Connect to IntercomCustomer Effort Score
Customer Effort Score (CES) measures how easy it was for a customer to get their issue resolved. It is typically measured by asking: "How easy was it to get your issue resolved?" on a 1–7 scale (or agree/disagree variant). The core insight behind CES is that reducing customer effort is a stronger predictor of loyalty than delighting customers — making things hard causes churn even when the outcome is positive.
CES = Sum of all effort scores ÷ Number of respondents
On a 1–7 scale where 7 = "very easy," a CES of 5.5 or above is generally considered good. Lower is worse. Some surveys use a reverse scale (1 = very easy), so always verify which direction your score runs before reporting.
B2B SaaS, 1–7 scale where 7 = very easy
Calculate your CES average
- 1Confusing CES with CSAT — CSAT measures satisfaction with the outcome; CES measures effort required to get there. A customer can be satisfied with the outcome but frustrated by the process.
- 2Not acting on low-effort-score drivers — the value of CES is identifying which interaction types or channels create friction. Without that analysis, the score is just a number.
- 3Using inconsistent scale directions — some vendors use 1 = very easy; others use 7 = very easy. Mixing these makes benchmarking meaningless.
- 4Surveying at the wrong moment — CES should be collected immediately after the interaction ends, not days later when the friction experience has faded.
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