Net Promoter Score (NPS)
Definition
Net Promoter Score (NPS) — Net Promoter Score (NPS) gauges customer loyalty using one question — how likely are you to recommend us — on a 0-to-10 scale. Respondents are grouped into promoters (9–10), passives (7–8), and detractors (0–6). NPS equals the percentage of promoters minus the percentage of detractors, ranging from −100 to +100.
Net Promoter Score reduces customer loyalty to a single number built from one question: "How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?" Answers on a 0–10 scale sort customers into promoters, passives, and detractors, and the score is simply the share of promoters minus the share of detractors. Because it asks about future advocacy rather than a single interaction, NPS is treated as a relationship metric — a read on loyalty, not just satisfaction.
Its appeal is comparability and simplicity; its limit is that a single relative number hides a lot, so it is best read alongside transactional metrics like CSAT and operational ones like First Call Resolution.
How It Is Calculated
Benchmarks
Benchmark ranges below are industry references, not statutory rules — they vary widely by sector and by how each firm measures. Use them as directional context, not a target guaranteed to fit your business.
- Bain & Company: above 0 is good, 20+ favorable, 50+ excellent, and 80+ world-class
- Across 150,000+ organizations, SurveyMonkey benchmark data put the average NPS around 32, with the top quartile at 72 or higher
- NPS is relative — a "good" score varies substantially by industry, so compare against sector peers, not a universal target
Key Points
- NPS was created by Fred Reichheld of Bain & Company (with Satmetrix) and introduced in his December 2003 Harvard Business Review article "The One Number You Need to Grow." (HBR — Reichheld (2003), Dec 2003)
- Bain & Company’s interpretation: an NPS above 0 is good, above 20 favorable, above 50 excellent, and above 80 world-class. (Bain & Company, 2025)
- Across 150,000+ organizations, SurveyMonkey benchmark data put the average NPS around 32, with the top 25% scoring 72 or higher. (SurveyMonkey, 2024)
- Passives (7–8) are excluded from the score but count in the response base, so converting passives into promoters is often the fastest way to raise NPS.
NPS sits alongside CSAT and First Call Resolution in most support scorecards, and outsourced-CX contracts sometimes tie targets to it in the service-level agreement. Because it measures loyalty rather than a single ticket, it is usually owned at the program level rather than by an individual support agent.
Related Terms
Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) measures how satisfied customers are with a specific product, service, or interaction. Respondents rate satisfaction on a short scale — typically 1 to 5 — and CSAT is the percentage giving the top one or two ratings. It captures short-term, transaction-level sentiment.
First Call Resolution (FCR)First Call Resolution (FCR) is a contact-center metric measuring the percentage of customer issues resolved during the initial interaction, with no callback, transfer, or follow-up required. It is a leading indicator of customer satisfaction and operating efficiency, since repeat contacts raise cost and erode loyalty.
Service Level AgreementA Service Level Agreement is a formal contract between a service provider and client that defines measurable performance standards, response times, quality benchmarks, and penalty clauses for outsourced work. In remote staffing, SLAs typically specify uptime targets, response and resolution windows, and quality metrics. SLA breaches trigger contractual fee reductions.