Survey design guide
How to Choose Between 0–10, 1–5, and 1–7 Survey Rating Scales
The rating scale for a Survey is not a cosmetic choice. It determines what you can measure and whether your data is benchmarkable.
There are 3 standard survey scale examples used in customer feedback: the 0–10 NPS scale, the 1–5 customer satisfaction scale (CSAT), and the 1–7 CES scale. Each was calibrated for a specific question type. Use the wrong survey scale and you produce a real number that means nothing - no benchmark, no comparison, no action.
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The 3 standard survey rating scales
One scale per survey type. Each is benchmarkable. None are interchangeable.
| Scale | Survey type | Scoring method | Good benchmark |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–10 | NPS | % Promoters (9–10) minus % Detractors (0–6) | 31–50 for B2B SaaS |
| 1–5 | CSAT | % rating 4 or 5 (top-2-box) | 75–85% for SaaS |
| 1–7 | CES | Mean average across all responses | 5.5+ for SaaS |
Each survey scale in depth
Why each scale is the shape it is - and what breaks when you change it.
0–10
NPS scale
Net Promoter Score
Standard question
"How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?"
How to calculate the score
Promoters = 9–10. Passives = 7–8. Detractors = 0–6. NPS = % Promoters − % Detractors.
Good benchmark (SaaS)
B2B SaaS: 31–50 is good. Above 50 is excellent.
Why this scale: The 11-point range creates sufficient spread to separate three meaningful groups. The NPS scoring methodology depends on this specific calibration - a 1–10 scale would shift the Detractor/Passive/Promoter cutoffs.
Do not: Do not use 0–10 for CSAT. A 10-point satisfaction score has no industry benchmark and conflates loyalty with satisfaction.
1–5
CSAT scale
Customer Satisfaction Score
Standard question
"How satisfied were you with your [support / onboarding / feature] experience?"
How to calculate the score
CSAT score = % of respondents who rate 4 or 5. Top-2-box scoring. Not an average.
Good benchmark (SaaS)
75–85% is good for SaaS. Below 70% warrants immediate investigation.
Why this scale: The 5-point satisfied scale reduces decision fatigue for satisfaction questions. This satisfied survey scale uses top-2-box scoring (4 or 5) as the standard -- it filters out ambiguous middle responses and focuses on clearly satisfied vs clearly not.
Do not: Do not add a 6th or 7th option. Do not report CSAT as an average - it is a percentage. Do not use this scale for NPS.
1–7
CES scale
Customer Effort Score
Standard question
"The company made it easy to handle my issue." (Strongly disagree → Strongly agree)
How to calculate the score
CES score = average across all responses. Unlike CSAT, CES uses mean scoring. Higher is easier (less friction).
Good benchmark (SaaS)
5.5+ is good. Below 5.0 is a red flag for that specific interaction.
Why this scale: CES uses a Likert-format agreement statement, not a numeric rating. The 1–7 range provides more granularity for measuring effort than 1–5. The agreement framing - not just the scale - is what makes this a CES question.
Do not: Do not change the question to a rating format ("Rate the ease of your experience 1–7"). The agreement framing is required. Do not use 1–5 - it loses the granularity CES needs.
The 0–10 scale explained
The most widely searched survey scale - and the one most commonly misused.
What a 1–10 scale survey measures
The 0–10 rating scale in surveys is the standard scale for Net Promoter Score. The question is always: "How likely are you to recommend [company] to a friend or colleague?" The 11-point range (0 through 10) separates respondents into three groups based on research into which scores predict actual referral behaviour.
0–6
Detractors
Unlikely to recommend. At risk of churning. May actively warn others.
7–8
Passives
Satisfied but not loyal. Vulnerable to competitor offers. Excluded from NPS calculation.
9–10
Promoters
Highly loyal. Likely to refer. Low churn risk. Your referral engine.
NPS formula: % Promoters − % Detractors. Passives are excluded. A score of +50 means 50% more Promoters than Detractors - a strong result for most SaaS products.
Why the 0–10 scale, not 1–10
NPS uses 0–10 (starting at zero) rather than 1–10 because zero anchors the most negative sentiment more strongly than 1 does. A respondent who is actively unhappy has a natural tendency to score as low as possible - 0 captures that more accurately than 1. In practice, many survey tools display 1–10, which shifts the Detractor band to 1–6 and Promoters to 10. If you use 1–10, adjust your segment cutoffs accordingly. The methodology still works - but you must be consistent across all your surveys to maintain historical comparability.
When not to use a 1–10 scale
Do not use a 1–10 survey scale for customer satisfaction (CSAT) or effort (CES). These measurements have their own calibrated scales (1–5 and 1–7 respectively) with published industry benchmarks. A CSAT question rated 1–10 produces a score with no benchmark - you cannot compare it to industry data, to competitor data, or to your own previous results if you ever switch to the standard scale. The standard scales exist precisely so that every team is measuring the same thing in the same way.
Why you should never invent a custom survey scale
A custom 1–8 or 1–6 scale feels harmless. It is not.
✕ No benchmark
Industry benchmarks exist for 0–10 (NPS), 1–5 (CSAT), and 1–7 (CES). A custom scale produces a number with nothing to compare it to. "Our 1–8 satisfaction score is 5.9" tells you nothing about whether that is good or bad, improving or declining.
✕ No historical comparison
If you start with a custom scale and later switch to a standard one - or change the number of points - you break your own historical data. Every data point before the change becomes incomparable to every data point after it. Your trends disappear.
✕ Unknown bias
The standard scales were designed to control for specific biases. A 5-point CSAT scale was chosen to reduce decision fatigue. The NPS 0–10 range was calibrated to separate loyalty groups accurately. A custom scale introduces unknown biases with no research base behind them.
Likert scale vs numeric rating scale
Both are survey scales. They are not the same thing.
Numeric rating scale
Numbers only. No labeled anchors.
A numeric rating scale asks respondents to pick a number from a range. Rating scale questions typically label the endpoints (0 = Not at all likely, 10 = Extremely likely) but leave midpoints as bare numbers. NPS (0–10) and CSAT (1–5) are numeric rating scales.
Example: "How likely are you to recommend us?" rated 0–10
Likert scale
Labeled anchors. Every point has a word.
A Likert scale labels every response option: Strongly Disagree / Disagree / Neutral / Agree / Strongly Agree. CES uses a Likert-format statement: "The company made it easy to handle my issue" rated 1–7 with labeled anchors. The labels are what make it Likert - not just the number range.
Example: "The company made it easy..." (Strongly Disagree → Strongly Agree, 1–7)
Frequently asked questions
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