The Best DiSC Alternatives for Team Workshops
A Big 5 at Work guide to the Big Five, MBTI, CliftonStrengths, Insights Discovery, the Enneagram, and Working Genius, and how to pick the right one for your team.
A Big 5 at Work guide to the Big Five, MBTI, CliftonStrengths, Insights Discovery, the Enneagram, and Working Genius, and how to pick the right one for your team.
The short answer
The best DiSC alternative depends on what your team needs that DiSC didn't give it. If you want more precision and a read on how people handle stress, use a Big Five (OCEAN) assessment; if you want to build on what people already do well, use CliftonStrengths; and if you want to fix how work moves through a team, use Working Genius. MBTI and Insights Discovery are close cousins of DiSC that give teams a different shared vocabulary rather than a different kind of insight.
Key takeaways
Why switch
Most teams don't leave DiSC because it failed; they leave because it answered the first question and not the second. DiSC sorts behavior into four styles (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness), which gives a team a quick, friendly vocabulary for why one person wants the bottom line and another wants the backstory. That's genuinely useful in a first workshop.
The second question is usually harder. A team that already knows who's a "high D" starts asking why the same two people still clash, why one person goes quiet under deadline pressure, or how to split work so nobody is stuck doing the part they dread. A four-style map has less to say about those, so teams go looking for something with more detail, a different lens, or a lower cost to run again.
Teams that move on usually want one of four things: more precision than four styles, a way to understand stress and pressure, a strengths or workflow lens instead of a style lens, or a tool that doesn't require a certified facilitator every time.
Side by side
Six tools come up most often when teams look past DiSC, and they split into two groups: tools that measure something DiSC doesn't (the Big Five, CliftonStrengths, and Working Genius) and tools that describe style in a different language (MBTI, Insights Discovery, and the Enneagram).
For comparison, Everything DiSC is published by Wiley, sold through Wiley Authorized Partners, and describes four styles on a circle.
Tool by tool
The Big Five (also called OCEAN or the Five-Factor Model) is the most widely researched personality model, and it measures each trait on a spectrum instead of assigning a type. That matters on a team: two colleagues at the 45th and 55th percentile for Extraversion are nearly alike, while a type tool might label them opposites. It's also the only tool here that includes Neuroticism, which describes how strongly someone reacts to risk and stress, and that's often where the friction DiSC couldn't explain actually lives. Every position on every trait comes with a strength and a pitfall, so no score is better than another.
If your people already know their four letters and like using them, MBTI can keep a conversation going without teaching a new model. It's the least different from DiSC in what it offers a team, though, and its publisher, the Myers & Briggs Foundation, says it should be administered by certified practitioners and not used for hiring.
CliftonStrengths ranks 34 talent themes and is designed to help people do more of what they do best. It's a strong fit for a team that needs energy and recognition more than conflict repair. Teams working through friction often pair it with a tool that speaks more directly to stress and disagreement.
Insights Discovery uses four color energies, which makes it memorable and easy to reference in meetings. Because it covers similar ground to DiSC, it's a better first tool than a second one.
The Enneagram's nine types focus on what drives people rather than how they behave, which some teams find more personal and reflective. It has a smaller research base than the Big Five, so it works best for voluntary self-reflection rather than team decisions.
Working Genius sorts work into six stages, from generating ideas to finishing them, and shows which stages give each person energy and which drain them. It's the most practical choice for a team that's burning out on the wrong tasks, and it pairs well with a personality tool rather than replacing one.
Choosing
Start from the problem your team is trying to solve, not the tool. Most teams can name it in one sentence, and that sentence usually points to one or two options.
Whatever you choose, the tool is only the first hour of the work. For what to look for in the workshop itself, see our guide to what to look for in team-building workshops.
Where we fit
Big 5 at Work is a Big Five assessment and workshop built for teams, and it's designed for exactly the moment after DiSC: when a team already has a shared language and wants to know why friction persists. Everyone can start with the free test, which scores all five traits. The Comprehensive Assessment adds facet scores, an AI-guided conversation about your actual job, and a personal report for $4.99 per person, with team pricing down to $3.49 per person for 50 or more. A Team Dashboard shows everyone's results side by side for a one-time $50 setup.
Workshops are led by a Big 5 at Work Consultant and priced for groups of fewer than 20: a 2 Hour Session for $2,500 (virtual or in person), a Half-Day Workshop for $4,500 (virtual or in person), and an in-person Team Deep Dive for $8,500 with 30 days of Virtual Coach follow-up. Assessments and the Team Dashboard are billed separately, and travel is added only if no consultant is available near you. See all workshop formats or pricing.
If you're a coach or HR consultant, you don't need a paid certification to use it with clients: the Consultant Training is free and self-paced.
FAQ
For most teams that already did DiSC, a Big Five assessment is the strongest next step, because it adds precision and covers how people respond to stress. If your goal is engagement, CliftonStrengths is a good fit, and if the problem is how work gets divided, try Working Genius.
They answer different questions. DiSC describes four behavioral styles and is quick to learn, while the Big Five measures five traits on a spectrum and is the most widely researched personality model. Many teams use DiSC first and add the Big Five when they want more detail.
It depends on the tool. MBTI, Insights Discovery, and Everything DiSC are delivered by certified or accredited practitioners. Big 5 at Work offers a free test anyone can take, and its consultants complete free training rather than a paid certification.
No. These tools are designed for development and conversation, not selection, and the Myers & Briggs Foundation says the same about MBTI. Big 5 at Work is never used for hiring, promotion, or ranking.
No. Keep the DiSC vocabulary people already use and add a tool that answers the question DiSC didn't. Our comparison of DiSC and the Big Five covers what each adds.
Prices vary by provider, facilitator, and group size. A Big 5 at Work 2 Hour Session is $2,500 and a Half-Day Workshop is $4,500 for groups of fewer than 20, with assessments from $3.49 to $4.99 per person billed separately.
Next steps
If you're still deciding, have two or three people take the free test and compare what it tells them with what they remember from DiSC. When you're ready for a facilitated session, request a workshop and we'll introduce you to a consultant near you.
Related reading
Written by Christin Camacho, founder of Big 5 at Work and author of "Why You Need Neurotic People on Your Team." Last updated October 6, 2026.
.svg)