MBTI: Anna and Elsa- ENFP and INFP
What a weird concept, for Disney to make a movie with not one, but two princesses and then turn and (Spoiler) have the romantic interest turn into a bad guy.
If you haven’t seen Frozen by now, you’re either living under a rock or don’t have a woman in your life that’s had the chance. Your time will come.
Anyway, Anna and Elsa’s personalities are not only great fits for ENFP and INFP, their interactions are partly what give it away.
From the very beginning, we see little sister Anna as bright energetic, and optimistic. His unwavering affection and faith in her sister is not only admirable , it’s necessary for the story. Often times on the site we’ve talked about ENFPs in animation and perfect a fit they are. They go with what they feel, they’re expressive enough that they make things fun as opposed to say Tigress of Kung-Fu Panda. Cool, sure. But there’s no growth there.
For a simple yet inspiring message, ENFPs are made to be life’s protagonists. They care about people like few others understand. In fact, you may as well just read Anna’s bio and you’ll have the perfect description of a female ENFP. Here’s a quick excerpt-
Anna is more daring than graceful and, at times, can act before she thinks. But she’s also the most optimistic and caring person you’ll ever meet.
“Eccentric” is also used to describe her on the same page and as far as I’m concerned, BAM! Cut, print, check the gates. At one point, when going above and beyond what anyone else was willing to do to chase down Elsa, Kristoff tells her that people who run off into the mountains usually want to be alone. To which Anna responds “Nobody wants to be alone!”
Personally, I might call the ENFP the ultimate extravert. While extraverted SJ types often feel compelled to be around people, fulfilling their social duties, ENFPs genuinely enjoy being around people and feel exiled at the first sign that someone close to them doesn’t feel like talking.
And while Ann’s situation is a bit more extreme, being that the castle walls are shut to the world and all, it’s still clear that her sister and companionship is what she desires. And it’s probably a big reason she decides to marry the first guy she feels a connection with.
Funny that Disney is JUST now catching onto how unlikely “love at first sight” really is.
“Love is an Open Door” is not only a good song for a Disney movie, it’s a good song for ENFPs who feel that to be alive is to share with others, and when ENFPs share, they don’t know when to stop. And they often want others to do the same thing, telling things people don’t want to know, and knowing things people don’t want to tell.
And her relationship with her sister is strained when Anna’s more eccentric side comes out, annoyed that her sister won’t give her blessing after knowing a guy for less than a day and pow! We have an INFP outburst from Elsa.
Elsa’s introversion seems obvious in her own chosen exclusion from the outside world but the circumstances were extraneous. Elsa’s real personality comes out when she’s finally decided to be out her own by choice as opposed to others’ safety.
“Let it Go” sounds like an introvert’s theme once they’ve finally realized the difference between solitude and loneliness and the has taken hold of the former. While INFJ was tempting to type Elsa as, her Perceiving dominance shows through in most of the movie as the INFP can’t stand for their actions to contradict how they feel, something Elsa has been doing since childhood.
While an INFJ can stay calm and in control of much of their ideas and beliefs (There’s a lot going on in their noggin), the INFP can’t stand to go along with a routine or attitude they don’t truly believe in. And while something similar could be said of the INFJ, control is something they have a bit more experience in than the INFP who finds it only natural to express their feelings at a moment’s notice. As Prelude Character Analysis puts it, INFPs react to their feelings, as opposed to expressing their feelings.
Alone time is a serious thing for her.
So while an INFJ Elsa may have taken the time to explain a bit more on why she can’t be closer to Anna, the INFP shuts Anna out altogether with no explanation because it’s all foreign to her anyway. And on a more personal note, look at the annoying gawky snowman she created; an INFJ’s creation may have been an intelligent and tolerable companion. While the snowman we see is open and friendly, naive to the world and it’s warm weather. Well, him and his polar opposite, Marshmallow.
INFPs are highly creative as well, their head brimming with interesting ideas unconstrained by logic and ruled only by the limits of their imagination. The immediate ice creations of Elsa’s are not only cool to look at (no pun), but also show the mind of a person with a lot more going on in her head than the rules and regulations of her kingdom will allow her. This is not too dissimilar to the INFP’s relationship to the outside world.
While the INFJ keeps everything in their head, only letting a few in, the INFP only closes the doors on what their thinking from exhaustion, and retreating to their much need world of solitude- not loneliness.
This movie has two princesses, two wacky sidekick characters and a prince; no one blames you for buying your kid every single one of them this past Christmas.
Zombies Ruin Everything 
03/22/2014 at 12:07 pm
Great post! One thing I really appreciate about your MBTI writing is a willingness to go into the positive and negative aspects of a particular type. As an INFP myself, self-awareness of my own negative qualities is sometimes difficult, especially when so much writing on type is focused only on the positive. I appreciate your more nuanced approach, especially considering how balanced you are towards all types.
