Is the Rice Purity Test Still Popular in 2026?
Published: 12 November 2026
Updated: 12 November 2026
If you have spent any time in a group chat, a dorm room, or a TikTok feed lately, you have probably seen someone drop a number out of 100 and refuse to explain it. That number is almost always a Rice Purity Test score. The quiz has been floating around for over a century in some form, and every few years it seems to resurface in a new format. So is the rice purity test still popular in 2026, or is it finally fading out?
Here is the honest answer up front: it is still widely known, still being taken, and still being shared, but its popularity today looks very different from what it was in 1924 or even in 2021. What we cannot give you is a verified 2026 number. No public, trustworthy statistic shows exactly how many people take it this year, and we are not going to make one up. This article walks through what the test actually is, where it came from, why it sticks around, and what has changed.
What the Test Is
The Rice Purity Test is a self-graded checklist, usually 100 yes-or-no questions. You start with 100 points and lose a point for each item you have done. At the end, you get a number from 0 to 100.
Nobody grades you, and nobody checks your answers. It is a just-for-fun way to compare life experiences with friends, nothing more.
There is no science behind the scoring. Every question counts the same, so checking that you held hands and checking something far more serious have the exact same effect on your final number. The test is entertainment, not a measurement of anything real about you.
Where It Really Came From
The Rice Purity Test traces back to 1924 at Rice University in Houston, Texas. That year, the student newspaper, the Rice Thresher, ran an informal survey of 119 women undergraduates. It had 10 questions, not 100, and the reported average score was 62. The results ran in the March 7, 1924 issue under the light, teasing headline “Rice Girls Not Quite Half Bad.”
A few things surprise people:
- The original was short. Many websites claim the original had 100 questions. The Thresher’s own history says that format came later.
- It was a newspaper feature, not a study. It was never meant to measure anyone’s worth, and it was never a scientific test.
- Rice did not invent the idea. Similar “purity tests” showed up at other colleges in the early and mid 1900s, including a 1935 survey at Barnard and a 1936 one in Toronto.
How the Test Changed Over Time
The Thresher brought the test back from time to time. A 10-question version resurfaced in 1974 with a mail-in slip, but the results were never published. By 1988 the paper ran a much longer version. Sources disagree on its exact length, with some saying 100 questions and others 150, so the safest thing to say is that the list grew a lot in 1988.
Later revisions in the 1990s and especially around 2012 refined the language, softened some of the more problematic older wording, and settled on the familiar 100-question format. In 2011, the Backpage editors declined to run it at all. In 2012, they changed their minds and published a rewritten version. The Thresher says that rewrite is the version people know today.
At Rice, the test became linked with Orientation Week (O-Week), where some student groups took it together. It was always optional, and some campus leaders have pushed back on it. In 2017, one Rice residential college even banned it from its O-Week program, saying it could leave new students feeling uncomfortable or self-conscious.
How It Spread Online
Purity tests began circulating online decades ago, long before social media. The first web-based versions appeared around 1994. When the Thresher reported on the test in 2017, it said the official online version had been visited more than 1.5 million times in the previous year. Keep in mind that is a 2017 snapshot, and we cannot tell you what the number looks like now.
Later, news outlets such as The Independent reported that Gen Z TikTok users were sharing and comparing their scores, around 2021 to 2022. That is a big reason the test feels like a trend you keep running into. You can read more about that wave in our article on why the test is trending on TikTok.
So, Is It Still Popular in 2026?
Here is an honest breakdown.
What suggests it is still around:
- It has stayed in the conversation for years. A student newspaper at the University of Puget Sound said in 2024 that the test remains a popular viral trend among teens, even while criticizing it. That is one writer’s view, not hard data.
- It is easy to take and easy to share, which is how quizzes tend to last. New students arrive every fall, and many hear about it for the first time from friends.
- Quiz sites and apps carrying 2026 dates are still being published and updated, which suggests there is still enough demand for developers to keep building for it. That is a sign of life, not proof of a boom.
What we cannot say:
- We cannot give a 2026 search volume, a count of takers, or a TikTok view total. If a website quotes exact numbers for this year without a clear source, be skeptical.
- We cannot say whether it is growing or shrinking. Quiz trends usually rise and fall in waves, and interest often jumps when school starts. Treat that as a common observation, not a measured fact.
