What Is a Good NPS Score? Industry Averages + Best Practices

“There is no greater predictor of a company’s future success or failure than its NPS score.” That’s how Tom Hassell, president of the clothing brand Life Is Good, describes the importance of nNet Promoter Score (NPS) on Shopify Masters. NPS is a key metric used to gauge customer loyalty. Research from Bain & Company backs up Tom’s conviction, reporting that companies that lead their industries in NPS grow at more than twice the rate of their competitors.

Tracking your Net Promoter Score is a simple and effective way to measure customer satisfaction over time and benchmark performance against competitors. Here we discuss the key elements of NPS, including what makes a good NPS score, how to calculate your NPS score, and best practices for running effective NPS surveys.

What is an NPS score?

Described by Tom as “the ultimate report card” from customers, Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a metric that helps companies measure customer satisfaction and loyalty. It’s measured by asking customers a standardized question: “From 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend our business to a friend or colleague?” You calculate the NPS by subtracting the percentage of detractors (customers who respond 0–6) from the percentage of promoters (those who respond 9–10), resulting in a single score ranging from -100 to +100.

NPS offers an alternative to long and onerous customer surveys. Because NPS surveys are quick and easy for customers to complete, you can measure NPS regularly and track loyalty trends over time. And because it’s based on a standardized question, you can compare your Net Promoter Score to competitors and industry averages. 

What is a good NPS score?

Average NPS scores vary significantly by industry. According to Qualtrics’ 2024 study of 10,000 consumers across 354 companies, the average Net Promoter Score across top industries is around 25. Tom reports that the average for the apparel industry is 39 and that Life Is Good’s NPS is 91. Generally, a score of 50 or more is considered excellent, while 70 more is considered world class. The highest Net Promoter Scores are typically associated with excellent product quality, customer experience, and responsiveness to customer needs. 

Here are the average Net Promoter Scores by industry. These benchmarks can help you understand where your business falls compared to industry standards. 

• Retail. The average Net Promoter Score for retail brands is 33, according to Qualtrics data from 2024.

• Ecommerce. Ecommerce businesses typically score higher than other retail brands. Based on a 2025 CustomerGauge study, it’s typical for ecommerce brands to score between 40 and 55, with standouts like Chewy and Zappos reaching above 70.

• Software companies. B2B software companies average 36, according to CustomerGauge’s research.

• Professional services. Net Promoter Scores vary by the type of service provided. According to a 2024 study by ClearlyRated, IT firms average 55, HR firms average 48, and marketing and creative agencies average 42. 

• Telecommunications. The 2024 Qualtrics study found that wireless carriers average 27, while TV and internet service providers (cable, broadband, and satellite) average 16.

• Travel. Qualtrics found that hotels and airlines both average 22, and car rental companies average 16.

How to calculate your NPS score

The NPS divides survey respondents into three categories: promoters, passives, and detractors. The “net” in Net Promoter Score refers to the balance of customers who recommend your brand, and it’s measured by subtracting the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters.

• Promoters (NPS scores of 9–10): These are your brand ambassadors—loyal customers who will keep buying from you and promoting your business to their friends.

• Passives (NPS scores of 7–8): Respondents who fall in the middle are satisfied but not necessarily enthusiastic about your brand. They’re at risk of switching to competitors, and they’re also the easiest group to convert into promoters. 

• Detractors (NPS scores of 0–6): These are unhappy customers; they’re most likely to spread negative word-of-mouth feedback and give you bad reviews.

You don’t include passives in Net Promoter Score calculation, but it’s still a good idea to track your percentage of passive responses over time. Incremental improvements in customer experience (such as faster shipping or more responsive support) can be enough to turn passives into brand ambassadors and boost your Net Promoter Score. Many customer success teams focus on converting passives into promoters.

NPS formula

Here’s the NPS formula: 

Net Promoter Score = [(Number of promoters - Number of detractors) / Total number of respondents] x 100

Let’s say you receive 250 survey responses and get the following results:

• Promoters (9–10): 160 people

• Passives (7–8): 60 people

• Detractors (0–6): 30 people

Your net promoter score would be:

[(160 promoters – 30 detractors) / 250 responses] = 0.52

Multiply by 100 to get a score between -100 and +100. Your NPS score is 52.

Best practices for NPS surveys

• Ask “why?”
• Decide on your survey approach
• Survey customers strategically
• Choose your channel
• Close the loop

Here are five best practices for creating, sending, and applying learnings from NPS surveys:

Ask “why?”

Asking a simple follow-up question helps explain why customers give the scores they do—while keeping your survey short and simple to encourage more responses. Most companies include the standard NPS survey question—“How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?”—plus one or two follow-ups, like “What’s the main reason for your score?” and “What could we do to make your experience better?” 

An open-ended follow-up question can give you valuable feedback about what’s driving your NPS scores and help you identify areas for improvement. Tom says Life Is Good views customers as “co-creators” of the brand. When NPS surveys revealed that the company’s social mission (donating 10% of profits to help kids in need) was a key reason for its high scores, Life Is Good made “10% for Kids” a central part of the brand messaging. Tom credits this approach as one of the drivers of their remarkably high NPS score of 91.

Decide on your survey approach

There are two main approaches to NPS surveys: relationship and transactional.

Relationship surveys measure overall brand perception and customer loyalty. Send these regularly—monthly or quarterly if you’re a business with frequent purchases, or annually if you have longer sales cycles or time between purchases. Relationship surveys are useful for tracking loyalty trends over time and benchmarking against competitors. Pick a consistent schedule and stick to it. Just avoid major holidays, when customers are less likely to respond.

Transactional surveys measure customers’ satisfaction with key interactions, such as purchases, product deliveries, or support conversations. These surveys help you identify friction points in the customer experience and catch problems before they escalate. For more accurate responses, reach out while the experience is fresh—ideally, within 48 hours.

Many businesses use both types of NPS surveys. An ecommerce brand might send a transactional survey after a product is delivered and a relationship survey to all customers annually.

Survey customers strategically

Think about your sample size. Most businesses aim for at least 100 to 200 responses per survey to identify meaningful trends. If your customer base is smaller, focus on qualitative feedback and pay attention to patterns in customer comments. Track your NPS over time and trust that your sample size will grow as your business does.

It’s also important not to over-survey the same customers. For relationship surveys, contact each person no more than once or twice per year. For transactional surveys, there’s an even greater risk of survey fatigue. If someone makes multiple purchases in a short period or has a regular subscription, survey them only every third or fifth interaction.

Choose your channel 

Email and SMS (text messages) tend to work best for both relationship and transactional surveys. Some businesses use in-app surveys, which work well for measuring satisfaction among active customers—but they won’t capture feedback from inactive or occasional customers.

• Email. Email surveys allow customers to respond on their own time and can feel less intrusive than a text. If you send an email survey, include a brief greeting, the NPS question with clickable numbers, and one or two optional follow-up questions. It should take a customer no more than two minutes to complete.

• SMS. Texts typically have higher response rates and faster response times than email, which makes SMS an ideal channel for transactional surveys where immediacy is paramount. The trade-off is that SMS exchanges need to be extremely brief. Keep it to one question: “From 0–10, how likely are you to recommend us?” Customers can reply with a number. 

Close the loop

Earning a good Net Promoter Score is only one piece of the loyalty puzzle. What matters most is what you do next and how you use NPS feedback to shape your product strategy, messaging, and overall customer experience. Survey customers regularly, then use your NPS data to segment customers and follow up with them accordingly. For example, you might reach out to detractors to understand their concerns or send promoters an offer to refer a friend.