03/23/2014 at 2:30 am
Thanks. That actually hits the nail on the head when it comes to what I strive for; a balance between objective information and entertainment. I think more people need to look at the negative instead of treating MBTI like a “Horoscope of the Day” even as fun as it can be. I appreciate this comment.
05/28/2014 at 7:31 pm
I agree on Anna but definitely see ISFJ in Elsa. =) I don’t see where everyone sees an Intuitive in her, honestly. She’s so obsessed with what HAS happened, what’s going on NOW, doesn’t ever once stop to think of ways to control her powers or the consequences of her running away or anything. She’s such a moment-thinker, and her appreciation of beauty and fine architecture just makes me more convinced of this.
05/29/2014 at 5:13 pm
Whaaa? Somebody online arguing for a character to be a sensor? Madness!
Even still, ISFJs appear to be more content with keeping to themselves and not giving all the details while INFP going against the natural flow of their principles is what seems to have Elsa always coming off like such a buzzkill. ISFJ does okay with the rules being set into place if it’s by those they respect while INFP might respect the rule-makers but have a hard time with the rules.
In this case, the parents are the rule-makers while the rule is to keep your power a secret.
Not to mention that creativity, appreciation of beauty and fine architecture is (stereotypically) more of an INFP trait. Not to say that ISFJs can’t have those interests (An ISFJ having painted my background image) but in a Disney Princess movie, the more obvious answer is the more likely.
11/29/2014 at 10:30 am
Hi, INFP here, and I just wanted to say that I really do see Elsa as an INFP. She thinks and acts like one, reacting on her emotions instead of explaining them. She has a lot of faith in how she feels once she’s able to be truly be herself. The reason she wasn’t like that from the very beginning was probably because her father told her “conceal, don’t feel” and all that, so she though her emotions were her enemy. When she realized her full potential, her feelings were her guide through everything that happened in the rest of the movie. She really just wants to be the best she can be and is trying to stay true to herself, which is a huge INFP quality. And remember that Ne in an INFP is usually pretty weak– it’s there, but rarely used– and our Fi is our dominant trait. We make our decisions based on how we personally feel about the idea instead of how it affects our 5 senses, which is where the iNtuition comes in. If Elsa was a Senser, her thoughts and actions would seem less abstract and out of the blue.
06/10/2015 at 9:59 pm
When Elsa is restrained by her parents’ rules, she only accesses her Fi and Si–her own feelings and her troubled past–but when freedom opens itself to her, then she becomes her healthy, mature self, an INFP. She is creative and sees many possibilities. She forgets rules, only using her tertiary Si for recalling past experience. She does what is important to her and only helps Anna because she realizes that the heavy snowfall is her own fault. This targets her Fi because she feels guilty about what she had done. She doesn’t do it for the people’s sake, but to ease her conscience. She also uses inferior Te to make decent plans, but they don’t always work out perfectly.
07/28/2014 at 11:23 pm
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MBTI: Anna and Elsa- ENFP and INFP | Zombies Ruin Everything
09/08/2014 at 9:21 pm
Interesting take on Elsa, but I’ve always seen her as an INTJ.
You make good points, but you’ve missed one key thing: time. While an INFP may have acted like Elsa if suddenly put in her shoes, Elsa had been under stress for years. INTJs have a long fuse, but even we can’t hold out forever. Eventually the bomb has to go off, and when it does, it’s absolutely spectacular. We go absolutely nuts, acting in the most emotionally charged way possible.
“Let It Go” might be the introvert’s theme, but it particularly describes the exploding INTJ. At that point we do a table flip shouting “SCREW IT!” at the top of our lungs. Then we get as far away from the source of stress as quickly as possible, probably acting irrationally along the way. We start to cool off a bit, but if the stress (read: Anna) comes back to us too soon, we lose it and explode again. We try to cool off some more, but it keeps coming back (read: Hans’ search party). And until we can either spend enough time alone to cool off or a solution falls into our lap, the bomb keeps exploding.
Introverted Feeling may be powerful, but don’t underestimate unchecked Introverted Intuition, either.
Just my two cents.
PS: Anna has always been an ENFP. I don’t think anyone’s going to challenge that!
09/09/2014 at 1:45 am
Wow, didn’t think an INTJ would ever argue for a character like this. I appreciate the comment. I think an exploding INTJ would be better represented in something from Tool, but to each their own. Any song could be anybody’s theme if they chose it.
09/09/2014 at 3:31 pm
Do you even mbti bro?! But seriously, this is the stupidest thing I’ve read in a while.
10/03/2014 at 10:39 am
Hey, I’m just saying we’re looking at her shadow functions, not her real self.
01/07/2016 at 4:49 pm
The exploding INTJ has nothing on the INTP going nuclear!
Fe inf – repressed and ready to explode.
