Tools / free checklist
STROBE checklist
The 22 items journals expect an observational study to report, expanded into the 30 points you actually have to answer, as a checklist you can work through. Tick what your paper already covers, see what is outstanding, and copy the gaps into your to-do list. Your ticks are remembered on this device.
STROBE asks whether you reported something, not whether what you did was right. Item 12 is satisfied by naming your statistical methods even when the methods themselves do not fit the data.
Have the analysis itself checked →Title and abstract
Introduction
Methods
Results
Discussion
Other information
In short
What is the STROBE checklist?
STROBE stands for Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology. It is a 22-item checklist of what an observational study should report, covering cohort, case-control and cross-sectional designs. Most major journals ask for a completed checklist with submission. It governs reporting, not conduct: it tells you what to disclose, not whether your analysis was appropriate.
Common questions
Answers before you ask
Which studies need STROBE?
Observational studies: cohort, case-control and cross-sectional. Randomised trials follow CONSORT instead, systematic reviews follow PRISMA, and prediction model studies follow TRIPOD. Many journals state in their author guidance which they require.
Does completing the checklist mean my study is sound?
No. STROBE is a reporting standard. Every item can be satisfied by a study with a serious design flaw, provided the flaw is described. It makes your work transparent and reviewable, which is valuable, but it is not a quality assessment and should not be presented as one.
Which items cause the most trouble?
Item 9 on bias, item 10 on how the study size was arrived at, and items 12c to 12e on missing data, loss to follow-up and sensitivity analyses. These are the ones authors most often leave blank or answer vaguely, and they are the ones a statistical reviewer reads first.
Why are there 30 boxes when STROBE has 22 items?
Because several items have lettered sub-parts that ask for different things. Item 12 alone runs from 12a to 12e, covering statistical methods, subgroups, missing data, loss to follow-up and sensitivity analyses. Ticking item 12 as a whole would hide which of those five you have actually addressed, so each is listed separately. It is still the standard 22-item STROBE checklist.
Where do my ticks get saved?
In your browser on this device only. Nothing is sent anywhere and there is no account. Clearing your site data, or opening the page on another device, will start you from an empty checklist.
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