What is a Net Promoter Score?

The definition of a net promoter score (NPS) is a metric for gauging how likely customers would be to recommend your brand to colleagues and friends. A net promoter score is based on the perspective that each company’s customer base can be divided into three categories: promoters, passives and detractors. By asking the question, “how likely a customer would be to refer a company to a friend or colleague” you can gauge how willing your customer base is to promote your company.

Why net promoter score matters

Net promoter score gives companies a simple way to measure customer loyalty and overall brand sentiment. Instead of only tracking satisfaction in the moment, NPS helps teams understand whether customers are enthusiastic enough to recommend the company to others.

That matters because willingness to recommend often reflects the strength of the customer experience, the value of the product, and the quality of the relationship over time.

What NPS measures

NPS measures how likely customers are to recommend a company, product, or service to someone else. It is designed to capture customer loyalty in a single score that is easy to track over time.

While it is only one metric, NPS can help teams understand whether customer sentiment is improving, staying flat, or getting worse. It is often used alongside other customer experience and retention metrics to provide a broader view of account health.

How net promoter score works

Net promoter score works by asking customers one core question: how likely are you to recommend this company to a friend or colleague? Customers answer on a scale from 0 to 10, and their responses are grouped into three categories: promoters, passives, and detractors.

Once responses are grouped, the company subtracts the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters. The result is the net promoter score.

Net promoter score formula

The formula for NPS is simple:

Net Promoter Score = % of Promoters – % of Detractors

Passives are included in the total survey response base, but they are not directly added or subtracted in the final formula.

For example, if 60% of respondents are promoters, 25% are passives, and 15% are detractors, the NPS would be 45.

What counts as a good NPS

A good NPS depends on the industry, customer expectations, and competitive landscape. In general, a positive score means there are more promoters than detractors, which is usually a healthy sign. A higher score typically suggests stronger loyalty and customer advocacy.

Still, NPS should not be viewed in isolation. A score that looks strong in one category may be average in another, so many companies track NPS trends over time rather than relying only on a single benchmark.

Benefits of using net promoter score

Net promoter score is popular because it is easy to understand, easy to track, and useful across many parts of the business. It gives leaders a quick signal of how customers feel and whether customer experience is moving in the right direction.

Some of the main benefits of NPS include:

• Simple customer loyalty measurement
• Easy benchmarking over time
• Clear segmentation of customer sentiment
• Early visibility into customer risk
• Better alignment across teams
• A clearer view of advocacy and satisfaction

Common uses of NPS

Companies use net promoter score in a variety of ways to measure loyalty and improve the customer experience.

Common use cases include:

• Tracking customer sentiment over time
• Measuring loyalty after onboarding or implementation
• Identifying at-risk customers
• Finding brand advocates for testimonials or referrals
• Monitoring support or service quality
• Measuring the impact of product or experience changes
• Aligning teams around customer success goals

For example, a customer success team may use NPS responses to identify unhappy accounts that need attention or satisfied customers who may be open to case studies and referrals.

How NPS helps different teams

Net promoter score can be useful across the organization, not just within customer success.

• Customer success teams can use NPS to identify churn risk and improve account health
• Product teams can use NPS feedback to understand satisfaction trends and feature priorities
• Marketing teams can identify promoters who may be strong candidates for reviews, references, or advocacy programs
• Executive teams can use NPS as a high-level signal of customer loyalty and company health

When used well, NPS creates a shared view of customer sentiment across the business.

Net promoter score vs customer satisfaction

Net promoter score and customer satisfaction are related, but they measure different things. NPS focuses on loyalty and willingness to recommend. Customer satisfaction, often measured through CSAT, focuses more on how satisfied a customer feels after a specific interaction or experience.

NPS is usually broader and more relationship-oriented, while CSAT is often more immediate and transactional.