Te 5th – stressed by rules.
‘Let It Go’ is an INTP’s Fe. Not the whole INTP, just the Fe.
01/07/2016 at 5:18 pm
The exploding INTJ has nothing on the INTP going nuclear!
Fe inf – ready to explode.
Te opp – hates rules.
‘Let It Go’ describes an INTP’s Fe exploding. It almost seems like the inside of my head, with a Ti repression of Fe in ‘Conceal, don’t feel’, and the Fe exploding in the chorus.
01/22/2015 at 10:24 am
You should read this post arguing that Elsa is an ISTJ. I had her pegged as an ISFP but it hadn’t quite sat right.
Also claims Anna is an ESFP. I had thought her an ENFP, too. Disney (and Hollywood in general) loves to give heroines the endearing ENFP humanitarian features and the graceful, active Se features. Ariel and that chick from Tangled being good examples.
Here’s the post: indubitablyisfp.com/tag/elsa
01/23/2015 at 4:49 pm
I’ve been to her site before with the characters that I know of I would say she’s a bit more accurate than many MBTI sites I’ve seen. Elsa just seemed a bit more idealistic (no pun) . ESFP wants freedom to act, ENFP wants their goals fulfilled now. Not that it’s always so black and white.
06/10/2015 at 10:16 pm
I see where the author is coming from with Anna as ESFP. Although she is active and isn’t afraid of adventure, she seems to enjoy it because it inspires her mind (Ne), giving her more great stories to share (Si) and new ideas to entertain (Ne). So I still think Anna is ENFP.
11/17/2015 at 1:08 pm
This is gonna be a shocker–but I don’t think Anna is an ENFP. Or an ESFP. I think she’s an ENFJ.
E — nobody’s doubting that Anna is an extrovert. But ENFPs are the most introverted extroverts because they require so much time to internally filter through how they feel about things (Fi). Meanwhile for ENFJs, their *dominant* function is Fe. They, more than the ENFP, would not be able to live cooped up in a castle.
N — again, pretty clear that Anna has that idealist/dreamer thing going on. But look at this description of Ni of an ENFJ
“A disengagement from interactions in the room occurs, followed by a sudden “Aha!” or “That’s it!” The sense of the future and the realizations that come from introverted iNtuiting have a sureness and an imperative quality that seem to demand action and help us stay focused on fulfilling our vision or dream of how things will be in the future.”
Does that remind anyone else of how Anna felt when Olaf explained to her what love was?
F–Already explained the difference between extroverted feeling and introverted feeling in E/I
J–This is where most people put Anna has a ‘P’ because she woke up late and *was* late to her sister’s coronation. But putting that aside, all the other characteristics of a J make sense. Anna likes making decisions quickly, while an ENFP lingers in the decision-making state. Get married? Sure! Go out and find her sister? Now! Both of these actions are quickly decided and revolve around, again, her dominant function, the Fe (extroverted feeling). Again, here’s a checklist for J’s:
– J’s like to have things decided. (going after Elsa)
– J’s appear to be task oriented. (Reach castle, talk to Elsa, end winter)
– Sometimes J’s focus so much on the goal that I miss new information. (Not listening to Elsa say she wanted to be alone, not realizing Kristoff has feelings for her, etc.)
Also as an EN*P (I fluctuate between T/F) who dated an ENFJ, I can definitely say that she reminded me more of my ex than me.
07/06/2016 at 8:23 pm
XNFP here!
I have many of those traits that you’ve listed as evidence for Anna being ENFJ. Much of that seems more like impulsiveness, not decisiveness. If my sister had run off and locked herself away, I’d risk everything to go save her too. I think that’s just evidence of Fi.
I think an ENFJ would be far less likely to randomly get married to someone they just met. Ni would make them far more likely to consider the consequences of that decision. The decisions of Ni users tend to be well-thought out.
09/07/2017 at 3:08 pm
LOL Anna is not an ENFJ, she obviously has Fi-Te.
09/26/2016 at 4:36 am
“ENFPs genuinely enjoy being around people and feel exiled at the first sign that someone close to them doesn’t feel like talking.”
YES TRUE! I always find myself in a push-pull relationship with my ENFP friends. They want to hang out, if I don’t want to, they are hurt (as much as they hide it) so I have to find a semi-legit excuse to take care of my introversion in order to not hurt their feelings.
And I completely agree with your typing of Elsa as an INFP. I always see her typed as an INFJ and I would think that an INFJ Elsa would eventually give in to Anna’s “Do you want to build a snowman?” pestering. That auxiliary Fe would guilt her into coming out. In addition, Elsa never actually said sorry for the years of separation from her sister or explained why it occurred in the first place (always seemed like a plot hole to me) and just “instantly” repaired her relationship with her sister. Again, Fe would probably like to make amends for the turmoil it caused (unless Elsa is purposely withdrawing it but that won’t make sense because she likes her sister).
