Can you tell if someone is on the spectrum?

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I feel like I have developed sort of an "aspie-dar". I can almost sense when someone has asperger's/autism, even if they might not be 'noticeable autistic' so to speak. I don't know if it's because I notice their behaviour or expressions and relate to it, or if it's purely intuition. Like a vibe maybe? Anybody else who feels like this too?

What annoys me is that most of the time, I never actually find out if I'm right or not. It's not like I ever straight up ask them about it. Because of not knowing, I think I sometimes have to tell myself to be careful by making assumptions though, since they might end up being completely neurotypical, and I don't want to think of them as something they're not...

If a person is "classically" autistic, I can tell right away. There's no doubt as to their autism.

Aspergians are more difficult---but I can usually tell, anyway.

I seem to be able to notice if a man is on the spectrum, more than a woman. Women on the milder end of the spectrum seem to be more subtle, and although I notice there's something odd, I still can't confidently assume they have HFA, as they could be anything, like Bipolar, anxiety issues, personality disorder or even ADHD.
Men on the spectrum seem to be more obvious, even if they are HFA, and I can easily tell, usually by monotone voice, what interests they have, or how they make eye contact and facial expressions.

I can usually tell if someone is on the spectrum if they are about around the moderate side, but sometimes it can be a bit hard to notice in high-functioning, sometimes, if someone seems socially awkward and really quiet, and depending on their interests, I usually think they're on the spectrum, but I don't want to automatically consider them on the spectrum because the person could just be really shy or awkward.

I do seem to have an aspie-dar.

One guy I worked with was like a caricature of myself when I was younger, almost a real life Sheldon Leonard.

I learned while gossiping with another coworker, who was both a psych major ( she also deduced that he was aspie), and a supervisor (had to process paperwork by him that said he had aspergers) that in fact he was aspie.

A young lady who worked (more successfully than that guy did) for the company for a long time also seemed very aspie to me. But I never got that confirmed one way or the other.

I had suspicion about a quirky young lady who advertised on a certain phonesex site. I asked her on the phone, and she was stunned that I "called that right".

Best not to ask the person you suspect ...
he or she may not realize they're on the spectrum.
I wouldn't have thought I was autistic years ago,
and might have gotten offended if someone approached me
asking me if I was.

Excellent advice, Phoenix.

I wouldn't being it up directly---though, if I suspected someone was on the Spectrum, I might make allusion to Tony Attwood and Temple Grandin.

I can suspect a person is on the spectrum because I can tell if a person has a number of visible traits associated with autism. But unless one knows well what a person is like now, what the person was like a child, the persons inner thought process, one can not tell if another person is autistic.

It's hard for me to notice the high-functioning ones unless a situation prompts me to look for traits. But I do have an ADHD-radar. A lot of the ones I pick up are adults that probably never got the chance to get checked out as kids, and now probably don't even think about the possibility of ADHD. I keep it all to myself, though.

I can, unless the person is really good as "passing for NT" (even that I am not sure about anymore). It is a bit scary... Even the "mildest" individuals I have met several years ago and was not sure about, now appear to me as glaringly and unquestionably autistic. Somehow, I have become extremely sensitive to noticing autistic behaviours.

Also, just to add: the way you can tell is through eye contact and/or social interaction patterns. The way a person behaves non-verbally in a conversational initiation or even, sometimes, the way he/she looks around is a dead giveaway. It's an elaborate thing to break down in generic terms but, in any given scenario, I can describe exactly what it was.

I'd definitely say I have aspie-dar. I also seem to have found myself drawn to aspies, those with traits, and even those who have later had children on the spectrum.

No. I've known plenty of people with autism and I still can't see it in them even after knowing they have it.

I always notice it, my aspie-dar is pretty good. But like phoenix says it's better to not tell them. Though, if I suspect it in someone I know who is usually really chilled out, gamer folk normally, I just ask them if they have it and it usually results in, "how the f**k could you tell? lol"

How about, "Test your aspie-dar: The Gameshow"? I wonder how often confirmation bias renders false positives.

I sort of think I can, sometimes it seems obvious but I dunno really since I don't ask. I don't know how I come off either other than weird, I don't know if it's obvious or anything but you'd think people would be friendlier if they thought you were disabled