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What is a good NPS score? Average NPS by industry, eNPS benchmarks for tech companies, and why your internal trend beats any cross-industry average for social sector programs
Your board asks whether your NPS of +42 is good. You search "average NPS by industry," find a chart from a vendor blog, notice it hasn't been updated since 2021, and present the number anyway. Three months later a competitor publishes their score of +61 and your funder asks why you're trailing. What nobody told you: the competitor used a 5-point scale, surveyed only their most engaged users, and their "+61" is not the same metric as your "+42."
That's The Benchmark Mirage: the belief that cross-industry NPS averages provide an actionable comparison, when in practice most published benchmarks mix incompatible survey methodologies, response bases, and collection moments — producing a number that looks authoritative and measures nothing you can act on.
This page covers what NPS benchmarks actually tell you, what average eNPS scores look like by industry and company size, what a good NPS score means in the context of your program type, and how Sopact Sense builds the longitudinal tracking that makes internal trend data — not external benchmarks — your most reliable guide to loyalty improvement.
Published NPS benchmarks are industry-level averages calculated from aggregated survey data collected by vendors, consultants, and research firms. The most commonly cited sources include Bain & Company (who developed NPS), Satmetrix/NICE, CustomerGauge, and Qualtrics. Each uses a different methodology, surveys different respondent populations, and weights results differently.
Before using any benchmark as a reference point, confirm: Does it use a 0-10 scale (the NPS standard) or a compressed scale? Is the survey transactional (post-interaction) or relational (periodic relationship health)? What is the response rate, and are low-response respondents (who skew detractor) excluded? Is the benchmark from the current year, or is it 2019 data dressed up in a 2024 blog post?
The most reliable benchmarks are sector-specific, collected within the last 12 months, and clearly document their methodology. For most social sector organizations — workforce programs, scholarship programs, community health organizations — consumer and B2B tech benchmarks are irrelevant comparisons. Sopact Sense makes this concrete: every score collected inside the platform is linked to the program type, collection moment, and stakeholder group — so you can build a meaningful internal benchmark rather than importing a meaningless external one.
The Benchmark Mirage operates through three mechanisms that produce consistently misleading comparisons.
Scale contamination. A significant minority of published NPS studies use 1-5 or 1-7 scales converted to NPS-equivalent scores using interpolation. These converted scores systematically overstate NPS relative to validated 0-10 collection. When Qualtrics publishes a benchmark that includes studies from survey tools that default to 5-point scales, the resulting average is not comparable to your 0-10 NPS program.
Survivorship bias in response populations. Most NPS benchmarks are collected through email surveys, where the active responders skew positive and disengaged customers — who are disproportionately detractors — opt out entirely. A benchmark built on a 15% response rate from your most engaged segment will always look better than a benchmark built on a 60% response rate from your full stakeholder population. Sopact Sense collects NPS through program-embedded touchpoints with response rates typically 40-60% higher than standalone email surveys — producing a less inflated baseline score that is more honest about your stakeholder population.
Moment-of-collection mismatch. A post-purchase transactional NPS collected within 48 hours of a positive customer event will produce a significantly higher score than a relational NPS collected quarterly from the same customer base. Benchmarks typically do not distinguish between these collection moments, so comparing your quarterly relationship NPS to a post-transaction benchmark published by a technology vendor produces a gap that reflects methodology, not customer loyalty.
The alternative is an internal benchmark built on consistent methodology over time. Your +32 six months ago versus your +38 today tells you something real. Your +38 compared to an industry average of +41 collected in 2021 using a different survey tool tells you nothing.
These ranges reflect aggregated data from multiple research sources as of 2024-2025. Treat them as directional guidance, not precise targets.
Technology / SaaS: +35 to +45. Enterprise software tends to score lower (+25 to +35) due to switching costs and contract lock-in that depress voluntary advocacy. Consumer tech scores higher (+40 to +55) due to genuine product enthusiasm.
E-commerce / Retail: +45 to +60. High-performing consumer brands (Apple, Chewy, Costco) reach +70 to +80. Commodity retailers average +30 to +45.
Healthcare providers: +30 to +45. Patient loyalty is high when access and outcomes are strong. Administrative friction (billing, scheduling) depresses scores significantly — the largest driver of detractor scores in healthcare is not clinical quality.
Financial services: +25 to +40. Community banks and credit unions significantly outperform large banks (+45 vs +15). Fintech companies average +40 to +55.
Cable / Telecom: -10 to +20. Chronic industry underperformer. Any score above +20 in cable/telecom is competitive.
