take more than one test.
- The tests I find most helpful are the ones which give you a score for ALL of the nine types.
- And, finally, if you take six tests and get six different results, you’re probably a—just kidding! I wouldn’t do that to you. Getting several different results can be normal. The best thing you can do is to narrow it down to the two that best resonate with you, and then talk to others (like me!) to help get clarity.
Here are some of my favorites:
The RHETI
The Riso-Hudson Enneagram Type Indicator (RHETI® version 2.5) is the world’s most popular Enneagram-based test. It is a scientifically validated (72% accurate according to Statistical Solutions), forced-choice personality test with 144 paired statements. The test takes about 40 minutes to complete.
The RHETI® version 2.5 has been independently scientifically validated. Rather than just indicating your basic type, however, the RHETI® produces a full personality profile across all nine types. This provides you with a unique portrait, indicating the relative strengths and weaknesses of the nine types within your overall personality.
The RHETI® results are available in a PDF format and include your scores for all nine types in a full-spectrum profile, as well as the Expanded Type Descriptions (of over 2,500 words each) for your top three scores. These type descriptions have been revised and updated to provide the most comprehensive type summaries available.
Cost is $12 UDS
iEQ9
The iEQ9 is used in business, which is reflected in its price.
It boasts more than 10 years of scientific research and development and 95% accuracy. It is used by over 3,500 professional practitioners worldwide, providing over 250,000 profiles to its corporate clients.
The Integrative Enneagram approach gives people an understanding of the subconscious motivations, beliefs, defenses and fixed behavior patterns that lead us to get stuck or frustrated. The report highlights powerful insights about your personality type, shining an illuminating light on both your potential and your challenges
Cost for the report is $60 USD.
WEPSS
The WEPSS is the only Enneagram inventory reviewed in Buros’s Mental Measurements Yearbook, the recognized handbook in the field of psychological testing.
It was created to measure the resourceful and less-resourceful characteristics of each of the nine personality styles described by the Enneagram.
“The WEPSS… offers an attractive alternative to more traditional instruments that have as their primary function the identification of personality and emotional disorders. The author’s efforts to use quantitative psychometric tools to refine and evaluate an instrument inspired by a clearly humanistic or even mystic tradition are praiseworthy…
The appeal that the WEPSS offers is a rich, “thick description” of test results very similar in texture to that provided by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator… The instrument offers a wide range of hypotheses waiting to be tested; further empirical confirmation of the WEPSS’s validity and reliability will very probably draw more careful attention to it as a viable alternative to mainstream personality tests, especially among psychologists and therapists exploring such issues within a spiritual or humanistic framework.” (The Fifteenth Mental Measurements Yearbook. Lincoln, NE: Buros Institute of Mental Measurements, 2003.)
Cost is $10 USD.
Truity
Truity offers a superb Enneagram Personality Test that is easy to do and offers accurate results.
The user experience is smooth and the free report is well-designed.
The free report will offer you insight into your Enneagram scores, a brief explanation of your Enneagram type, how much your personality matches with the 9 Enneagram types, and what makes you unique and stand out from others.
Sample report is free; cost is $19 USD to unlock the full report.
Your Enneagram Coach
An interesting and reliable assessment that consciously includes the taker’s spirituality.
They claim any assessment is at best about 80% accurate because it’s trying to assess your inner world which depends on how well you know yourself. This means there are situations where your type may be different from your result.
They heavily promote their Discovering You and Enneapath courses to really discover your main Enneagram type and pathway for growth.
(As a caveat, I received some of my training through this organization, and am able to provide the same services without having to buy the courses.)
Assessment is FREE.
True Self
Other personality tests like Myers-Briggs measure how you process information and make decisions. The Enneagram measures your core fears and desires and why you do what you do.
Learn not just your primary Enneagram Type but your TrueType, and Instinctual Type. This is based on cutting edge research that you have not just one Enneagram Type but one in each Center of Intelligence.
TrueSelf offers a private, personality-based social network where you can see the personality type of your friends, family and co-workers.
Visualizing your network by personality type accelerates serendipity, intimacy and seeing people more clearly for who they truly are. When this happens, magic unfolds.
Assessment is FREE.
The RHETI Free Sampler
The Riso-Hudson Enneagram Type Indicator can help you determine your Enneagram type. This is a SAMPLE of the full RHETI which has 144 questions.
There are 38 questions in this sample test. For each of them, select the answer that applies to you. You may skip questions that really do not apply, but do not avoid questions simply because they are difficult to answer. This test typically takes 5-10 minutes to complete.
Please note that this test is only for personal use, under agreement with the Enneagram Institute. For any other purpose, refer to the original publication, Discovering Your Personality Type: The Enneagram Questionaire by Don Richard Riso. His other books include Personality Types – revised edition (1996), Understanding the Enneagram (1990), Discovering Your Personality Type (1995), and Enneagram Transformations (1993). The full RHETI is available on-line at www.EnneagramInstitute.com for $10.
Sample assessment is FREE.
Crystal Knows
A website focused on personality assessment.
The assessment is free, but the site requires you to make an account to view your full results.
The main advantage of Crystal’s Enneagram Test is to see how your Enneagram type plays into other personality indicators such as the DISC assessment, Myers-Briggs personality test, Big Five Assessment, strengths, and values.
Once you create an account, you can see your comprehensive results of all these tests and it offers you insights on what energies you, what drains you, and your natural talents.
The Enneagram report itself is more brief compared to the other tests because Crystal relies on a combination of tests when it comes to generating your personality analysis.
Assessment is FREE.
Eclectic Energies
Ecletic Enneagram offers two different tests to help you determine which personality type you are, as well as indicating your wont.
The classic enneagram test consists of pages containing nine questions or less (one for each enneagram type). After you have answered enough questions to establish which types you are not, you’ll get no further questions for those types.
With the second test, which includes the instinctual variants, you are presented with pairs of character traits to rate. It is quicker than the other test, and gives an indication of your instinctual subtype as well.
Assessments are FREE.
Enneagram Academy RHETI Sampler
The RHETI Sampler’s 36 questions are only a part of the full, scientifically validated 144-question Riso-Hudson Enneagram Type Indicator (RHETI, Version 2.5) personality inventory. It takes about 10 minutes to complete, as opposed to 40 for the full RHETI, and is NOT scientifically validated. Short personality quizzes such as the RHETI Sampler here cannot guarantee that your basic personality type will be indicated, although your type will most likely be one of the top three scores in this free quiz. It is recommend that you read the Enneagram type descriptions after taking this test, and in Riso-Hudson Enneagram books, to help you identify your basic personality type.
Assessment is FREE.
Still looking to verify your type? Make an appointment with me to investigate further!
*I do not receive money from any of these companies to promote their tests or materials.