Product-market fit score calculator
The product-market fit score is the share of users who answer "very disappointed" to "how would you feel if you could no longer use this product?". Above 40% is the line Sean Ellis identified as separating products that grow from products that stall.
Product-market fit score, step by step
The question works because it is about loss rather than satisfaction. People are generous about things they like and honest about things they would miss, so "very disappointed" captures real dependency in a way a satisfaction rating does not.
Who you ask decides whether the answer means anything. Survey people who have used the core feature at least twice in the last two weeks — asking everyone who ever signed up measures your acquisition, not your fit. Below 40%, the most useful cut is to segment the "very disappointed" group and find out who they are, because that is the market the product already fits.
Where this number misleads you
The 40% threshold comes from a sample of around a hundred startups and was never a law. It is a strong signal, not a gate: plenty of products below 40% for one audience have excellent fit with a narrower one hiding inside the responses. The segmentation is worth more than the headline percentage.
Questions people ask
What is the Sean Ellis product-market fit test?
Ask active users: "How would you feel if you could no longer use this product?" with options very disappointed, somewhat disappointed, and not disappointed. The share answering "very disappointed" is your score, and 40% or above indicates product-market fit strong enough to grow on.
Who should I survey for a product-market fit score?
Users who have experienced the core value recently — a common rule is at least twice in the last two weeks. Including dormant sign-ups or trial users who never got started measures how well you acquire, not how well the product fits, and pushes the score down for the wrong reason.
What if my score is below 40%?
Segment the people who said "very disappointed" and look for what they have in common — role, company size, use case. Products often have strong fit with a narrow group hidden inside a weak overall score, and narrowing the positioning to that group is usually faster than trying to lift the average.
When one number is not the job
This page works out one number. PikoPM’s Survey asks the question, hosts it, and counts the answers, so the number comes from your customers rather than a guess.
Open Survey — it needs an account, and the Free plan covers it.