The four Hogwarts houses

Where the houses came from

Hogwarts was founded more than a thousand years ago by four of the greatest witches and wizards of the age: Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff and Salazar Slytherin. Each chose students who matched the quality they valued most. Gryffindor wanted the brave, Ravenclaw the clever, Slytherin the ambitious, and Hufflepuff chose to teach anyone who came.

For a time the four worked together. Then Slytherin demanded that the school accept only students from all-magic families. The others refused, and after a bitter argument with Gryffindor, Slytherin left. That quarrel still echoes in the rivalry between the two houses. Read the full story in the four founders of Hogwarts.

How students are sorted

On their first night, every first-year sits on a stool in the Great Hall and puts on the Sorting Hat, which once belonged to Godric Gryffindor. The founders enchanted it with their judgment so it could keep choosing students after they were gone.

The Hat reads each student's mind. It looks at what they value most, not just what they're good at, and it listens to what they want. Harry asked not to go into Slytherin and the Hat agreed. Neville asked for Hufflepuff and was put in Gryffindor anyway. Most sortings take seconds; a student who takes more than five minutes is called a hatstall. More in how the Sorting Hat works.

Life in a house

Your house shapes almost everything at Hogwarts. You sleep in its dormitories, eat at its table in the Great Hall, share many classes with it, play for its Quidditch team and earn or lose points for it in the race for the House Cup. Each house has its own common room, ghost and Head of House. In practice, your house becomes your family for seven years.

Which house is right for you?

Ask yourself which of these sounds most like you on an ordinary day:

• Gryffindor: you'd rather do the right thing than the easy thing, even when nobody's watching.
• Ravenclaw: you'd rather understand how something works than be told the answer.
• Hufflepuff: you'd rather everyone was treated fairly than come out on top yourself.
• Slytherin: you'd rather have a plan and a goal than leave things to chance.

If two sound equally like you, you're not alone. Most people have a clear first house and a strong second. Our house quiz shows your score for all four. For deeper comparisons, read house traits explained, what is the best Hogwarts house, Gryffindor vs Slytherin and Ravenclaw vs Slytherin.