Risk exposure is a measure of how much a project stands to gain or lose from risk, combining the probability of risks with their impact. It gives a sense of the overall level of risk a project is carrying at a point in time.
Exposure can be expressed qualitatively (high, medium, low) or quantitatively, for example as an expected monetary value across the risks in the register. Tracking exposure over time shows whether a project’s risk is growing or being brought under control.
Related: expected monetary value, risk register, risk threshold.
Last updated: 4 July 2026 · By Tom, PMP-certified since 2004