---
title: "Risk matrix"
description: "A grid that turns a likelihood rating and a severity rating, each on defined scales, into a band that triggers a treatment, a gate and a review cadence."
canonical: https://aigovernanceengineer.com/glossary/risk-matrix
author: "Jorge García Aibar"
license: "CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)"
doi: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22956197
version: "0.5.0"
updated: 2026-09-24
---

# Risk matrix

A grid that turns a likelihood rating and a severity rating, each on defined scales, into a band that triggers a treatment, a gate and a review cadence. Useful for consistency, not precision [1]; keep the numbers behind each cell.

- Developed in: [ch. 13, Assessing risk: the likelihood-by-severity matrix](https://aigovernanceengineer.com/bok/risk-management#assessing-risk-the-likelihood-by-severity-matrix)
- Chapters: [ch. 13, Risk Management](https://aigovernanceengineer.com/bok/risk-management)
- In the glossary chapter: https://aigovernanceengineer.com/bok/glossary#t-risk-matrix

## Sources

[1] What's Wrong with Risk Matrices? (L. A. Cox Jr.; Risk Analysis 28(2) 497-512). Wiley. 2008-04. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1539-6924.2008.01030.x (verified: primary)