12 Axes vs 9axes: which political test should you take?

The quick answer

Take 9axes if you want a nine-axis result with percentages for each pole, in a short 45-question version or a full 216-question one. It is open source.

Take 12 Axes if you want 12 scales, a choice of three lengths, and results that include close ideologies, a historical twin and current politicians. Both are free.

What each test measures

9axes measures nine axes. Each has two named poles: Federal and Unitary, Democratic and Authoritarian, Globalist and Isolationist, Militarist and Pacifist, Security and Freedom, Equality and Markets, Secular and Religious, Progressive and Traditional, Assimilationist and Multiculturalist.

12 Axes measures 12 axes, each scored from -100 to +100, in four families: Economy, State, Society and World. They are Ownership, Markets, Welfare, Authority, Security, Structure, Morality, Religion, Technology, Culture, Trade and Foreign policy.

How the axes line up

Most 9axes axes have a close partner in 12 Axes, though the wording and the statements differ.

Federal and Unitary is near our Structure axis, which asks whether power should be local or central. Democratic and Authoritarian is near our Authority axis. Security and Freedom is near our Security axis, which weighs liberty against order.

Secular and Religious is near our Religion axis. Progressive and Traditional is near our Morality axis. Assimilationist and Multiculturalist is near our Culture axis.

9axes has one Equality and Markets axis. Our Economy family splits that into Ownership, Markets and Welfare.

9axes has Globalist and Isolationist plus Militarist and Pacifist. Our World family has Trade (global or protected) and Foreign policy (cooperation or strength), which cover similar ground in two scales.

Technology, which asks whether you embrace new technology or want caution, has no direct 9axes counterpart that we could find.

Length and answer format

9axes offers a full version with 216 questions, 24 per axis, and a short version with 45, 5 per axis. You answer each from Strongly Agree to Strongly Disagree.

12 Axes has Quick (36 statements, about 5 minutes), Standard (72, about 10) and Deep (162, about 20). Answers use a 5-point scale from Strongly disagree to Strongly agree, with Neutral in the middle.

The 9axes short version has 5 questions per axis. Our Quick test has 3 per axis on average (36 across 12), so it is lighter still. The 9axes full version is longer than our Deep test.

What the results look like

In 9axes, each answer slightly adjusts your scores. Your final scores are compared with the maximum possible for each pole, which gives a percentage per value.

12 Axes gives a score from -100 to +100 on each of the 12 axes. It also shows your closest ideologies out of about 124, a historical twin, current politicians and a four-letter result type. No account is needed.

Strengths of each test

9axes is open source and builds on the well-known 8values design, so its format will feel familiar. It gives you a choice between a 45-question short test and a very thorough 216-question one. Its axes ask about things many tests skip, such as federal versus unitary government and militarism versus pacifism.

12 Axes has more axes and splits economics into three scales. It has a middle length between short and full. The results go further, with a historical twin and current politicians, and each statement has a neutral explainer.

9axes has the longer full test. If you want the most questions per axis, its 216-question version is the bigger one.

Which one should you choose?

Choose 9axes if you like the 8values style and want nine axes with percentages. Choose 12 Axes if you want to see economics, the state, society and world affairs each broken into finer scales, and to compare yourself with ideologies and public figures.

You can take both. Where the results agree, you can be more confident. Where they differ, look at which statements pushed you each way.

12 Axes is independent. It is not affiliated with 9axes or 8values.