How to use the GerdQ reflux score calculator
For each symptom, pick how many of the last 7 days it was present: 0 days, 1 day, 2-3 days or 4-7 days. The page then adds the total exactly as GerdQ is published. Six items at 0-3 points each give a total of 0-18.
Scoring rule and basis
Heartburn, regurgitation, disturbed sleep and extra over-the-counter medicine are positive predictors, so 0 days scores 0 and 4-7 days scores 3. Upper abdominal pain and nausea are negative predictors and are reverse scored, so 0 days scores 3 and 4-7 days scores 0. The published reading is that 8 points or more makes gastresophageal reflux disease likely, and under 8 makes it unlikely or absent (as of October 2026).
That cutoff has been criticized. One analysis notes the reverse-scored items can push someone with more reflux symptoms below the cutoff, and in an adolescent study prevalence estimates split between 32.9% and 10.9% depending on which cutoff was used. The two-item and four-item versions measure disease burden instead. A low total is not clearance: if symptoms persist, get assessed. Trouble swallowing, weight loss or black stools need care regardless of the score.
Frequently Asked Questions
In GerdQ those two items are negative predictors: their absence points more toward reflux disease. The published rule therefore reverse scores them, so 0 days gives 3 points and 4-7 days gives 0.
No. The published reading only goes as far as unlikely or absent. Because of the reverse-scored items, someone with more symptoms can fall below the cutoff, so a low total cannot be used as reassurance.
GerdQ is published with a 7-day recall window. Answering for a longer stretch makes the total and the published reading disagree.