What is the NPS formula?

NPS = % promoters − % detractors. Promoters score 9 or 10, detractors 0 to 6; passives (7 or 8) count only in the total. 50 promoters, 30 passives and 20 detractors out of 100 give 50 − 20 = 30.

What is a Net Promoter Score?

A customer loyalty score from one question: how likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague, from 0 to 10. Fred Reichheld introduced it in Harvard Business Review in 2003. It runs from −100 to +100.

What is a good NPS score?

Above 0 means more promoters than detractors. Survicate’s 2025 benchmark puts the median at 42 across industries and 30 for software. Compare with direct competitors where you can: Bain calls beating their score a reliable indicator of future growth.

Yes. When detractors outnumber promoters the score drops below zero, down to −100 when every answer is 0 to 6. 10 promoters, 20 passives and 70 detractors give 10 − 70 = −60.

Why are passives not counted in NPS?

They are counted in the total, which lowers both percentages, but in neither group. Turning a passive into a promoter raises the score; turning one into a detractor lowers it.

How many responses do you need for NPS?

For a ±5-point margin at 95% confidence, up to 1,537 in the worst case of half promoters and half detractors. A mix of 60% promoters and 15% detractors needs 842. The calculator shows the number for your own answers.

What is the NPS margin of error?

The range the true score likely falls in. At 95% it is 1.96 × √(variance ÷ responses) × 100 points, where variance = p(promoters) + p(detractors) − (NPS ÷ 100)². 200 responses at an NPS of 45 give about ±10 points.

How do you calculate CSAT?

Divide the number of 4 and 5 answers on a 1 to 5 satisfaction scale by all answers and multiply by 100. 160 satisfied answers out of 200 is a CSAT of 80%.

What is Customer Effort Score?

A score for how easy it was to get an issue handled. The 2010 version asked how much effort the customer put in, from 1 (very low) to 5 (very high); the later wording asks how far they agree the company made it easy, so higher is better.

Free calculator

NPS calculator for Net Promoter Score, CSAT and CES

Work out your Net Promoter Score from response counts or a column of raw 0 to 10 scores, see how precise it is, and calculate CSAT and Customer Effort Score.

Updated October 27, 2026

Your responses

Promoters (9–10)

Passives (7–8)

Detractors (0–6)

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Net Promoter Score

±10.3 points at 95% confidence (34.7 to 55.3), from 200 responses.

Promoters: 60% · 120
Passives: 25% · 50
Detractors: 15% · 30
Responses for ±5 points: 842

Your NPS of 45 is above the software median of 30 in Survicate’s 2025 benchmark, even at the low end of its margin of error.

Quick answer

How do you calculate NPS?

Ask “How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?” on a 0 to 10 scale. Promoters answer 9 or 10, passives 7 or 8, detractors 0 to 6. NPS = % promoters − % detractors, from −100 to +100. With 120 promoters, 50 passives and 30 detractors out of 200 responses, NPS = 60% − 15% = 45.

How to use the NPS calculator

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Counts when your survey tool already groups the answers, Raw scores to paste a column of 0 to 10 answers, CSAT or CES for those surveys.
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See the score, the share in each group, the margin of error at 95% and how many responses a ±5-point margin would take.
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How the calculator works

NPS rests on one question, answered from 0 to 10: how likely is it that you would recommend us to a friend or colleague? Promoters answer 9 or 10, passives 7 or 8 and detractors 0 to 6. The score is the percentage of promoters minus the percentage of detractors, so it runs from −100 to +100. Passives count in the total but in neither group.

For the margin of error, each answer counts as +1, 0 or −1. One answer’s variance is p(promoters) + p(detractors) − (p(promoters) − p(detractors))², the standard error is the square root of the variance divided by the number of responses, and the 95% margin is 1.96 standard errors. Rocks (2016) found adjusted Wald intervals perform better than this plain formula, which matters most when you have few responses.

CSAT is the share of customers who answer 4 or 5 on a 1 to 5 satisfaction scale. CES asks how far customers agree that the company made it easy to handle their issue; the calculator gives the average answer and the share above the scale’s midpoint, on a 1 to 5 or 1 to 7 scale.

Net Promoter®, NPS® and Net Promoter System® are registered trademarks, and Net Promoter Score℠ is a service mark, of Bain & Company, Inc., NICE Systems, Inc. and Fred Reichheld.

