FUNCAP functional capacity questionnaire
FUNCAP27: a patient-informed measure of what activity costs you
FUNCAP is a functional capacity questionnaire built for ME/CFS. It was created by researchers working with the Norwegian ME Association, shaped by feedback from thousands of patients, and validated in more than 2,600 people with ME/CFS. It was published open access in 2024.
Most questionnaires ask how bad your symptoms feel. FUNCAP asks what activities cost you. If you shower, hold a conversation, or go to a shop, how much does that limit what else you can do that day and in the days after? This captures the "payback" pattern of ME/CFS that ordinary disability scales miss. It also works at every severity level, including for people who are housebound or bedbound.
This is the short FUNCAP27 version: 27 activities in eight groups, each scored 0 to 6 for an average day over the past month. It takes 5 to 10 minutes. You get an overall score, a profile by activity group, and a list of your most costly activities. Your answers stay on your device. No sign-up is needed.
For a quick single-number check you can repeat often, use the Bell CFIDS Disability Scale. For ME/CFS symptom screening, use the DSQ-Brief or the full DSQ-2. If your illness followed COVID-19, the Post-COVID-19 Functional Status scale is a quicker, simpler grading.
Your FUNCAP27 results
Domain profile
Mean score in each domain (0–6). The shorter the bar, the more that type of activity costs you.
Your most costly activities
Activities you rated 0–2: things you cannot do, or that leave you able to do little else for a day or more.
Understanding your score
The overall FUNCAP score is the mean of all 27 items, from 0 to 6. Lower scores mean lower functional capacity. The published validation found negligible floor and ceiling effects across the full severity spectrum of ME/CFS, from mild to very severe.
There are no official severity cut-offs yet; the authors are developing clinical guidance at funcap.no. The score is most useful as a profile and as a record over time: which groups of activities cost you most, and whether your capacity is changing. A completed FUNCAP is also concrete evidence of functional limitation for disability or insurance assessments. That is what it was designed for.
If you complete it periodically (for example monthly), use the same conditions each time: an average day, not a crash or a good patch.
This is not a diagnosis. It reflects the activity consequences you have reported. Discuss your results with your doctor or specialist.