CX & Support Metrics

CSAT vs NPS

Definition

CSAT vs NPS is the comparison between two customer experience metrics: CSAT (Customer Satisfaction Score) measures satisfaction with a specific interaction, while NPS (Net Promoter Score) measures overall loyalty and willingness to recommend the brand.

Also known as: CSAT versus NPSsatisfaction vs loyaltyCSAT and NPS

How they differ

CSAT asks "How satisfied were you?" right after an interaction, usually on a 1–5 scale, and reports the percentage of positive responses. It's transactional and granular — a fast read on the quality of a single touchpoint.

NPS asks "How likely are you to recommend us?" on a 0–10 scale and subtracts the percentage of detractors (0–6) from promoters (9–10), giving a score from -100 to +100. It's relational — a measure of loyalty to the whole brand, not one conversation.

Why it matters

They answer different questions, so most teams use both. CSAT tells you whether today's interactions are going well; NPS tells you whether the overall relationship is strong enough that customers would advocate for you.

CSAT: transactional, per-interaction, 1–5 scale, % positive
NPS: relational, brand-level, 0–10 scale, promoters minus detractors
Use CSAT to tune support quality; use NPS to track loyalty over time

Frequently asked

Which is better, CSAT or NPS?

Neither — they measure different things. CSAT gauges satisfaction with a specific interaction; NPS gauges loyalty to the brand. Teams typically track both alongside CES.

Can CSAT be high while NPS is low?

Yes. Individual interactions can be great (high CSAT) even when customers wouldn't recommend the brand overall (low NPS), often due to pricing, product, or competitive factors outside support's control.

Related terms

Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT)

Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) is a metric that measures how satisfied customers are with a specific interaction or experience, usually from a short post-contact survey..

Net Promoter Score (NPS)

Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a customer loyalty metric that measures how likely customers are to recommend a company, product, or service to others, on a 0–10 scale..

Customer Effort Score (CES)

Customer Effort Score (CES) is a metric that measures how much effort a customer had to expend to get their issue resolved or their request completed, usually from a short post-interaction survey..

Voice of the Customer (VoC)

Voice of the Customer (VoC) is the practice of systematically capturing and analyzing customer feedback — across surveys, support tickets, reviews, and conversations — to understand what customers need, expect, and experience..

Positive Feedback Rate

Positive feedback rate is the percentage of customer feedback responses that are positive — for example, the share of CSAT surveys rated "good" or "satisfied" out of all rated responses..

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