Formula

NPS = (promoters − detractors) ÷ responses × 100
Variance = p_P + p_D − (p_P − p_D)²
Margin at 95% = 1.96 × √(variance ÷ responses) × 100
Responses for ±5 points = variance × (1.96 ÷ 0.05)²
CSAT = answers of 4 or 5 ÷ responses × 100

Worked example

200 responses: 120 promoters (60%), 50 passives (25%) and 30 detractors (15%).
NPS = 60 − 15 = 45.
Variance = 0.60 + 0.15 − 0.45² = 0.5475.
Margin = 1.96 × √(0.5475 ÷ 200) × 100 = ±10.3 points: the true score is likely between 34.7 and 55.3.
For ±5 points: 0.5475 × (1.96 ÷ 0.05)² = 841.3, so 842 responses.

NPS benchmarks

Median NPS by segment in Survicate’s 2025 report. 599 companies, 2,187 surveys and about 5.4 million responses, January to October 2025.

Segment	Median NPS	Source
All industries	42	Survicate, “NPS Benchmarks for 2025” (published 3 December 2025)
B2C companies	49	Survicate, “NPS Benchmarks for 2025” (published 3 December 2025)
B2B companies	38	Survicate, “NPS Benchmarks for 2025” (published 3 December 2025)
Software	30	Survicate, “NPS Benchmarks for 2025” (published 3 December 2025)

Medians from one survey vendor’s customers, not from every company. Bain advises comparing your score with your direct competitors’ rather than with a universal scale. Last verified October 27, 2026.

What is a good NPS?

Any score above 0 means more promoters than detractors, but what counts as good depends on your market. In Survicate’s 2025 benchmark the median software company scored 30, against 42 across all industries. Bain’s Rob Markey argues the comparison that matters is with your competitors: a higher score than theirs, even one that looks low, is a reliable indicator of future growth.

How many responses you need

It depends on how split the answers are. The worst case, half promoters and half detractors, needs 1,537 responses for a ±5-point margin at 95%; the example above needs 842. To compare two scores, such as this quarter against last, look at the margin of the difference: it is wider than either score’s own margin.

NPS vs CSAT vs CES

Metric	Question	Scale	Score
NPS	How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?	0 to 10	% promoters (9–10) − % detractors (0–6)
CSAT	How satisfied were you with your experience?	1 to 5	% answering 4 or 5
CES	The company made it easy for me to handle my issue.	1 to 5 or 1 to 7, agree	Average answer, or % who agree

NPS questions

What is the NPS formula?: NPS = % promoters − % detractors. Promoters score 9 or 10, detractors 0 to 6; passives (7 or 8) count only in the total. 50 promoters, 30 passives and 20 detractors out of 100 give 50 − 20 = 30.
What is a Net Promoter Score?: A customer loyalty score from one question: how likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague, from 0 to 10. Fred Reichheld introduced it in Harvard Business Review in 2003. It runs from −100 to +100.
What is a good NPS score?: Above 0 means more promoters than detractors. Survicate’s 2025 benchmark puts the median at 42 across industries and 30 for software. Compare with direct competitors where you can: Bain calls beating their score a reliable indicator of future growth.
Can NPS be negative?: Yes. When detractors outnumber promoters the score drops below zero, down to −100 when every answer is 0 to 6. 10 promoters, 20 passives and 70 detractors give 10 − 70 = −60.
Why are passives not counted in NPS?: They are counted in the total, which lowers both percentages, but in neither group. Turning a passive into a promoter raises the score; turning one into a detractor lowers it.
How many responses do you need for NPS?: For a ±5-point margin at 95% confidence, up to 1,537 in the worst case of half promoters and half detractors. A mix of 60% promoters and 15% detractors needs 842. The calculator shows the number for your own answers.
What is the NPS margin of error?: The range the true score likely falls in. At 95% it is 1.96 × √(variance ÷ responses) × 100 points, where variance = p(promoters) + p(detractors) − (NPS ÷ 100)². 200 responses at an NPS of 45 give about ±10 points.
How do you calculate CSAT?: Divide the number of 4 and 5 answers on a 1 to 5 satisfaction scale by all answers and multiply by 100. 160 satisfied answers out of 200 is a CSAT of 80%.
What is Customer Effort Score?: A score for how easy it was to get an issue handled. The 2010 version asked how much effort the customer put in, from 1 (very low) to 5 (very high); the later wording asks how far they agree the company made it easy, so higher is better.

Cite this tool

Free to link and quote. Use this reference:

SaaSCity, "NPS Calculator", October 27, 2026. https://saascity.io/free-tools/nps-calculator