KnowledgeCustomer Retention Rate
Retention · The share of customers who remain customers over a period.
Understand Retention in context.
Simply explained explanation
The share of customers who remain customers over a period.
Professional explanation
Period-over-period retained customer proportion, with churned, new and reactivated cohorts distinguished.
Analytical explanation
Compare retention by customer acquisition cohort, first-product category and experience. High new-customer growth can conceal weak retention.
Technical explanation
One common period formula: (customers at end − new customers added during period) / customers at start × 100. Suitable definitions differ by subscription versus commerce model.
Four complementary explanations — choose your level. Technical definitions are platform-specific where noted.
↗ How to use it
Analyse cohorts and churn reasons.
⚠ Common interpretation mistake
An order-based repeat rate is not the same as subscription retention.
Metric calculator
Adjust the inputs to see how the metric is calculated.