Short answer
CSAT, NPS, and CES are three customer experience metrics that measure different things: CSAT (customer satisfaction score) measures satisfaction with a specific interaction, NPS (Net Promoter Score) measures loyalty to the company as a whole, and CES (customer effort score) measures how much effort the customer had to spend to get their issue handled.The clearest way to tell them apart is by scope and timing. CSAT and CES are interaction-level: you ask them right after a ticket or chat, and they tell you how that moment went. NPS is relationship-level: it asks how likely someone is to recommend you and reflects the whole experience over time. CSAT captures the feeling, CES captures the friction, NPS captures the loyalty.
CSAT vs NPS vs CES at a glance
| Dimension | CSAT | NPS | CES |
|---|---|---|---|
| The question | How satisfied were you with the help you got? | How likely are you to recommend us? | How easy was it to get your issue handled? |
| Scale | 1 to 5 | 0 to 10 | usually 1 to 7 |
| Formula | ratings of 4 or 5 ÷ all ratings × 100 | % promoters (9 or 10) minus % detractors (0 to 6) | average rating, or share who found it easy |
| Result | 0 to 100 percent | -100 to 100 | depends on the scale |
| When to ask | right after the conversation | every few months | right after the conversation |
| Best for | how each conversation went | loyalty over time | spotting friction |
How to calculate each one
The same 200 survey answers give three different numbers, because each metric counts different things.
- CSAT: 168 of 200 customers rate the conversation 4 or 5. CSAT is 168 ÷ 200 × 100 = 84%.
- NPS: 120 answer 9 or 10 (60% promoters) and 30 answer 0 to 6 (15% detractors). NPS is 60 − 15 = 45.
- CES: on a 1 to 7 scale where 7 is very easy, the answers average 5.8, or 82% answer 5 or higher.
To skip the arithmetic, use the free CSAT calculator or NPS calculator.
Which one a support team should lead with
They answer different questions, so use them together rather than picking one. For a support team, CSAT is usually the one to steer by: it is tied to a single conversation and arrives while it is still fresh. CES tells you whether getting that answer was a struggle, and effort is often the stronger early warning that a customer may leave. NPS moves slowly and reflects much more than support, so track it alongside.
None of the three should be chased on its own. Satisfaction, effort and loyalty all follow from fixing the customer's actual problem. Aide, the AI platform for customer service, asks for a 1 to 5 star rating after each chat and reports CSAT for the Aide AI Agent and for the team separately, so a strong team cannot hide a weak AI, and leads with resolution rate as the number those scores follow.