What Is Net Promoter Score (NPS)?
Learn what Net Promoter Score is, how it works, and why businesses use NPS to measure customer loyalty.
What is Net Promoter Score?
Net Promoter Score, or NPS, is a customer loyalty metric used by companies to measure how likely customers are to recommend a product, service, or brand to others.
The metric was introduced by Fred Reichheld at Bain & Company and first published in the Harvard Business Review article “The One Number You Need to Grow” in 2003.
Source: https://hbr.org/2003/12/the-one-number-you-need-to-grow
The idea behind Net Promoter Score is simple: companies that create loyal customers often grow faster because satisfied customers recommend the company to others.
If you want to calculate your own score, use the Net Promoter Score Calculator on this site.
The Net Promoter Score question
NPS is based on one standardized survey question:
How likely are you to recommend our company to a friend or colleague?
Customers respond on a 0 to 10 scale, where 0 means not at all likely and 10 means extremely likely.
This simple format makes NPS one of the most widely used customer experience metrics in the world.
NPS score categories
Survey responses are grouped into three categories.
| Score | Category | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 9–10 | Promoters | Loyal customers likely to recommend your company |
| 7–8 | Passives | Neutral customers |
| 0–6 | Detractors | Unhappy customers who may discourage others |
- Promoters help businesses grow through referrals and positive word-of-mouth.
- Detractors often highlight areas where the customer experience needs improvement.
Why Net Promoter Score is important
Research shows that companies with strong customer loyalty tend to grow faster.
According to Bain & Company, companies with leading Net Promoter Scores often grow at more than twice the rate of their competitors.
Source: https://www.netpromotersystem.com
- Measure customer loyalty
- Track customer sentiment over time
- Identify unhappy customers
- Improve customer experience
- Predict long-term growth
How NPS is used by companies
Many industries rely on Net Promoter Score, including SaaS companies, financial services, ecommerce, telecommunications, and travel and hospitality.
Companies often run NPS surveys quarterly or continuously to track improvements.
Calculate your Net Promoter Score
If you have survey results, you can calculate your score instantly using our free tool.
The calculator automatically computes your NPS score, promoter percentage, passive percentage, and detractor percentage.
Related pages on Calculator for NPS
Create your NPS survey in minutes
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does NPS measure?
NPS measures customer loyalty and the likelihood that customers will recommend a company, product, or service.
Can NPS be negative?
Yes. NPS ranges from −100 to +100. A negative score means there are more detractors than promoters.