Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a customer loyalty score based on one question: how likely is it that you would recommend a company to a friend or colleague, on a scale of 0 to 10. You take the percentage of promoters (who score 9 or 10) and subtract the percentage of detractors (0 to 6), which gives a number between -100 and +100.
Bain and Company first developed NPS in 2003, according to Qualtrics' guide to the metric. The question usually reads: How likely is it that you would recommend (company name) to a friend or colleague? Everything else in NPS comes from how you group the answers.
Promoters, passives and detractors
| Group | Score | What they do (Bain and Qualtrics) |
|---|---|---|
| Promoters | 9 to 10 | Loyal enthusiasts; account for more than 80% of referrals in most businesses |
| Passives | 7 to 8 | Satisfied but unenthusiastic and vulnerable to competitors; repurchase and referral rates as much as 50% lower than promoters' |
| Detractors | 0 to 6 | Unhappy customers; more than 80% of negative word of mouth; high churn |
Bain also explains why the scale runs to 11 points. It's a deliberate choice, so people don't default to five out of five the way they do on shorter scales.
How to calculate NPS
- Ask the one question on a 0 to 10 scale.
- Count the percentage of people who scored 9 or 10. These are your promoters.
- Count the percentage who scored 0 to 6. These are your detractors.
- Subtract detractors from promoters. The answer is your NPS.
- Add an open question asking for the main reason behind the score.
- Repeat on a fixed schedule and compare with your own last result.
Qualtrics gives a worked example: 70% promoters, 20% passives and 10% detractors gives an NPS of 70 minus 10, which is 60. Notice what happens to the passives. They count in the total number of responses, but they don't appear in the subtraction, so a big group of 7s and 8s pulls your score towards zero without ever showing up as a negative.
What to do with each group
The groups only matter if you act on them. Promoters are the people to ask for a review, a testimonial or a referral, since Bain says they drive most referrals. Passives are the ones to question, because Qualtrics describes them as satisfied but vulnerable to competitors: find out what's missing. Detractors deserve a personal follow-up, because Bain links them to high churn and most negative word of mouth, and one conversation often tells you more than the whole survey.
What counts as a good NPS?
Qualtrics quotes Bain's rough bands: above 0 is good, above 20 is favourable, above 50 is excellent and above 80 is world-class. But it also says it's tricky to call any single score good in absolute terms, because industries differ so much. Its XM Institute research found grocery averaged 30, video streaming 29 and consumer payments -6.
So the same score could be strong in one sector and weak in another. Qualtrics says the two things to watch are how you compare with your competitors and how your own score improves over time. That's the catch most people miss: NPS is a trend line, not a trophy.
Relational vs transactional NPS
Relational NPS goes out on a regular schedule, quarterly or annually, to measure the overall relationship. Transactional NPS is sent straight after a purchase or a support call. Qualtrics doesn't recommend the transactional version, because NPS measures the whole relationship and going too granular risks annoying customers.
It's the same story with employee NPS. Qualtrics recommends a fuller employee engagement survey instead, pointing to the limits of one question, small samples and insight you can't do much with.
The follow-up question matters more than the score
A number tells you something changed. It doesn't tell you why. Qualtrics suggests two follow-up questions: What is the reason for your score? and How can we make your experience better? Keep the survey short, and don't ask for demographic details you already hold in your CRM. If you need software to run it, I've compared survey tools and customer feedback tools.
Bain's own analysis says sustained value creators have NPS two times higher than the average company, and that Net Promoter System leaders grow at more than twice the rate of competitors on average. That's a link Bain reports, not proof that raising your score will grow your sales. Detractors churn, though, so their comments are a ready-made list of what to fix, and this guide to AI for customer retention shows how to act on them.
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My verdict on NPS
NPS is useful because it's simple, and that's also its weakness. One number can't tell you what to fix. Use it as a trend line, compare it with your own last result and with your competitors, and spend most of your time on the comments. That's where the value is.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate Net Promoter Score?
Subtract the percentage of detractors (scores 0 to 6) from the percentage of promoters (scores 9 or 10). Passives (7 or 8) count in the total but not in the subtraction.
What is a good NPS score?
Bain's bands, as quoted by Qualtrics, put above 0 as good, above 20 as favourable, above 50 as excellent and above 80 as world-class, but averages vary widely by industry.
What is the NPS question?
How likely is it that you would recommend (company name) to a friend or colleague? People answer on a scale of 0 to 10.
Who created Net Promoter Score?
Bain and Company developed it in 2003, according to Qualtrics.
Can NPS be negative?
Yes. If you have more detractors than promoters the score drops below zero, and it can go as low as -100.
How often should you run an NPS survey?
Qualtrics recommends relational NPS on a regular schedule, quarterly or annually, rather than after every purchase or support call.