02/20/2017 at 3:40 am
GREAT! I’ve always seen her typed as INFJ, but i know a INFJ in real life and it has nothing to do with her. Just looking at a ‘INFP/INFJ differences’ chart makes you understand that the real Elsa, not the repressed one, is completely different. Their driving function is “interested in understand the others, their emotions and their psychologic patterns”.
btw I’m an INFP, but i lived years with anxiety that oppressed my personality, and Elsa is the character I relate most. ever.
Even under stress we react the same way “I can do this alone” “NO emotions”. but eventually emotions are driving us.. Also INFP doesnt mean always thinking about the future etc, the Se function in the ISFP is too important.. i don’t think suits her.
Thank you for being the first site to type her as I always perceived her.
02/20/2017 at 3:50 am
plus, while i was under stress I created in my mind a whole story and a character completely opposite to me, just like olaf, who could do what i really wanted to be/do (for ex. he represents her feelings for anna and wants to be with her). The only difference is that I can’t create it in real life. I think in that room alone she could only spend time imagining things.. a Sensing type would be bored in the same room for years.
05/31/2017 at 11:54 am
My friend who is an INFJ argues that Elsa is an INFJ. But I believe Elsa is an INFP. Can you give some examples of incidents from the movie that particularly show that she is an INFP and not an INFJ?
P. S. I love this site! Especially your MBTI posts.
08/10/2017 at 6:58 pm
After watching the short film “Frozen Fever” (which took place after the movie!) and reading some of the Disney frozen books(you can read one on the Frozen Wikia and Youtube has many of them being read aloud), I’d definitely say INTJ/ISTJ is the most likely choices for Elsa. In fact, one of the books outright says Elsa uses her head(T) and Anna her heart(F). If you haven’t watched the short or read the books I’d highly recommend you do so for more insight(I take them as more evidence to included more so than the OUAT incarnation of her(OUAT alters story lines and provides too many flashbacks for my taste)
With that being said, it seems that whenever Elsa is typed as INTJ, ISTJ,INFJ Anna is always flipped from ENFP or ESFP to reflect that opposite attract theory for each one. Always! lol
I can’t wait until the newest short film “Olaf’s Frozen Adventure” comes out. This short film is supposed to be about traditions and INTJ’s and ISTJ approach to traditions are very different. I’m very eager to see why Elsa didn’t uphold any of the traditions(was it due to herself not liking them, forced on her?,or if it was her family that stopped them and she kept it up?, etc) this may finally give more evidence for S VS N and what Disney is setting Elsa up for in Frozen 2.
Disney is very dedicated to Frozen more so than other films and you would assume MBTI would come up since their own official Disney blog typed her as an INTJ a few years back. It will be interesting to see what they do with her along with Anna.
09/07/2017 at 3:12 pm
Your post is very interesting and useful. I know MBTI practitioners help with directing scenes and script writing (Vicky Jo, an INFJ with a masters in Jung Theory helped with many scenes in the film Pretty Woman)
09/07/2017 at 3:05 pm
As an ENFP I fully agree with your opinion on Anna. I think her dynamic with Her traveling partner (not the prince.. Forget his name) is totally ENFP xSTJ duality and that’s why they got along so well.
I think Anna is more IxFJ than INFP, though. I mean I get your point but she was able to keep that facade up for years… Up into adulthood. I actually see Ni or Si first and Se or Ne last because she was able to either A) see the big picture or B) had the past so ingrained in her head that she was able to get to adulthood without acting upon her Fi.
i could also see an argument for ISTJ hands down.
01/11/2020 at 7:12 am
Elsa is definitely INFJ, her Ni for the future and insight and it’s the only way insecurity in her running away is Ni + Fe
01/11/2020 at 7:16 am
Anna definitely is ENFP, no Se consciously in her she uses Ne the entire movie I agree and Fi. Elsa is INFJ though for sure.
11/17/2020 at 9:56 pm
Hi, I’m an INFP and I’ve guessed Elsa as INFP and Anna as ENFP but then seeing everyone type them as IXXJ and EXFP respectively made me doubt my typings because who’s to say they’re not right haha. But then I watched Frozen II and I really did see it even more but also thought that maybe Anna could be ENFJ haha. I really appreciate you discussing why they are more ENFP and INFP because it really helped me to put my thoughts into words! And someone also said that the director Chris Buck has typed Elsa as an INFP too 😀
06/21/2021 at 1:38 am
elsa is a definite ISFP. She acts exactly like my very introvert isfp boyfriend. I don’t mean to offend you, but i’m not sure you have explored all the other alternatives to infp. When somebody in the chat suggested that she was a sensor, you simply argued that an isfJ wouldn’t be like her. Why assuming that she should be a J? Anyway. She is a total ISFP