Free ALS assessment calculators
Track ALS over time with validated calculators, free. Measure function, cognition, and quality of life, get a score, and check the evidence behind each one.
How common is ALS?
In about 1 in 10 people with ALS, the family history points to an inherited form. The rest have no affected family members.
An estimated 32,893 people were living with ALS in the United States in 2022, a figure the National ALS Registry projects will pass 36,000 by 2030.1 The Registry identified between 4,861 and 6,045 new cases a year across 2014 to 2016.2 The lifetime risk is about 1 in 350 for men and 1 in 400 for women.3
- 1.Mehta P, Raymond J, Nair T, et al. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis estimated prevalence cases from 2022 to 2030, data from the national ALS Registry. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener. 2025;26(3-4):290-295.
- 2.Mehta P, Raymond J, Punjani R, et al. Incidence of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in the United States, 2014-2016. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener. 2022;23(5-6):378-382.
- 3.Masrori P, Van Damme P. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a clinical review. Eur J Neurol. 2020;27(10):1918-1929.
Understanding ALS
ALS damages the motor neurons that control voluntary movement. Over time it can affect walking, hand use, speech, swallowing, and breathing. Diagnosis stays clinical, resting on signs of both upper and lower motor neuron damage in someone with progressive weakness for whom no other explanation is found.3 Because ALS progresses, these calculators are used repeatedly to measure the rate of change.
Thinking and behavior change too. About 35 to 40 percent of people with ALS have mild cognitive or behavioural changes, and 10 to 15 percent meet criteria for frontotemporal dementia.3 That is why a cognitive screen sits alongside the functional scale.
The most widely used is a functional rating scale a person can complete themselves. Others screen cognition and behavior, or measure quality of life.
ALS assessment calculators
Each one is free. Open it to take the assessment, get a score, and see what it measures and the evidence behind it.
With a clinician
Quality of life
ALS questions, answered
How is ALS progression measured?
With a functional rating scale, repeated over time. The ALSFRS-R asks 12 questions about speech, swallowing, hand use, walking, and breathing, and totals them into a score from 0 to 48. One score is a snapshot. The change between scores is what describes the course of the condition.
Which ALS assessment should I take first?
The ALSFRS-R. It is self-administered, takes about five minutes, and is the measure most ALS clinics and trials already use, so the number travels with you.
Is ALS inherited?
In about 1 in 10 people with ALS the family history suggests autosomal dominant inheritance. The other 90 percent have no affected family members and are classified as sporadic.
Does ALS affect thinking?
Often, in a mild form. About 35 to 40 percent of people with ALS have mild cognitive or behavioural changes, and 10 to 15 percent meet criteria for frontotemporal dementia. The ECAS is the screen built for this, with tasks that avoid the motor responses ALS makes difficult.
Can these calculators diagnose ALS?
No. Diagnosis is clinical, made by a neurologist from signs of upper and lower motor neuron damage in someone with progressive weakness for whom no other explanation is found. These calculators measure function, cognition, and quality of life. The scores are reference information for you and your care team.
Are the ALS calculators free?
Yes. Every calculator on this page is free to take here.
Can a brain-computer interface help with ALS?
The Brain-Computer Interface Registry connects people with ALS to trials building new ways to move and communicate. Complete your assessments once, and be matched to trials as they open.
These calculators use validated instruments and are reference information, not a diagnosis.