Nonprofits / Social sector: No published consensus benchmark exists. Internal Sopact data from workforce development programs shows scores ranging from +28 to +58 at program completion, with the strongest predictor of score being perceived outcome achievement, not program quality ratings. The workforce development NPS guide covers program-specific context.
Education programs: +35 to +55 at course completion. Scores drop 10-15 points in 90-day post-completion surveys — a consistent pattern that reflects declining perception of program value over time, not satisfaction at the moment of completion.
eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score) uses the standard 0-10 scale but asks "How likely are you to recommend [Organization] as a place to work?" The same scoring formula applies.
Average eNPS for tech companies: +20 to +35 in established companies, +35 to +55 in high-growth startups where mission alignment and equity compensation drive advocacy. Average eNPS for tech companies varies sharply by company stage — pre-IPO companies average significantly higher than post-IPO organizations.
Average eNPS by industry sector:
What a good eNPS score looks like. Any eNPS above 0 is positive. Above +30 is competitive. Above +50 is exceptional and typically associated with organizations with strong mission clarity, direct manager feedback loops, and career development investment. eNPS below 0 signals systemic retention risk.
The measure-nps pillar guide covers how to run eNPS surveys alongside program participant NPS in a single platform.
"Good" NPS is always relative to three things: your industry benchmark, your collection methodology, and your historical baseline. The third is the most important.
NPS 70 and above. World-class. Achieved by consumer brands with exceptional product-market fit (Apple, Tesla, Chewy) and by social sector programs with very high outcome achievement rates and close participant relationships. An NPS of 70 means roughly 70% more promoters than detractors — rare in any sector.
NPS 50 to 69. Excellent. A score in this range indicates a strongly positive customer or participant base. Most highly regarded technology companies, successful educational programs, and well-run nonprofit organizations fall in this range. If your program is producing +60, your primary focus should be maintaining quality and understanding the 20-30% who aren't promoters.
NPS 30 to 49. Good. This is the solid midrange where most effective programs land. A score in this range with a clear understanding of what drives promoters and what creates detractors is operationally sound. The NPS survey questions guide covers how to design follow-up questions that make this range actionable.
NPS 0 to 29. Positive but fragile. More promoters than detractors, but the gap is small enough that a single operational problem — a poor onboarding experience, a billing error, a staff change — can flip the score negative. Programs in this range should prioritize detractor recovery and passive conversion.
NPS below 0. Negative. More detractors than promoters. Not necessarily catastrophic — cable companies average -10 and remain viable businesses — but in social sector programs, a negative NPS typically signals a fundamental program quality or relevance problem that requires structural intervention, not a communication response.
The most actionable NPS benchmark you can build is your own program's rolling 12-month trend, segmented by the variables that matter for your decisions.
A workforce program that tracks NPS by cohort, by training track, and by employment status at 90 days post-completion builds a benchmark that tells it: which tracks produce promoters, which delivery formats generate detractors, and whether employment outcomes correlate with loyalty scores. No external benchmark provides that granularity.
Sopact Sense structures longitudinal NPS collection from first program contact — so trend data accumulates automatically across cohorts without requiring manual data matching or analyst-hours to prepare. The longitudinal survey guide covers how to design multi-cycle NPS collection that builds useful internal benchmarks over time.
Four internal benchmark metrics that matter more than external averages: (1) Quarter-over-quarter score change — is the trend positive? (2) Detractor rate by program touchpoint — where in the experience do scores break? (3) Passive-to-promoter conversion rate — what percentage of passives become promoters in the next cycle? (4) Score correlation with outcome achievement — do participants who achieve their stated goals rate higher?
Don't panic at single-point drops. An NPS that moves from +42 to +38 in one quarter is within normal statistical variance for most program sizes. Trend over three or more periods is signal. A single quarter is noise unless you can link it to a specific operational change.
Report the distribution, not just the score. A score of +32 could reflect 60% promoters and 28% detractors, or 40% promoters and 8% detractors. These are very different program health pictures. Always report the percentage breakdown alongside the headline score.
Validate your response rate before comparing scores. A 12% response rate NPS and a 55% response rate NPS from the same program are not comparable data points. Before benchmarking against historical scores, verify that collection methodology was consistent.
Segment before presenting to leadership. An aggregate NPS hides the specific cohorts or program components that are driving scores up or down. Sopact Sense auto-segments by any stakeholder variable before the score leaves the platform — leadership gets the segmented picture, not just the headline.
When score drops, look at passive behavior first. Most score drops are not caused by an increase in detractors — they are caused by promoters who became passives. Something reduced their enthusiasm without pushing them into active dissatisfaction. This is a much more solvable problem than a detractor surge, and it requires different follow-up questions to identify. The NPS vs CSAT guide covers how CSAT data can identify the friction points that drive promoter-to-passive migration.
