A good NPS score typically ranges from 0 to 30 for most sectors, but what actually counts as “good” depends heavily on the industry you’re in. In sectors such as telecommunications or government, lower scores are normal, while consumer technology and retail consistently have higher benchmarks. In this article, we answer the most frequently asked questions about NPS—from calculation to improvement—so you can put your score in the right context. Want to know how customer engagement technology contributes to higher customer satisfaction? Check out our CX solutions overview for more context.
What is considered a good NPS score?
An NPS score above 0 is positive; a score above 20 is considered good; and a score above 50 is considered excellent. Scores above 70 are rare and are associated with exceptional customer loyalty. Negative scores mean there are more detractors than promoters, which is a clear signal that action is needed.
The Net Promoter Score ranges from -100 to +100. That scale may seem broad, but in practice, most organizations achieve scores somewhere between -10 and +60. It’s not just about whether your score is “high” in absolute terms, but whether your score improves over time and how you compare to similar organizations in your industry.
A handy rule of thumb:
- Below 0: Cause for concern. More customers are dissatisfied than satisfied.
- 0 to 20: Acceptable, but there is clearly room for improvement.
- 20 to 50: Good. You’re performing better than average in most sectors.
- 50 to 70: Excellent. Customers are true ambassadors for your brand.
- Above 70: World-class. Rare, but achievable with the right focus.
Just remember: a score of 30 in the healthcare sector can be impressive, while that same score in the entertainment industry is mediocre. Context is everything.
What are the NPS benchmarks by sector in the Netherlands?
NPS benchmarks vary significantly by sector in the Netherlands. Financial services and utilities score lower on average (around 10 to 25), while consumer technology and e-commerce have higher averages. The public sector and telecommunications are known for consistently lower NPS scores, often due to complex customer expectations and limited customer choice.
Although exact figures vary by year and sector, the following guidelines provide a good indication of what you can expect in 2026 as a representative range for each industry:
- Retail and e-commerce: An average of 30 to 50. Customers easily compare options and reward fast, frictionless service.
- Financial services (banks, insurance companies): An average of 15 to 35. Trust plays a major role, but complex products and regulations prevent higher scores.
- Telecom: An average of 5 to 20. An industry that traditionally has low loyalty scores due to a high willingness to switch providers and fragmented customer experiences.
- Government and the public sector: Average 0 to 20. Citizens have no choice of provider, which sometimes limits the motivation to provide top-notch service.
- Healthcare and Well-being: An average of 20 to 40. Personal contact and empathy are the main factors driving the score higher here.
- Housing associations: On average, 15 to 30. Accessibility and speed of processing are key factors.
- Education: An average of 20 to 40. Student experience and service orientation are becoming increasingly important.
Use these bandwidths as a starting point, but always look for industry-specific benchmark studies to find the most up-to-date comparative data.
Why does a good NPS score vary so much by industry?
NPS scores vary by industry because customer expectations, freedom of choice, and emotional engagement with a product or service are fundamentally different. In sectors where customers have few alternatives—such as government or utility companies—the threshold for giving a 9 or 10 is much higher than in sectors where customers make conscious choices and feel connected to a brand.
There are three main factors that explain the differences in the benchmarks:
Customer Choice
When customers can freely choose between providers—such as in retail or technology—satisfied customers are more likely to give a high rating because they have consciously chosen you. With mandatory services, such as municipal service counters, emotional engagement is lower, and customers are more critical in their evaluations.
Complexity of the product or service
Complex products, such as mortgages, insurance policies, or healthcare plans, are more likely to cause frustration due to a lack of clarity, long processing times, or multiple points of contact. This consistently lowers the NPS, regardless of how well customer service performs. Simple, straightforward products tend to score higher.
How do you calculate your organization’s NPS score?
You calculate the NPS by subtracting the percentage of detractors (scores 0 through 6) from the percentage of promoters (scores 9 or 10). Passive customers (scores of 7 or 8) are not included in the calculation. The result is a number between -100 and +100.
The formula, step by step:
- Ask customers the question: “How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?” on a scale of 0 to 10.
- Divide the responses into three groups: promoters (9–10), passives (7–8), and critics (0–6).
- Calculate the percentage of promoters out of the total number of respondents.
- Calculate the percentage of critics out of the total number of respondents.
- Subtract the percentage of critics from the percentage of promoters.
Example: If 60% of your customers give a score of 9 or 10 and 15% give a score of 0 to 6, then your NPS is: 60 minus 15 equals 45.
A few practical tips for reliable measurements:
- Measure regularly and consistently, not just after a positive interaction.
- Use multiple channels (email, phone, chat) to get a representative picture.
- Always follow up the rating with an open-ended question: “Why did you give this rating?” This will help you gain useful insights.
- Make sure you have a sufficiently large sample size before drawing any conclusions.
What are some common mistakes made when interpreting NPS?
The most common mistake with NPS is evaluating the score in isolation, without considering the industry context, trends, or qualitative insights. An NPS of 25 can be excellent in one industry and subpar in another. Anyone who looks only at the number without understanding the underlying reasons misses the essence of what NPS has to offer.
Other common mistakes include:
- Sample sizes that are too small: An NPS based on twenty respondents is not very meaningful. Wait until you have enough data to draw statistically reliable conclusions.
- Selective measurement: Measuring only after positive contact moments gives a distorted picture. Also measure after symptoms appear or following complex care pathways.
- NPS as the sole KPI: NPS indicates whether customers would recommend you, but it doesn’t show why they call, how long they wait, or how easy it was to get in touch. Always combine NPS with CSAT, CES, and operational metrics.
- Failure to Follow Up with Critics: Critics are a goldmine of information for improvement. Those who fail to follow up with them miss out on valuable insights and increase the risk of churn.