Why People Keep Taking It
First, it is low effort and easy to share. One hundred taps, an instant score, and a screenshot-ready result. Most versions do not even require a login. That combination is basically designed for group chats.
Second, it works as a social bonding ritual. Comparing scores, arguing about whether a certain experience should count, and joking with friends about the answers is the actual point. The questions are just the excuse.
Third, the controversial framing keeps people talking. Critics have argued for years that the word “purity” in the title pushes judgmental and sexist ideas about bodies and experiences. That criticism is part of why the test stays in the conversation. People do not just take it, they debate it.
Fourth, nostalgia keeps bringing it back. The test fits neatly into “things we did in high school” content cycles, and those cycles repeat on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram.
What Is Different in 2026
The backlash is louder. Student newspapers and online commentators have published critiques of the test’s framing, and those critiques travel further now than they used to. A reader in 2026 is more likely to encounter the question “wait, is this kind of sexist?” alongside the quiz itself.
Quiz fatigue is also real. The internet has no shortage of personality quizzes, innocence tests, and AI-generated novelty quizzes. The Rice Purity Test competes with all of them for the same short attention span.
Privacy caution is another factor. In an era of general data anxiety, some students may hesitate to enter answers about relationships, substances, and legal experiences into a random website. That is a reasonable inference rather than a documented trend, but it is worth naming.
And yet the test has not disappeared. New groups of students keep discovering it each school year, which is a big part of why the format has lasted.
How to Take It in a Healthy Way
- Remember it is not a measure of you. A score does not say anything about your character, your values, or whether you are a good person. It only counts checkboxes.
- Skip it if it feels off. You never have to take it or share your result.
- Do not pressure anyone. If a friend does not want to share, leave it alone.
- Be honest with yourself, not the group. Your answers are yours. You do not need to match anyone else.
- Think about what you are sharing. Your answers touch on personal topics, and some quiz sites are ad-supported or collect data. If you take it, consider doing so privately or with people you trust, and be careful about posting screenshots you might regret later.
- Take it in a comfortable space. Doing it alone or with close friends is often more relaxing than in a big crowd.
Final Thoughts
So, is the Rice Purity Test still popular in 2026? It is neither dead nor booming in any way we can prove with hard numbers. It persists as a cultural artifact: a 1924 campus survey that got digitized, memed, argued about, and passed around for another generation. It has survived because it is flexible. It started as a short newspaper survey, grew into a longer campus tradition, moved online, and now lives in group chats and short videos.
Take it if you are curious. Skip it if you are not. Your actual life does not fit on a 0 to 100 scale, and it never did.
Ready to see where you land? Take the quiz on our homepage whenever you like. If you want to understand your result first, read our guide to what your Rice Purity Test score means.
FAQ
Is the Rice Purity Test still popular in 2026?
It is still widely known and often reported informally as something students and social media users keep sharing. We cannot offer a verified 2026 statistic, so we avoid exact numbers. It is not a weekly viral trend, but it has not disappeared.
Who made the Rice Purity Test?
It started as a 1924 survey in the Rice Thresher, the student newspaper at Rice University. The version people take today comes from a 2012 rewrite by the paper’s Backpage editors.
Was the original test 100 questions?
No. The 1924 survey had 10 questions. A much longer version appeared in 1988, and the 100-question format most people use today was settled on later, around 2012.
Why do people still take it if it is so old?
Because it is easy, fast, and social. One hundred yes-or-no questions, an instant score, and a shareable result works well in group chats. The appeal is less about the specific questions and more about comparing scores with friends.
Is the Rice Purity Test accurate or scientific?
No. It has no scientific validity. It measures how many items you checked off a list, not your character, morality, or purity. Every question is weighted equally, so very different experiences have the same effect on your score.
Is the Rice Purity Test problematic?
Many critics say yes. Student newspapers and commentators have argued that the test’s framing of “purity” reinforces judgmental and sexist attitudes. Others see it as harmless fun. Both perspectives exist, and you can decide for yourself.
Should I share my score online?
Be cautious. Your score comes from answers about relationships, substances, and legal experiences. Some quiz sites are ad-supported and may collect data. If you take it, consider doing so privately or with people you trust, and avoid posting screenshots you might regret later.
