Net Promoter Score (NPS) for SaaS at Growth

Ehsan's Analysis

SaaS NPS is useful exactly once: at the cohort level, as a predictor of renewal 6 months out. Aggregate NPS is meaningless because it mixes power users (NPS 70+) with disengaged users (NPS -20) into a single number that tells you nothing actionable. The diagnostic that works: survey NPS at day 30, day 90, and day 365. Compare the day-30 NPS of cohorts that later renewed versus those that churned. You will find a threshold — typically NPS 30-40 at day 30 — below which 80%+ of customers eventually churn. This gives you a 5-month early warning system. Superhuman used a similar approach (the "Sean Ellis test" — "how disappointed would you be if this product disappeared?") and found that 40%+ "very disappointed" at day 14 predicted 90%+ retention at 12 months. NPS is a trailing indicator at the company level but a leading indicator at the cohort level. Use it as the latter.