Forms · Compared
NPS against CSAT
Net Promoter Score asks how likely somebody is to recommend you on a zero to ten scale, then subtracts the percentage scoring zero to six from the percentage scoring nine or ten. Customer satisfaction asks how satisfied somebody was with a specific interaction, usually on a five point scale, and reports the percentage who were satisfied.
They are often treated as interchangeable dashboard numbers. One is about the relationship, the other is about the last thing that happened, and mixing them up produces a metric nobody can act on.
Nuwan Madhusanka · Co-founder
3 min read · Published
| NPS | CSAT | |
|---|---|---|
| The question | How likely are you to recommend us | How satisfied were you with this |
| Scale | 0 to 10 | Usually 1 to 5 |
| Reported as | Promoters minus detractors, from -100 to 100 | Percentage satisfied |
| Measures | The relationship overall | One interaction, just after it |
| Ask it | Periodically, not after every contact | Immediately after the interaction |
Why the timing differs
CSAT is asked immediately after a specific event, while the experience is fresh, and it tells you whether that event went well. NPS is asked about the relationship as a whole, which means asking it right after a support call mostly measures the support call. Sending an NPS survey after every interaction is the most common way to get a number that moves for reasons nobody can trace.
What the net score hides
An NPS of thirty can be a lot of nines and tens with a few zeros, or a wall of sevens and eights with a handful at each end. Those are different businesses. Always look at the distribution behind the score, and treat movements of a few points as noise unless your sample is large. The single number is for tracking, not for diagnosis.
The question that actually helps
On both, the follow up open question is where the value is. What is the one thing we could have done better produces specific, actionable answers; why did you give that score produces justification. Keep it optional and keep it to one box, because a second open question halves the number of people who answer the first.
Questions people ask
Which should a small business use?
CSAT after specific interactions, because it is easy to act on and the sample builds quickly. NPS needs a reasonable volume before the score means anything, and it measures a relationship you may not have enough history for. Start with satisfaction and one open question.
Is a good NPS the same in every industry?
No, and comparing across industries is where most benchmark claims fall apart. What is worth tracking is your own score over time with a consistent question and a consistent sample, because that comparison is the only one where the confounds are held still.
How often should I ask?
CSAT after the interaction, once. NPS at most a couple of times a year to any one customer. The fastest way to depress a response rate is to survey the same people repeatedly, and the people who stop answering first are the ones with the least patience, which biases what is left.
Should the survey be anonymous?
If you want honest answers, say clearly what you will do with them. Anonymous gets you more candour; identified lets you follow up on a bad score, which is often worth more. What does not work is implying anonymity while collecting an identifier, because respondents notice and stop trusting the next one.
Can I ask both on one form?
You can, and it is usually a mistake. Two scoring questions in a row train people to answer both the same way, and the second one inherits the mood of the first. If you need both, ask them on different occasions with different triggers.
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Sources
Written and checked by the OneCraft team. Last checked .