Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI)

The Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) is a short self-report questionnaire about a woman's sexual function over the past four weeks. It was built for clinical trials, where a consistent way of measuring change was needed, and has since moved into clinical use.

Nineteen questions produce scores in six domains: desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. Each domain is scored on a 0-to-6 or 1.2-to-6 range and the six are added for a total from 2 to 36, where higher means better function. A total of 26.55 or below is the validated cut-off for possible sexual dysfunction — a threshold for further conversation, not a diagnosis.

• SCIRE Professional Summary with the Worksheet

Licensing Notes: The questionnaire and scoring instructions are reproduced widely in clinical trial protocols and by patient advocacy organizations.

Learn More: Scoring is not a simple sum. Each domain's item scores are added and then multiplied by a domain-specific factor. Skipping that step produces an incorrect number. The FSFI assumes recent sexual activity, so a person who has not been sexually active in the past four weeks may score low for reasons unrelated to function.