A good NPS score is generally above +30 for most industries and program types. Scores above +50 are excellent, and scores above +70 are world-class and achieved by only the most customer-centric organizations. Any score above 0 is positive, meaning more promoters than detractors. The most important benchmark is your own trend over time, not a cross-industry average — a program improving from +15 to +30 is demonstrating more meaningful progress than one stagnating at +45.
Average NPS scores vary significantly by industry. Technology / SaaS: +35 to +45. E-commerce / Retail: +45 to +60. Healthcare: +30 to +45. Financial Services: +25 to +40. Cable / Telecom: -10 to +20. Nonprofits and social sector programs have no published consensus benchmark — internal trend data is the most reliable guide for these organizations.
Average eNPS scores by industry include: Professional services: +20 to +35. Healthcare systems: +10 to +25. Retail / Hospitality: -10 to +15. Manufacturing: +5 to +20. Nonprofits: +25 to +45. High-growth tech startups often score +35 to +55. Any eNPS above +30 is competitive; above +50 is exceptional.
A good eNPS (Employee NPS) score is above +20, which indicates competitive employee advocacy. Above +30 is strong, and above +50 is exceptional — typically seen in organizations with high mission clarity and strong internal feedback culture. eNPS below 0 signals systemic retention risk. For tech companies specifically, the average eNPS is +20 to +35, with high-growth startups often reaching +40 to +55.
Average eNPS for tech companies ranges from +20 to +35 for established companies and +35 to +55 for high-growth startups where equity compensation and mission alignment drive higher advocacy. Post-IPO companies typically see eNPS decline 10-20 points as equity value clarifies and growth trajectory becomes less certain. Company size, stage, and product-market fit all affect eNPS more than industry category alone.
An NPS of 60 means the percentage of promoters (scores 9-10) exceeds the percentage of detractors (scores 0-6) by 60 percentage points. For example, 70% promoters minus 10% detractors equals NPS of +60. This is an excellent score in virtually any sector. In social sector programs, an NPS of 60 typically indicates very high perceived outcome achievement and strong participant relationships — these promoters are likely to generate referrals, participate in alumni programs, and provide testimonials.
An NPS of 70 means promoters outnumber detractors by 70 percentage points — for example, 75% promoters and 5% detractors. This is world-class performance achieved by only the most exceptional consumer brands and programs. Apple, Chewy, and USAA consistently achieve scores in this range. For social sector programs, an NPS of 70 is rare and typically reflects not just program satisfaction but genuine transformation — participants whose lives changed as a direct result of the program.
The 0-10 scale is the only valid scale for calculating a score that matches published NPS benchmarks. Results from 1-5, 1-7, or star-rating scales cannot be directly compared to 0-10 NPS scores — the threshold categories (promoter, passive, detractor) do not translate across scales. If a benchmark source does not specify that it used 0-10 collection, treat the comparison as unreliable.
NPS collection frequency depends on program type. Transactional NPS (collected after specific events) can be continuous — sent within 48 hours of each program milestone. Relational NPS (measuring overall relationship health) should run no more than quarterly to avoid survey fatigue. Sopact Sense supports both collection modes in the same platform, allowing programs to run transactional NPS at program touchpoints and relational NPS at defined intervals without conflating the two data streams.
NPS score drops are most commonly caused by: (1) Promoters migrating to passive — something reduced enthusiasm without creating active dissatisfaction. (2) A specific operational failure affecting a segment (onboarding, support, billing). (3) A change in survey methodology or timing that altered the response population. (4) Competitive alternatives that reduced perceived uniqueness of the program. Identifying the cause requires segmented data — look at which cohorts or program types drove the drop, not just the aggregate score movement.
NPS varies significantly across nonprofit program types based on the nature of the participant relationship and outcome visibility. Training and workforce programs typically score +30 to +55 at program completion. Scholarship and fellowship programs score +40 to +65 — recipients who receive funding are highly likely to be promoters at point of selection. Community health programs score +25 to +45, with wide variation based on access quality and outcome clarity. Case management programs score +20 to +40, reflecting the complexity of measuring satisfaction when participants are navigating difficult circumstances.
Building an internal NPS benchmark is more valuable than industry averages because it is methodologically consistent, contextually relevant, and longitudinally comparable. An internal benchmark built on the same survey instrument, the same collection moment, and the same stakeholder population over 12 months tells you exactly what changed and when. An industry average from a vendor blog tells you where you sit on a chart of incompatible methodologies. Sopact Sense builds this internal benchmark automatically as responses accumulate — no separate database or analyst required.