M-CHAT-R/F screening
An official international screening tool that helps parents check the likelihood of autism at home. It is designed for toddlers aged 16 to 30 months. This is a screen, not a diagnosis.
What it is
M-CHAT-R/F (Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, Revised with Follow-Up) is a short parent questionnaire. You answer simple questions about your child's behavior, and the result shows whether it is worth seeing a specialist for a full evaluation. It was developed by researchers Robins, Fein, and Barton.
How it works
- 1You answer 20 questions about your child's everyday behavior. It takes a few minutes.
- 2You score the answers using the instructions. Low, medium, or high likelihood.
- 3At medium likelihood there is a second follow-up part. A high result is a reason to seek a specialist evaluation.
Why a link instead of the test here
M-CHAT-R/F is copyrighted. The authors' rules do not allow ABA projects to host the test on their own site or change it. They do explicitly allow linking to the original. So we send you to the official source: you get the test unchanged and scored correctly.
This is a screen, not a diagnosis. The result does not tell you what is going on with your child. It only shows whether a full evaluation is worth it. Only a specialist can diagnose, after an in-person assessment.
© Robins, Fein, and Barton, 2009. Official source: mchatscreen.com
Want a quick home check in our own words?
Developmental milestones checklist