Most people pick at a scab or a bump now and then. Skin picking disorder is different: the urge keeps coming back, stopping feels impossible once you have started, and your skin and your confidence pay for it. This free skin picking disorder test takes about three minutes. It scores how often and how strongly urges show up, how much time picking takes, the damage and distress it causes, and how much it interferes with your life. Two extra questions check whether your picking follows an OCD-style pattern, which changes what kind of help fits best.
Your answers are private and are not stored with your name. You get your score, what it means, and a concrete next step.
What this dermatillomania test measures
The eight core questions follow the areas clinicians rate when they assess excoriation disorder: frequency and intensity of urges, time spent, control, skin damage, distress, avoidance, and failed attempts to stop. They are modelled on the domains covered by the Skin Picking Scale-Revised, a short measure with good reliability in research samples (Snorrason et al., 2012). The wording here is written for people, not clinicians, and the cut-offs are screening ranges, not diagnostic thresholds.
The last two questions are ours. They ask whether picking is triggered by a “not right” feeling or by intrusive thoughts. Picking that is driven by those is closer to OCD than to a habit, and it responds better when the OCD part is treated too.
Dermatillomania, skin picking disorder, excoriation disorder: are they the same?
Yes. Dermatillomania is the older name, excoriation (skin-picking) disorder is the official one in the DSM-5-TR, and skin picking disorder is what most people say. The diagnosis needs three things: recurrent picking that causes skin lesions, repeated attempts to stop or cut down, and real distress or interference in daily life (American Psychiatric Association, 2022). It is classed under “obsessive-compulsive and related disorders”, next to OCD, not inside it.
It is also more common than the silence around it suggests. Around 1.4% of US adults meet criteria at any one time, and picking that causes damage but falls short of the full diagnosis is more common still (Keuthen et al., 2010; Grant & Chamberlain, 2020).
Is skin picking a form of OCD?
Usually not, but the two overlap. Skin picking is a body-focused repetitive behaviour (BFRB), in the same family as hair pulling and nail biting. The loop is urge, picking, relief, and it often runs on autopilot while reading or watching a screen. OCD runs on a feared thought: the compulsion exists to neutralise it. Some people have both, and some pick because a spot feels wrong or because an intrusive thought quiets when they smooth the skin. If your “OCD-style pattern” score above came out moderate or strong, take the Just Right OCD test or the OCI-4 screening test to see whether OCD is part of the picture.
How the scoring works
Each question scores 0 to 4, for a total of 0 to 40. The overall ranges are:
- 0 to 9, minimal. Occasional picking, little damage, little interference.
- 10 to 19, mild. Regular picking that is starting to leave marks or take time.
- 20 to 29, moderate. Hard to control and costing you skin, time or confidence.
- 30 to 40, severe. Frequent, hard to stop and affecting your body and daily life.
The two pattern questions are shown separately so a high OCD-link score does not hide inside the total.
What actually helps
Skin picking is treatable, and the treatment is practical rather than mysterious. Habit reversal training teaches you to spot the early cues (a hand drifting to your face, a mirror, a specific chair) and to use a competing response until the urge passes; it reduced picking substantially in a controlled trial (Teng et al., 2006). Brief cognitive behavioural therapy built around it, four sessions in one randomised study, produced large improvements compared with a wait-list (Schuck et al., 2011). Stimulus control (short nails, gloves during high-risk times, covering mirrors that trigger inspection) and tracking your triggers for a week do a surprising amount of the work.
ocd.app’s daily exercises are built on the same CBT principles and include a track for body-focused repetitive behaviours, which is useful between sessions or while you wait for a specialist. The TLC Foundation for BFRBs keeps a directory of clinicians who treat picking specifically.
When to get help
Talk to a clinician if you scored moderate or severe, if picking has caused an infection or scarring, if you are hiding it from people close to you, or if it is tangled up with anxiety, OCD or low mood. A GP or dermatologist can treat the skin; a CBT therapist who knows BFRBs can treat the picking. Both together work best.
Frequently asked questions
Can this test diagnose dermatillomania?
No. It screens for the pattern and estimates severity so you know whether to seek an assessment. Diagnosis needs a clinician.
I only pick when I’m stressed. Does that count?
Stress is the most common trigger, and picking that only happens under stress can still leave damage and shame. Score honestly for the past month; the result reflects that period, not your whole life.
Why do I pick in a trance and not notice until it’s over?
That is “automatic” picking, and it is the norm rather than the exception. Because it runs below awareness, the first step in treatment is simply learning to notice, which is why trigger tracking comes before anything else.
Is there medication for skin picking?
Some medications have been studied, with mixed results, and none is approved specifically for it. Behavioural treatment is the first-line approach; ask a psychiatrist if you want to discuss options alongside it.
Related tests: OCD subtypes test · Just Right OCD test · OCI-4 OCD screening test · Why do I keep picking my skin? The distress-relief cycle explained
Sources: American Psychiatric Association. DSM-5-TR. 2022. · Snorrason I et al. The Skin Picking Scale-Revised: factor structure and psychometric properties. J Obsessive Compuls Relat Disord. 2012;1(2):133–137. · Keuthen NJ et al. The prevalence of pathologic skin picking in US adults. Compr Psychiatry. 2010;51(2):183–186. · Grant JE, Chamberlain SR. Prevalence of skin picking (excoriation) disorder. J Psychiatr Res. 2020;130:57–60. · Teng EJ, Woods DW, Twohig MP. Habit reversal as a treatment for chronic skin picking. Behav Modif. 2006;30(4):411–422. · Schuck K, Keijsers GPJ, Rinck M. The effects of brief cognitive-behaviour therapy for pathological skin picking. Behav Res Ther. 2011;49(1):11–17.
This page is for educational purposes and is not a substitute for professional diagnosis or treatment. If you’re in crisis, contact your local emergency services or a crisis line.