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Money checkup

Financial Health Check

Answer 18 quick questions to get your financial well-being score, on the scale built by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and a personal action plan with the right calculator for each step. Free, private and about 3 minutes.

By Work & Money Editorial Team · Last reviewed October 19, 2026 · Calculation quiz.financial-health v1.0.0

Your money checkup

18 short questions, about 3 minutes. Your answers stay on this device.

Your age

Part 1: How you feel about your finances

These 10 statements are the CFPB Financial Well-Being Scale, used exactly as the CFPB wrote them. There are no right or wrong answers.

How well does this statement describe you or your situation?

1. I could handle a major unexpected expense
2. I am securing my financial future
3. Because of my money situation, I feel like I will never have the things I want in life
4. I can enjoy life because of the way I'm managing my money
5. I am just getting by financially
6. I am concerned that the money I have or will save won't last

How often does this statement apply to you?

7. Giving a gift for a wedding, birthday or other occasion would put a strain on my finances for the month
8. I have money left over at the end of the month
9. I am behind with my finances
10. My finances control my life

Part 2: Your money basics

Eight quick questions about the habits that protect your finances. Each one turns into a step in your plan.

1. If your income stopped, how long could your savings cover essential bills?
2. Do you carry a credit card balance (or other high-interest debt) from month to month?
3. Do you know roughly where your money goes each month?
4. How much of your pay goes into retirement savings (including any employer match)?
5. When you filed your last tax return, what happened?
6. Is everyone in your household covered by health insurance?
7. Would anyone struggle financially if you died or couldn't work?
8. Have you checked your credit reports in the last 12 months?

Your financial well-being score

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out of 100 on the CFPB scale. Answer Part 1 to see it.

Compared with U.S. adults
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U.S. adult average
54
Money basics in good shape
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Your first step
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How this was calculated

Part 1: each answer scores 0 to 4 (statements 3, 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10 are scored in reverse), the ten are added up (0–40), and the CFPB's conversion table for self-administered questionnaires turns the total into a score from 0 to 100, with separate columns for ages 18–61 and 62 or older.

Part 2: each answer marks an area as in good shape, worth improving or a priority, using common rules of thumb explained below. The plan lists priorities first.

Calculation quiz.financial-health v1.0.0.

What your score means

Your financial well-being score is a number from 0 to 100. It measures how secure and free you feel about money today and in the future: whether you can absorb a shock, stay on track toward goals and make choices that let you enjoy life. It isn't a credit score and isn't based on your income.

U.S. adults' financial well-being scores (CFPB, 2017)
ScoreShare of U.S. adultsWhat the research found
50 or belowAbout a thirdMuch more likely to struggle to pay bills or afford food and medical care
51 to 60About a thirdThe middle; the U.S. average is 54
61 or aboveAbout a thirdFewer than 1 in 10 had trouble affording necessities

There's no pass mark. The CFPB stresses that two people with the same score can be in very different situations, and that small changes in a score may not mean much. Your score is most useful compared with your own score later: take the check again in six months.

About the CFPB Financial Well-Being Scale

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau developed the scale with years of research and testing, and made it free and public for anyone to use. Part 1 uses its ten statements and answer choices word for word, because changing the wording would make the scoring inaccurate. The CFPB created the scale; it doesn't review or endorse this site. The CFPB's 2017 national survey found an average score of 54 for U.S. adults; adults with less than $250 in savings averaged 41, and those with $75,000 or more averaged 68.

The eight money basics

  1. Emergency savings: three to six months of essential expenses is the common goal; one month is a strong start. Work out your target.
  2. High-interest debt: credit card rates average more than 20% a year (Federal Reserve), so paying balances off beats almost any investment. Plan your payoff.
  3. A spending plan: knowing where take-home pay goes is what makes every other goal possible. Build a simple budget.
  4. Retirement saving: get the full employer match first; Fidelity, for example, suggests saving about 15% of pay in total, including the match (Fidelity). See whether you're on track.
  5. Tax withholding: owing $1,000 or more when you file can mean an underpayment penalty (IRS), while a big refund is money you could have used all year. Check your W-4.
  6. Health insurance: medical bills are the most common kind of debt in collections (CFPB). If you lose coverage you can usually get a Marketplace plan within 60 days (HealthCare.gov), and you can apply for Medicaid or CHIP any time (HealthCare.gov).
  7. Protecting your family: if others depend on your income, term life insurance and disability cover protect them.
  8. Credit reports: free from all three bureaus every week at AnnualCreditReport.com (FTC). Errors can raise what you pay to borrow.

How to raise your score

The CFPB found bigger gaps in well-being between people with different amounts of savings (an average of 41 with under $250 set aside, 68 with $75,000 or more) than between income groups (46 under $20,000 a year, 60 at $100,000 or more), and concluded that savings may matter more than income. So the most reliable way to raise your score is to build a cushion, pay down high-interest debt and make a plan you can stick to. Start with the first step in your action plan; it's ordered by what usually matters most.

Questions

Is this the same as the CFPB's own questionnaire?

Part 1 uses the same ten statements, answers and scoring as the CFPB's scale. Part 2 is our own checklist, which turns your situation into specific steps and calculators.

Why do you ask my age?

The CFPB scores people 62 and older with a slightly different table, because they answer some statements differently at the same level of well-being.

What's a good financial well-being score?

There's no official cut-off. The U.S. average is 54; a third of adults score 61 or above. The most useful comparison is with your own score next time.

Sources

  1. Measuring financial well-being: A guide to using the CFPB Financial Well-Being Scale — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  2. CFPB Financial Well-Being Scale: user guide and scale (PDF) — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  3. Financial well-being scale: questionnaire and scoring worksheet (standard version) — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston). Accessed October 19, 2026.
  4. Financial well-being in America (September 2017) — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  5. Consumer Credit – G.19 (credit card interest rates) — Federal Reserve Board. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  6. Underpayment of estimated tax by individuals penalty — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  7. Special Enrollment Period — HealthCare.gov. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  8. Getting Medicaid & CHIP — HealthCare.gov. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  9. Medical debt burden in the United States — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  10. How much should I save for retirement? — Fidelity Investments. Accessed October 19, 2026.
  11. Free credit reports — Federal Trade Commission. Accessed October 19, 2026.

Research checked October 19, 2026. This check is for education; it isn't financial advice.

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