- Choosing the wrong benchmark: Comparing yourself to a global average when you operate in a specific Dutch niche leads to incorrect conclusions.
How can you systematically improve a low NPS score?
You can systematically improve a low NPS by addressing the root causes of dissatisfaction, not by optimizing the measurement. This means listening to critics, identifying patterns in complaints, and improving the customer contact processes that cause the most frustration. A higher score is the result of better experiences, not the other way around.
Practical steps that work:
- Analyze the open-ended responses: Why are customers giving low ratings? Is it due to wait times, unclear information, or having to repeat their story over and over again?
- Improve first-contact resolution: Customers who receive the right assistance the first time consistently give higher ratings. Invest in effective routing and knowledge management for employees.
- Reduce channel switching and repeat contact: Customers who have to contact you multiple times about the same issue become critics. An integrated contact center platform prevents this.
- Respond quickly to critics: Following up personally after a low rating shows that you take the feedback seriously. This can turn a critic into a neutral or even loyal customer.
- Enable self-service: Customers who can answer simple questions on their own, even outside of business hours, are more satisfied and put less pressure on your team.
Improving NPS is an ongoing process, not a one-time project. Organizations that consistently achieve higher scores measure their performance regularly, act on feedback, and optimize their customer interactions as a whole.
How Pegamento Helps You Improve Your NPS on an Ongoing Basis
We understand that a low NPS score rarely has a single cause. Fragmented systems, slow routing, employees who have to switch between multiple screens, and customers who have to repeat their story over and over again—these are all factors that negatively impact the customer experience. Pegamento doesn’t offer expensive custom solutions, but rather a smart combination of proven modules that together form a cohesive customer engagement platform.
What we can do for you:
- Omnichannel customer contact: Phone, chat, WhatsApp, and email all in one view, so employees always have the full context without having to switch screens.
- Intelligent call routing and self-service: Customers are connected directly to the right agent or department, without unnecessary transfers that lower the NPS.
- AI-driven support: Our Agentic AI assistants don’t just take instructions—they act independently based on context. This marks the evolution from traditional RPA to self-thinking assistants that relieve employees of repetitive tasks.
- Reporting and Management Information: Gain insight into why customers reach out, which questions are asked most frequently, and where the customer experience falls short, so you can make targeted improvements.
- Everything under one roof: From implementation to management and support, a single point of contact, and no complex supplier structure.
Would you like to know how your organization can improve the customer experience and systematically increase its NPS? Check out our CX solutions or contact us for a no-obligation consultation.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should I measure the NPS to identify reliable trends?
For most organizations, a quarterly measurement is a good starting point, but the ideal frequency depends on the volume of customer interactions. With high contact volumes, you can measure continuously (transactional NPS) and report monthly. With lower volumes, a semi-annual relational measurement is more realistic. The most important thing is consistency: always measure in the same way and at comparable points in the customer journey, so you can accurately compare trends over time.
What is the difference between transactional NPS and relational NPS, and which one should I use?
Transactional NPS measures satisfaction immediately after a specific touchpoint, such as a phone call or a purchase, while relational NPS measures a customer’s overall loyalty on a periodic basis. Use transactional NPS if you want to know which specific processes or channels need improvement. Use relational NPS if you want an overall picture of how customers feel about your organization. Ideally, you should combine both: the transactional measurement for operational guidance and the relational measurement for strategic benchmarking.
What is the minimum number of respondents I need for a statistically reliable NPS?
As a rule of thumb, you need at least 100 to 200 respondents for a reasonably reliable NPS score, depending on the desired level of accuracy. With fewer than 50 respondents, the margins of error are so large that a 10-point difference may not be statistically significant. The greater the variation in your customer base, the more responses you’ll need. If in doubt, use a confidence interval calculator to determine how much data you really need before drawing conclusions.
Can a high NPS score also be misleading?
Yes, a high NPS can be misleading if the measurement isn’t representative. This happens, for example, when you only invite satisfied customers to take the survey, or when the question is asked at a time when customers are feeling particularly positive, such as immediately after a successful delivery. Additionally, a high NPS says nothing about revenue growth or customer retention if, in practice, the promoters rarely make active recommendations. Therefore, always combine NPS with other KPIs such as churn rate, repeat purchases, and actual referrals.
How do I account for cultural differences when interpreting NPS scores?
Cultural differences have a demonstrable effect on NPS scores: customers in Northern Europe, including the Netherlands, give lower scores on average than customers in the U.S. or Latin America, even when satisfaction levels are comparable. This means that international benchmarks aren’t always directly applicable to a Dutch context. It’s best to compare your scores with Dutch or Western European industry peers, and be cautious about using global averages as a yardstick for your own performance.
What should I specifically say or do when following up on a critical comment?
Contact the customer personally within 24 to 48 hours, preferably by phone, and start by listening sincerely without immediately getting defensive. Acknowledge their frustration, ask open-ended questions to understand the root of the problem, and clearly communicate what steps you’re taking to resolve it. Conclude the conversation with a clear expectation: what will your organization do, and when will the customer hear back? This approach significantly increases the likelihood of converting a critic into a passive or even loyal customer.
Which other customer satisfaction metrics should I combine with NPS?
The most valuable combination is NPS together with CSAT (Customer Satisfaction Score) and CES (Customer Effort Score). NPS measures long-term loyalty and willingness to recommend, CSAT measures satisfaction with a specific interaction, and CES measures how easy it was for a customer to achieve their goal. Together, these three metrics provide a complete picture: how loyal is the customer, how satisfied were they with this interaction, and how much effort did it take them? Supplemented with operational data such as First Contact Resolution (FCR) and average wait time, you have a powerful dashboard for managing customer interactions.
