Summary
The Household Resilience Test shows how well your household could function if normal systems and services were disrupted. Score yourself across 10 essential areas to see where your household is strong—and where you need to improve.
How Long Could Your Household Keep Going?
If the power went out tonight, how long would your household be okay?
- What if the water stopped running?
- The grocery store couldn't restock?
- Cell service went down?
- Roads were blocked?
Most of us rely on these systems every day without thinking about them.
This test measures how well your household could keep functioning when those systems are disrupted.
You'll score yourself across 10 areas, from food and water to power, transportation, finances, and practical skills.
Don't give yourself points for what you plan to do. Score what you have today.
1. Food: How Long Could You Eat without Shopping?
Imagine you couldn't buy groceries starting today.
How long could you feed everyone in your household with what you already have?
- 0 points: Less than 3 days
- 2 points: 4–6 days
- 4 points: 1–2 weeks
- 6 points: 3–4 weeks
- 8 points: 1–3 months
- 10 points: More than 3 months
Food Score: ____ / 10
2. Water: What If the Faucet Stopped?
Stored water buys you time. A reliable way to filter or purify additional water can extend that time.
Score the best description of your household:
- 0 points: No meaningful water backup
- 2 points: Enough drinking water for 1–2 days
- 4 points: Enough drinking water for 3–6 days
- 6 points: At least a week of stored water
- 8 points: Stored water plus a reliable filtration or purification method
- 10 points: A substantial stored supply plus a reliable way to treat additional water
Water Score: ____ / 10
3. Power: What Works When the Grid Doesn't?
If the power went out, what could you still keep running?
- 0 points: No backup
- 2 points: Flashlights and spare batteries
- 4 points: Rechargeable lights and power banks for small devices
- 6 points: Enough backup power to keep essential small devices running
- 8 points: Larger backup power with a way to recharge it
- 10 points: A tested system capable of powering your household's most important devices through an extended outage
Power Score: ____ / 10
4. Cooking: Can You Make Meals without Your Kitchen?
A pantry full of food is one thing. Turning it into dinner without your normal stove is another.
Only count equipment you know how to operate safely.
- 0 points: No backup cooking method
- 2 points: A backup method, but little or no fuel
- 4 points: A working backup cooker with some fuel
- 6 points: Enough fuel to cook for several days
- 8 points: Multiple cooking options or a substantial fuel supply
- 10 points: Tested off-grid cooking options with enough fuel for an extended disruption
Cooking Score: ____ / 10
5. Sanitation: What Happens When Toilets Stop Flushing?
If water or sewer service failed, could your household still manage toilets, waste, and basic hygiene?
- 0 points: No plan or supplies
- 2 points: Basic hygiene supplies
- 4 points: Extra hygiene, cleaning and waste-disposal supplies
- 6 points: Supplies plus a plan for temporary toilet or waste problems
- 8 points: A complete sanitation setup your household understands
- 10 points: A tested plan with enough supplies for an extended disruption
Sanitation Score: ____ / 10
6. Communications: Could You Stay Informed and In Touch?
Your phone may still work during an emergency. But what if it doesn't?
- 0 points: Entirely dependent on internet/cell service
- 2 points: Battery or backup charging for phones
- 4 points: Backup charging plus another source of emergency information
- 6 points: Emergency radio plus backup power
- 8 points: Multiple ways to receive information and a family communication plan
- 10 points: Multiple backup ways to receive information and communicate, plus a family plan you've practiced
Communications Score: ____ / 10
7. Medical Readiness: Could You Handle the First Problem?
This isn't about replacing a doctor. It's about what happens before help arrives—or when getting help takes longer than usual.
- 0 points: Little beyond everyday medicine
- 2 points: Basic first-aid supplies
- 4 points: A stocked first-aid kit
- 6 points: First-aid supplies plus essential medications and household medical needs covered
- 8 points: Well-stocked supplies plus someone with basic first-aid training
- 10 points: Comprehensive supplies, critical medications addressed, and someone trained to handle common emergencies
Medical Score: ____ / 10
8. Transportation: Could You Get Home—or Get Out?
Being prepared at home doesn't help much if you're stranded 30 miles away.
- 0 points: No vehicle emergency supplies or backup plan
- 2 points: A few basic items in the vehicle
- 4 points: Food, water, light, and basic emergency gear
- 6 points: A well-stocked vehicle kit and a habit of keeping enough fuel on hand
- 8 points: Vehicle supplies, maps, and alternate routes
- 10 points: A complete vehicle setup plus realistic plans for getting home, leaving the area, or dealing with a breakdown
Transportation Score: ____ / 10
9. Financial Backup: Could You Handle a Financial Disruption?
An emergency can bring unexpected expenses—and normal ways of paying may not always be available.
How many financial options would you have?
- 0 points: No emergency financial cushion
- 2 points: A small amount of emergency cash
- 4 points: Cash plus limited emergency savings
- 6 points: Enough reserves to absorb a moderate unexpected expense
- 8 points: A meaningful emergency fund plus accessible cash
- 10 points: Multiple financial backups capable of carrying the household through a longer disruption
Financial Score: ____ / 10
This isn't a measure of income. It's a measure of how many options you have when something goes wrong.
10. Skills & Community: What Do You Have Besides Stuff?
Eventually, supplies run low. That's when knowledge—and people—become especially valuable.
Think about first aid, repairs, gardening, preserving food, navigation, water treatment, and other practical skills. Then think about the people around you.
- 0 points: Few practical skills and little local support
- 2 points: A few useful skills or people nearby you could call on
- 4 points: Several practical skills or dependable nearby help
- 6 points: Useful household skills plus relationships with neighbors, friends, or family nearby
- 8 points: A broad skill set and a dependable local network
- 10 points: Multiple capable household members and a strong network of people who can share skills and resources
Skills & Community Score: ____ / 10
What's Your Household Resilience Score?
Add up your scores.
TOTAL: ____ / 100
Now see where your household stands.
0–25: System Dependent
A disruption to utilities, stores, or other everyday services could affect your household quickly. Your first goal isn't preparing for months. It's buying yourself the first few days.
26–50: Short-Disruption Ready
You've covered some important basics and have backup options for at least some short disruptions. Longer disruptions are where gaps are likely to appear.
51–75: Household Resilient
You've built meaningful backup options across many of your essential needs. Now the goal is to strengthen the areas where you're still heavily dependent on outside systems.
76–100: Highly Independent
Your household has multiple ways to keep essential needs covered when normal systems aren't available.
At this level, maintaining supplies, practicing plans, and strengthening skills matter as much as adding more gear.
Start with Your Weakest Link
Your total tells you where you stand. Your lowest scores tell you what to work on next.
Don't try to fix everything at once. Pick one weak area and start there.
If you're short on food, water, backup power, cooking options, or vehicle supplies, My Patriot Supply has emergency essentials that can help you close those gaps.
Not every weak spot requires buying something.
Building savings, learning first aid, practicing a family communication plan, or getting to know your neighbors can make your household more resilient, too.
Fix one weak link. Then take the test again.
Your goal isn't a perfect score. It's making sure one broken system doesn't leave your household with no other option.
What's your Household Resilience Score—and which category surprised you most? Let us know below.
In liberty,
Elizabeth Anderson
Preparedness Advisor, My Patriot Supply
