What is a Likert scale?
A Likert scale measures how much people agree with a statement, on an ordered set of points from “Strongly disagree” to “Strongly agree”. Several statements on the same scale together describe an attitude, such as how easy a product feels or how engaged a team is.
How a Likert scale works
A Likert scale gives people a statement, such as “The checkout was easy to use”, and an ordered set of answers to show how far they agree. The classic version has five points: Strongly disagree, Disagree, Neither agree nor disagree, Agree and Strongly agree. Each point gets a number, usually 1 to 5, so the answers can be counted and averaged.
Strictly, the scale is the whole set of statements, and each statement is one Likert item. A questionnaire such as the System Usability Scale asks ten items on the same five points and adds them into one score. In everyday use, people call any agree or disagree question a Likert scale.
Teams use Likert scales when a feeling has several sides worth measuring separately: a product that is easy to use but slow, a job that is meaningful but stressful. Asking each side as its own statement shows where the weak point is, which a single overall rating can hide.
- Measures
- Agreement, attitude or frequency, one statement at a time
- Common scale
- 5 or 7 points, from Strongly disagree to Strongly agree
- Scored as
- 1 to 5 per answer, then an average or a top two box share
- Often shown as
- A matrix, with statements in rows and the scale in columns
- Named after
- Rensis Likert, who described it in 1932
Likert scale examples
A good Likert statement names one thing in plain words, and the scale lets people say how strongly they agree. Most surveys ask several statements on the same scale, one per row, so the answers are quick to give and easy to compare.
The same layout works for other answer points. Keep them balanced, with a neutral middle when people may truly have no view.
- Agreement: Strongly disagree, Disagree, Neutral, Agree, Strongly agree
- Frequency: Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Often, Always
- Satisfaction: Very dissatisfied to Very satisfied
- Importance: Not at all important to Extremely important
- Likelihood: Very unlikely to Very likely
How to score a Likert scale
Give each point a number, from 1 for Strongly disagree to 5 for Strongly agree. The average shows where the answers sit on the scale, and the top two box share, the percentage who chose Agree or Strongly agree, reads more easily in a report.
Say 200 customers rate “The checkout was easy to use”. Multiply each answer count by its points and add them up: 760 points over 200 answers gives an average of 3.8. The 140 people who agreed or strongly agreed make a top two box share of 70%.
Look at the spread as well. An average of 3 can come from everyone choosing Neutral or from two groups at opposite ends, and those call for different actions.
- Strongly disagree (1)
- 10 answers, 10 points
- Disagree (2)
- 20 answers, 40 points
- Neutral (3)
- 30 answers, 90 points
- Agree (4)
- 80 answers, 320 points
- Strongly agree (5)
- 60 answers, 300 points
- Average
- 760 ÷ 200 = 3.8
5-point or 7-point Likert scale?
Five points suit most surveys: each answer has a clear meaning, and the scale fits on a phone screen. Seven points add finer steps, such as Somewhat agree, which helps when most answers lean one way and you want to see small differences.
Whichever you pick, keep it the same from one survey to the next, since scores on a 5-point and a 7-point scale can't be compared directly.
| 5 points | 7 points | |
|---|---|---|
| Points | Strongly disagree to Strongly agree | Adds Somewhat disagree and Somewhat agree |
| Best for | Most surveys, phones, short popups | Fine differences in a longer survey |
| Effort | Quick to answer | A little slower to choose |
| Top two box | Agree and Strongly agree | The two highest points, 6 and 7 |
Likert scale vs rating scale
Every Likert scale is a rating scale, but rating scales cover more ground. A Likert item asks how much you agree with a statement, and a rating scale can also ask for a grade (1 to 5 stars), a likelihood (0 to 10) or an effort level.
Use a Likert scale when you want people to react to specific claims, such as “Support solved my problem”. Use a plain rating, such as “How satisfied are you with support?”, when one overall number is what you need.
How to write good Likert statements
The statement does most of the work, so small wording choices change the answers. Write each one so that agreeing and disagreeing both mean something clear.
- Keep one idea per statement: “Delivery was fast” and “Delivery was cheap” are two rows
- Write in neutral words, with no praise built into the statement
- Word a few statements the other way round, so people read each row
- Use the same scale and the same order of points across the survey
- Keep each grid to about five to eight statements
Likert scales in Usertick
Add a Matrix question in the survey editor, write your statements as rows and the agreement points as columns. A matrix holds up to 50 rows and 20 columns, can put the rows in random order, and can add a Not applicable column that stays out of the averages. On wide cards it shows as a table, and on phones and in popups it shows one row at a time.
Results draws a matrix as a heat map of the answers per row, with each row's average, so the weakest statement stands out. For a single statement, a Multiple choice question with the agreement points as options works too, and Results shows each answer's share and count.
Templates such as the System Usability Scale and Employee engagement start with agreement grids ready to edit. On every plan, AI can suggest more rows or columns for a matrix, and a silent review flags leading wording while you type.
Mistakes to avoid with a Likert scale
Small choices that keep the results useful.
- 01
Two ideas in one statement
Someone who finds the app fast but hard to use can't answer “The app is fast and easy to use”. Split it into two rows.
- 02
Unbalanced answer points
A scale of Poor, Good, Very good and Excellent pulls answers upward. Give the scale as many negative points as positive ones.
- 03
Changing the scale between surveys
A 5-point score and a 7-point score don't line up, and neither do scales that flip their order. Keep the same points to compare results over time.
- 04
Grids that are too long
After a dozen rows on one scale, people start choosing the same column for everything. Keep each grid short and split long lists across pages.
Frequently asked questions
It produces quantitative data. The answers are words, but they sit in a fixed order and map to numbers, so you can count, average and compare them. Add an open question when you also want the reasons.
Usually yes. Some people truly have no view, and without a middle point they pick a side at random. Leave it out only when everyone answering can be expected to hold an opinion.
Reverse their points before you combine them with the rest, so 5 becomes 1 and 4 becomes 2. Then a high number means the same thing on every row.
In Usertick, yes, when it is a Multiple choice question and the survey's first question: customers pick their answer in the email, and the survey opens with it filled in. A Matrix question shows a button in the email that opens the survey.
Listen better, act faster, and build what truly matters.
Start free, see what your customers mean, and get each answer to the person who can act on it.
- 150 responses a month on Free
- Every channel and AI analysis
- No card needed