A purity test is a self-scored questionnaire that measures how many life experiences you’ve had across categories like relationships, substances, and rule-breaking. The most well-known version is the Rice Purity Test, a 100-question checklist originally created at Rice University. You check off everything you’ve done, and your final score falls on a scale from 0 to 100, with 100 being the most “pure” (meaning the fewest experiences checked) and 0 being the least.
What started as a campus icebreaker has turned into a viral internet phenomenon, particularly on TikTok, where Gen Z users post their scores, compare them with friends, and track how their numbers change over time.
How the Rice Purity Test Works
The test presents 100 yes-or-no questions about things you may or may not have done. You read each one and check it off if it applies to you. At the end, your score equals the number of items you did NOT check. So if you checked 35 items, your score is 65. Higher scores reflect fewer experiences, while lower scores mean you’ve checked more boxes.
The questions progress roughly from mild to wild. Early questions cover things like holding hands, skipping class, or playing cards for money. Later questions get into sexual experiences, drug use, and encounters with law enforcement. The full list spans several broad categories:
- Academic integrity: cheating on tests, plagiarism, and other forms of academic dishonesty
- Personal habits: alcohol use, drug use, smoking, and other lifestyle choices
- Relationships: dating, kissing, emotional connections, and romantic milestones
- Sexual experiences: ranging from hand-holding to progressively more intimate encounters
The test is entirely self-reported and anonymous. There are no right or wrong answers, no time limit, and no one verifying what you check off.
What Your Score Means
Score interpretation is informal and culturally driven rather than scientific. That said, common brackets have emerged over the years that most people recognize.
A score between 80 and 100 is considered high, suggesting a more reserved or sheltered lifestyle. People in this range have had limited exposure to the kinds of experiences the test asks about, whether by choice or circumstance. A score between 40 and 70 falls in the moderate range, reflecting a mix of experimentation and restraint. Most college-age test-takers land somewhere in this zone. A score between 0 and 30 is considered low, indicating a wide range of experiences across relationships, substances, and social situations.
None of these ranges carry inherent moral weight, despite the word “purity” in the name. A low score doesn’t mean something is wrong with you, and a high score doesn’t make you better than anyone else. The test was designed as a social exercise, not a diagnostic tool.
Where It Came From
The Rice Purity Test originated at Rice University in Houston, Texas. Historical versions date back to at least 1924, when early iterations asked questions like “Have you ever played cards for money?” and “Have you ever been drunk?” The test was designed as a bonding activity for incoming students, a way to break the ice during orientation by laughing over shared (or unshared) experiences.
Over the decades, the questions have been updated to reflect changing norms. Rice University has periodically revised the list to stay relevant to current student culture. But the core format, 100 questions scored on a simple scale, has remained the same.
Why It Went Viral
The test sat quietly on college campuses for years before social media gave it a second life. TikTok in particular turned it into a trend, with users filming themselves reacting to their scores, comparing results with friends, and showing how their numbers dropped after getting into relationships or starting college.
The appeal is partly about curiosity and partly about social bonding. Taking the test together gives people a structured way to share personal information that might otherwise feel awkward to bring up. It creates a shared reference point: your score becomes shorthand for a whole set of life experiences.
There’s also a competitive or performative element. Some people treat a low score as a badge of experience, while others take pride in a high one. Peer dynamics play a real role here. People are naturally influenced by the desire to fit in with their social group, and sharing purity test scores can be a way to signal belonging or stand out. The implicit question behind every shared score is “How do I compare?”
Different Versions and Variations
Despite what you might see online, there is no official version of the Rice Purity Test tailored for specific genders, age groups, or platforms. The test is the same for everyone. There’s no separate version for TikTok, no version specifically for men or women, and no version designed for virgins. The original format is universal.
That said, the internet has spawned countless unofficial spinoffs. You’ll find “innocence tests,” “Gen Z purity tests,” and themed versions for specific fandoms or communities. These borrow the format but swap in their own questions. None of them carry the name recognition or cultural weight of the original Rice version.
People from ages 18 to 70 have taken the test, though it skews heavily toward college students and young adults. The questions reflect experiences most common in that age range, which is why it resonates so strongly with Gen Z users on social media.
What It Doesn’t Tell You
The Rice Purity Test is not a personality assessment, a psychological evaluation, or a measure of someone’s character. It counts experiences without any context. It doesn’t distinguish between a positive experience and a harmful one, between something you chose freely and something you felt pressured into, or between something that happened once and something that defined a period of your life.
Your score will also change over time, which is part of why people retake it. A freshman who scores 93 might score 62 by graduation. That shift reflects new experiences, not a decline in character. The test is a snapshot, not a verdict. Treat it as what it was designed to be: a conversation starter, not a measure of who you are.