Any positive NPS means you have more promoters than detractors. Above 50 is excellent, 30 to 50 is great, 0 to 30 is acceptable, and below 0 is a warning sign. Benchmarks vary by industry, so compare against peers in your category rather than a universal target.

NPS (Net Promoter Score) — definition, formula & benchmarks

Q: How do you calculate NPS?

Survey customers on a 0 to 10 scale asking how likely they are to recommend you. Promoters score 9 or 10, passives score 7 or 8, and detractors score 0 to 6. Subtract the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters. Passives count toward your total but not the score.

Q: Why are passives left out of the NPS score?

Passives, who score 7 or 8, are satisfied but unenthusiastic and easily switched to a competitor. NPS deliberately rewards only genuine advocates and penalises unhappy customers, so the 7s and 8s are counted in the denominator but contribute nothing to the final number.

A single number, from −100 to +100, that captures how loyal your customers are — based on how willing they'd be to recommend you to someone else.

In plain English

NPS asks customers one deceptively simple question: "How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?", scored from 0 to 10. People who answer 9 or 10 are promoters — fans who'll vouch for you. People who answer 0 to 6 are detractors — unhappy enough to do damage. The 7s and 8s are passives, satisfied but lukewarm. Your NPS is just the share of promoters minus the share of detractors, which is why a company can have lots of happy customers and still post a mediocre score. It's the most widely used loyalty benchmark because one comparable number travels easily across teams, quarters and competitors.

The formula

NPS = % promoters (9–10) − % detractors (0–6)

Passives (7–8) are included in your response total but contribute nothing to the score, so they only matter by diluting the percentages of the two groups that do count.

A worked example

Say 1,000 customers respond to your survey. 600 score 9 or 10 (promoters), 250 score 7 or 8 (passives), and 150 score 0 to 6 (detractors).

Promoters = 600 ÷ 1,000 = 60%
Detractors = 150 ÷ 1,000 = 15%
NPS = 60% − 15% = 45

An NPS of 45 sits firmly in "great" territory: you have four times as many advocates as critics. Note the passives never entered the subtraction — they just made each percentage smaller.

What's a good NPS?

NPS swings a lot by industry, but these bands are the common rule of thumb:

NPS	Verdict	What it signals
> 50	Excellent	Strong word-of-mouth engine
30–50	Great	Loyal, healthy base
0–30	Acceptable	More fans than critics, room to grow
< 0	Warning sign	Detractors outnumber promoters

Always compare against your own sector — a 30 can be best-in-class in one industry and middling in another. Track the trend over time too: the direction your NPS is moving usually tells you more than the absolute number.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good NPS?

Any positive score means promoters outnumber detractors. Above 50 is excellent, 30–50 is great, 0–30 is acceptable, and below 0 is a warning sign. Benchmarks vary by industry, so compare against peers rather than a universal target.

How do you calculate NPS?

Survey customers 0–10 on how likely they are to recommend you. Promoters score 9–10, passives 7–8, detractors 0–6. Subtract the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters. Passives count in your total but not the score.

Why are passives left out of the score?

Passives (7–8) are satisfied but unenthusiastic and easily lured away. NPS deliberately rewards only genuine advocates and penalises unhappy customers, so passives sit in the denominator but add nothing to the final number.

Churn rate · Net revenue retention · Customer lifetime value (LTV) · Expansion revenue

Learn more

The complete guide to value-based bidding · Value-based bidding without a data team

NPS (Net Promoter Score)