Marketing & guests
NPS
Also written: net promoter score
What NPS means
Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a customer loyalty metric measuring guest satisfaction and brand advocacy on a scale from -100 to +100. Based on a single post-stay survey question asking how likely guests are to recommend the property, it categorizes respondents into Promoters, Passives, and Detractors.
Formula
NPS = % of Promoters (score 9-10) − % of Detractors (score 0-6)
How it is used
Hotels use NPS to benchmark guest satisfaction across properties, evaluate operational performance, and flag service recovery opportunities. Revenue managers and general managers track NPS to correlate guest sentiment with pricing power, as higher scores typically support ADR premium maintenance. Department heads analyze feedback by score segment to refine housekeeping, front desk, and food and beverage operations. Investors and management companies frequently tie executive bonus structures and operator incentive fees directly to achieving specific annual NPS targets.
Worked example
A boutique hotel surveys 500 checked-out guests. Results show 300 Promoters (60%), 120 Passives (24%), and 80 Detractors (16%). Subtracting the 16% Detractors from the 60% Promoters yields an NPS of +44. Passives affect the total population count but do not directly enter the final subtraction.
Common mistake
Focusing solely on the aggregate score while ignoring response rates can skew results, as low sample sizes over-represent extreme guest experiences.