Personal Melanoma Risk Assessment

This free melanoma risk assessment looks at the factors researchers consistently link to melanoma — skin phenotype, mole pattern, lifetime UV exposure, personal and family history, age and immune status — and shows you which of them apply to you and why they matter.

Quick answer

A personal melanoma risk assessment estimates how many recognised melanoma risk factors you carry — fair skin, many or atypical moles, blistering sunburns, sunbed use, a first-degree relative with melanoma, previous skin cancer, older age and immunosuppression. It measures your background likelihood, not whether any individual mole is cancerous.

This questionnaire assesses personal and environmental risk factors such as family history, UV exposure and skin characteristics. It does not analyse photographs and cannot tell you whether an individual mole is cancerous.

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1.How does your skin usually react to strong sun?
2.What is your natural hair colour?
3.Do you freckle easily on sun-exposed skin?
4.Roughly how many moles do you have on your whole body?
A rough count is fine — most people underestimate. Include moles on the back and scalp.
5.Has a doctor ever described any of your moles as atypical or dysplastic?
6.How many blistering sunburns have you had in your lifetime?
7.Have you ever used sunbeds or tanning beds?
8.Have you ever been diagnosed with any skin cancer?
9.Has a parent, sibling or child been diagnosed with melanoma?
10.What is your age group?
11.Are you immunosuppressed (transplant, long-term immunosuppressant medication, or similar)?

What your result means

Melanoma risk is cumulative rather than binary. Each domain in your profile — phenotype, moles, UV, history and medical factors — contributes independently, which is why someone with very fair skin and no family history can still land in a higher band, and why someone with dark skin and a strong family history should not be reassured by phenotype alone.

A higher factor load is a reason to know your own skin well: photograph the moles you are watching, repeat those photos on a fixed schedule, and get anything new or changing reviewed. A lower factor load is not a clean bill of health — melanoma occurs in people with no classic risk factors, and it is still most often noticed first by the person themselves or a partner.

What this assessment cannot tell you

It cannot diagnose anything, it cannot tell you whether a particular mole or lesion is cancerous, and it cannot replace an in-person skin examination. Risk-factor profiling and lesion assessment are two separate questions — a low factor load never rules out a suspicious spot, and a high one never means a spot is malignant.

If you have a spot you are worried about, use the AI mole checker for a photo-based assessment, and see a GP or dermatologist for anything that is changing, bleeding or failing to heal.

Melanoma risk factors explained

Skin phenotype

Fitzpatrick types I–II, red or blond hair and a tendency to freckle all reflect lower eumelanin levels and less natural UV protection. Phenotype is fixed, so it sets the baseline the rest of your behaviour is layered on.

Mole count and atypical moles

More than 50 moles, or any mole a clinician has called atypical or dysplastic, is one of the strongest single predictors in the literature. Most melanomas still arise on previously normal skin, so a high count matters as a marker of risk rather than as a list of lesions to remove.

Intermittent UV and sunburn

Melanoma is more strongly associated with intense, intermittent exposure — holiday burns, sunbeds — than with steady daily exposure, which drives basal and squamous cell carcinoma instead. Sunbed use starting before age 35 is the exposure pattern with the clearest excess risk.

Personal and family history

A previous melanoma substantially raises the chance of a second primary. A first-degree relative with melanoma roughly doubles risk; if that applies to you, the dedicated family history risk assessment asks the follow-up questions clinicians use.

Frequently asked questions

Is this melanoma risk assessment free?

Yes. It runs entirely in your browser, needs no account, no email and no photo upload, and takes about two minutes.

Does a high score mean I have melanoma?

No. The score summarises how many recognised risk factors you reported. It is not a diagnosis and it says nothing about any specific mole. If a spot worries you, use the AI mole checker for a photo assessment and see a clinician.

How is this different from a mole checker?

A mole checker analyses a photograph of one lesion. This assessment analyses you — your background characteristics and exposure history. They answer different questions and are best used together.

What are the biggest melanoma risk factors?

Fair skin that burns easily, more than 50 moles or any atypical moles, a history of blistering sunburn, sunbed use before age 35, a first-degree relative with melanoma, a previous skin cancer, older age and long-term immunosuppression.

How often should someone at higher risk check their skin?

Most guidelines suggest a monthly self-examination with dated photos of anything you are watching, plus a clinician review at least annually — more often if you have had a melanoma or have many atypical moles.

Sources

Medically reviewed by Dr. Jessica R. Burgy, MD, Board-Certified Dermatologist. Last reviewed 2026-08-15.