How this instrument works
Peter Beighton and colleagues formalized this nine-point test in a 1973 study of joint mobility across a large African population, building on an earlier scale by Carter and Wilkinson. Four paired maneuvers — bending each pinky past 90°, touching each thumb to the forearm, hyperextending each elbow past 10°, and hyperextending each knee past 10° — are scored on the left and right sides separately, giving eight points, and a ninth point is added if the palms reach flat on the floor with the legs straight.
Every one of those nine checks requires an examiner to actually move the joint and judge the result against a defined threshold — this calculator has no way to bend a knee, feel an elbow's end-range, or watch a pinky pass 90°. What it does is add nine pass/fail marks that a trained examiner has already recorded during a physical exam; it is not a self-test a person can perform alone in a mirror and expect to match a clinical result, since several of the maneuvers need another person to apply and read the movement correctly.
A commonly cited cutoff is a total of 4 or more, treated as one supporting sign of generalized joint hypermobility, though the literature is not perfectly settled on that number — some criteria set the bar at 5, and pediatric or adolescent guidance sometimes uses 6, reflecting how much more mobile younger joints normally are. The 2017 international classification of the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes folds the Beighton score in as one of several criteria for its hypermobile subtype, alongside a structured history and other joint and tissue findings — the score alone diagnoses nothing.
- Mark Right pinky bends past 90° and Left pinky bends past 90° as Yes or No.
- Mark Right thumb touches forearm and Left thumb touches forearm as Yes or No.
- Mark Right elbow hyperextends past 10° and Left elbow hyperextends past 10° as Yes or No.
- Mark Right knee hyperextends past 10° and Left knee hyperextends past 10° as Yes or No.
- Mark Palms flat on floor, legs straight as Yes or No — the ninth and final check.
- Read the Beighton total (0-9) — every Yes contributes one point, added automatically.
Worked example — a total of 4 at the common cutoff
An examiner finds both pinkies bend past 90° (1 + 1) and both thumbs reach the forearm (1 + 1), while neither elbow nor knee hyperextends and the palms don't reach the floor (four more zeros). The nine marks add to 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 4 — right at the cutoff most often cited as one supporting sign of generalized joint hypermobility, though some criteria set that line at 5 or 6 instead.
The scale's two extremes are just as mechanical. None of the nine checks passing gives 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 0, no hypermobility signs on this test. Every check passing, including both elbows, both knees, and palms flat on the floor, gives 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 = 9, the maximum the nine-point scale can register.
Questions
What does a Beighton score of 4 mean?
It sits at the cutoff most often used to call generalized joint hypermobility likely, since 4 is the threshold cited in much of the adult literature — though other criteria set the bar at 5, and pediatric guidance sometimes uses 6 because younger joints are naturally more mobile. On its own the number is a screening flag, not a diagnosis; it's typically weighed alongside a structured history of joint problems and other findings from a physical exam.
Do I perform these nine checks myself with this calculator?
No. Each of the nine checks — bending a pinky, touching a thumb to the forearm, hyperextending an elbow or knee, and placing palms flat on the floor — needs an examiner to move the joint or watch the movement and judge it against a defined threshold. This page only adds nine pass/fail marks already recorded during that exam; several of the maneuvers are hard to judge accurately alone, so it is not built as a self-test.
Is a high Beighton score a diagnosis of a hypermobility disorder?
No. The score is one supporting sign within broader criteria, such as the 2017 international classification of the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes, which combines the Beighton total with a structured history of joint problems and other clinical findings before reaching any diagnosis. A high total by itself describes mobile joints, not a named condition, and plenty of people score highly with no related symptoms at all.
Why does the cutoff change between 4, 5, and 6?
Because joint mobility naturally declines with age, so a total that flags generalized hypermobility in an adult may be unremarkable in a child or teenager. Much of the adult literature uses 4 or more as its threshold, some criteria use 5, and pediatric guidance often raises the bar to 6 to account for how loose younger joints normally are. Age and the specific criteria being applied both matter when interpreting where a total falls.
What are the lowest and highest possible Beighton scores?
Zero and nine. A total of 0 means none of the nine checks — both pinkies, both thumbs, both elbows, both knees, and palms-to-floor — passed on exam. A total of 9 means every one of them passed, the maximum the nine-point scale can register and the most hypermobile result it describes.
Who developed the Beighton score?
Peter Beighton, along with Lawrence Solomon and Colin Soskolne, formalized the nine-point scale in a 1973 study of joint mobility in a large African population, refining an earlier scoring system by Carter and Wilkinson. Their nine-check version, largely unchanged, remains the standard bedside hypermobility screen used today.
References
- Beighton P et al., 1973, Ann Rheum Dis (PubMed)
- Malfait F et al., 2017 EDS Classification, Am J Med Genet C (PubMed)
Read this first: This instrument computes a screening figure from population formulas — it is not a diagnosis, and it cannot see the whole picture a clinician can. Use it to inform a conversation, not to replace one.