What the COPM is
The COPM is a measure of how you see your own performance in everyday life. It was first published in 1991 and is now used in many countries and languages. Instead of testing you against a set list of tasks, it starts with what you say matters: the things you want to do, need to do or are expected to do.
It covers three broad areas of everyday life: self care, productivity (such as work, study, school or running a home) and leisure. Because the goals come from you, two people with the same disability can end up with completely different COPM goals.
How the COPM works, step by step
The developers describe five steps. Your therapist guides the conversation, but the ratings are yours.
- Problem definition: you talk through a typical day and name activities that are hard for you
- Rating importance: you rate how important each activity is to your life on a 10 point scale
- Choosing problems: you pick up to five of the most important ones to work on
- Scoring: you rate your current performance and your satisfaction with that performance for each one, from 1 (poor, not satisfied) to 10 (very good, extremely satisfied)
- Reassessment: after therapy, or at a set time, you rate the same activities again so the change can be measured
What the scores mean
Your therapist works out an average performance score and an average satisfaction score across the activities you chose. The COPM is not compared with population norms. Your scores are only ever compared with your own earlier scores.
The developers say their research shows that a change of two or more points is clinically important. So moving from 3 to 6 for cooking a simple meal is a meaningful result, and it is a result described in your own words.
How the COPM is used in the NDIS
The NDIA wants to see that therapy is effective and beneficial and that it links to your goals. The COPM is a good fit for that, because it turns your goals into concrete activities and gives a before and after score.
Therapists often record a COPM at the start of a plan and repeat it before your plan reassessment or renewal, then report the change in an NDIS progress report. It sits well alongside standardised tools such as the WHODAS 2.0 or Vineland-3, which compare you with other people.
- Setting therapy goals with you at the start of a plan
- Showing progress, or lack of it, in a progress report
- Explaining why therapy should continue, change or stop
- Giving your own voice a clear place in the evidence
Children, family members and carers
The developers say the COPM has been used with children as young as eight. Younger children usually find the self rating part hard.
Family members and carers can also be interviewed. Their answers reflect their own view and concerns, not a substitute for yours, so a good therapist is clear about whose ratings are in the report. For young children, many therapists use goal tools designed for families instead, or alongside it.
Cost and who can do it
The COPM is mostly used by occupational therapists, and some other therapists use the same interview method. It is usually part of an assessment or a regular therapy session rather than a separate service.
If you are an NDIS participant, the time is usually paid from the improved daily living skills part of your Capacity Building budget, at up to $193.99 an hour for occupational therapy in 2026/27 in most of Australia. Since 1 October 2026 that budget is reduced by 10% when your plan is created, reassessed or renewed, so it helps when therapy time is clearly linked to measurable progress.
Tips for getting useful COPM goals
- Think about real activities, not symptoms: say 'getting to work on the bus', not 'my anxiety'
- Choose what matters to you, even if someone else would pick differently
- Be honest about your current performance; a low starting score is not a failure
- Ask your therapist to explain your scores and include them in your progress report
- Keep a copy so you can compare at your next reassessment