Can You Use a Personality Test for Hiring?

The short answer

Can you use a personality test for hiring?

Not with Big 5 at Work. Some personality assessments are built and checked for hiring, and employers who use them follow professional and legal standards to do it. Big 5 at Work isn't one of them. It's made to help you understand how you work and how your team works together, and our Terms of Use rule out hiring, promotion, performance, and disciplinary decisions.

Key takeaways

For employers: a hiring test has to fit the job and treat every group of candidates fairly. A development test isn't designed to meet those standards.
For candidates: your results are yours. If you took the free test because an employer asked, you decide whether to share them.
The better fit: use Big 5 at Work after someone joins, to help a new teammate and their team learn how each other works.

Development vs. hiring

Why isn't a development test a hiring test?

The two kinds of test ask different questions. A development test asks "How do you usually work?" A hiring test asks "Is this person a good fit for this job?" The same questionnaire can't answer both well.

When you take Big 5 at Work for yourself, there's no right answer to aim for. Every position on every trait comes with a superpower and a pitfall, so the most useful thing you can do is describe yourself honestly. In a job application, there's suddenly a lot riding on the result. That changes how people answer, and it changes what the scores mean.

A test used for hiring also has to be tied to the job itself. Employers who use one are expected to show it measures something the role actually needs, and to check that it doesn't screen out any group of candidates unfairly. Big 5 at Work's questionnaire is adapted from the public-domain IPIP-NEO for personal and team development, and it hasn't been studied as a way to choose between candidates.

For employers

What should employers know before using a personality test in hiring?

Using any personality test to screen candidates brings legal questions with it. This isn't legal advice, but these are two of the main ones to raise with your employment lawyer.

Fairness to every group

What it means: Under the federal Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures, a hiring or promotion tool that has an adverse impact on a protected group is treated as discriminatory unless it has been validated.
Source: 29 CFR 1607.3

Automated scoring

What it means: In New York City, employers using an automated tool to screen candidates need a bias audit within the past year and must notify candidates 10 business days before using it. Enforcement began July 5, 2023.
Source: NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection

Our approach

Why is Big 5 at Work built for development, not hiring?

Big 5 at Work asks how you usually work, and your results describe your working style. They're meant for you and your team to learn from, not for a hiring file.

The whole approach also depends on one idea: there is no wrong answer. Someone who scores low on Conscientiousness brings flexibility and a willingness to change course. Someone who scores high on Neuroticism often spots risks before anyone else does. A hiring decision has to rank people, and that's the opposite of what Big 5 at Work is for.

That's why our Terms of Use say results can't be used for hiring, promotion, performance, or disciplinary decisions. The same line appears when you sign in, when a team buys places, and on your results page.

For candidates

What should you do if you were asked to take a personality test for a job?

You didn't do anything wrong by taking it, and your results are still yours. Here's what you can do now.

Decide what to share. If you took the free test from a plain link, nobody at the company can see your results unless you send them. If you joined a team through an invite, that team sees only your five trait scores, never your answers. Either way, you choose what else to share, if anything.
Ask how the results will be used. It's a fair question for any employer: who will see them, and will they affect the hiring decision?
Ask for an alternative if you need one. If the test doesn't work for you for any reason, you can ask for a different step in the process.
Keep your results for yourself. Whatever happens with the job, your scores can still help you understand how you work best and what to look for in your next team.

After the hire

What can employers do instead?

The moment Big 5 at Work helps most is right after someone joins. A new teammate is learning how everyone works, and everyone is learning how they work. Five trait scores give that conversation a shared language from day one.

Onboarding: a new hire takes the free test and talks through their results with their manager, focusing on the conditions where they do their best work.
Team conversations: the Team Dashboard shows everyone side by side, so a team can plan around different working styles before they turn into friction.
Workshops: a Big 5 at Work Consultant can run a 2 Hour Session or Half-Day Workshop when a team forms or changes. See workshops.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Can I use Big 5 at Work to screen job candidates?

No. Big 5 at Work is made for personal growth and team conversations. Our Terms of Use rule out hiring, promotion, performance, and disciplinary decisions.

Is it legal to use a personality test in hiring?

It can be, but it brings real legal questions. Under federal guidelines, a test that screens out a protected group has to be validated for the job, and some places, like New York City, require bias audits of automated hiring tools. Talk to an employment lawyer before using any test this way.

An employer asked me to take the Big 5 at Work free test. Do I have to share my results?

No. Your results are yours. You decide whether to share them, and a team you join through an invite sees only your five trait scores, never your answers.

Does a high or low score make someone a better employee?

No. Every position on every trait comes with a superpower and a pitfall. Big 5 at Work helps you understand how you work, not rank you against anyone else.

How can a company use Big 5 at Work with new hires?

After someone joins. A new teammate can take the free test, share their five trait scores on the Team Dashboard, and talk through working styles with their team.

Next steps

Where should you start?

Take the free test yourself before you bring it to your team. It takes about 10 minutes, and you'll see your five trait scores the moment you finish.

Related reading

Written by Christin Camacho, founder of Big 5 at Work and author of "Why You Need Neurotic People on Your Team." This guide is general information, not legal advice. Last updated October 7, 2026.