Churn questions that show why customers leave and who might return
Ask customers who cancel why they are going, where they are moving and what would have kept them. Each question below comes with when to ask it and what the answer tells you.
What churn survey questions tell you
Churn survey questions ask customers who cancel why they are leaving, what they are moving to and what would have kept them. Your billing system shows that a customer left, and these answers show whether the cause was price, a missing feature, a competitor or a change on their side.
Ask at the moment of canceling, on the cancel page inside your web app, or by email within a day or two of the cancellation. Keep it to three or four questions: the main reason, one open question and whether they would come back. Offer the pause before the questions, for customers who only need a break.
Each written answer gets a category, a theme, a type such as complaint or idea and a sentiment, so the reasons customers give add up by theme month by month. The inbox gives each response an owner, so a customer who agreed to a follow-up hears from someone who can act on it.
- Questions
- 16
- Best asked
- On the cancel page, or a day after canceling
- Industry
- Any business
- Where to find them
- From library in the Usertick survey editor, on every plan
The 16 churn questions, with when to ask each
Grouped by what they tell you. Use them as they are or change the wording.
Why they are leaving
Start with one reason from a list, then let customers explain in their own words what frustrated them or fell short.
- 01Multiple choice
What is the main reason you are leaving?
One reason from a short list, so every answer counts. Results shows each share in a donut, and selecting a reason filters the whole page to the customers who gave it.
- 07Text
What frustrated you the most?
The biggest frustration in the customer's own words. Each answer gets a theme and a sentiment, so the same frustration across many cancellations stands out.
- 10Text
What did you expect that you did not get?
The gap between what the customer expected and what they got. The answers show where your marketing or sales promises run ahead of the product.
- 13Yes / No
Did something change on your side?
Whether something changed on the customer's side, such as budget, team or project. A Yes separates the losses you couldn't prevent from the ones you could.
What they had and where they are going
These show how long the customer stayed, what value they got and what they moved to, so you know which losses hurt most.
- 08Dropdown
How long did you use the product?
How long the customer stayed, in plain ranges. Choose Less than a week in Results to read early cancellations apart from long-term customers who left.
- 09Yes / No
Did you get value out of it before you left?
Whether the customer got value before leaving. A No from someone who stayed for months points to onboarding, and a Yes points to a reason outside the product.
- 06Text
What worked well while you were with us?
What worked while the customer was with you. Keep it in, since it shows what to protect and gives a leaving customer a fair place to start.
- 02Text
What are you moving to?
The product or approach the customer is moving to. The answers name the competitors you lose to, and they show when customers leave for a spreadsheet or for nothing at all.
What could have kept them
Ask what would have changed the decision and offer a pause, since some customers only need a break.
- 03Text
What could we have done to keep you?
What would have kept the customer. Read these answers before you plan retention offers, since a missing feature or a slow reply may cost less to fix than a discount.
- 11Yes / No
Would pausing your plan have been better than canceling?
Whether a pause would have suited the customer better. A rising share of Yes answers is a reason to offer a pause on your cancel page.
- 14Call to action
Before you go, you can pause instead of canceling
Offers a pause before the cancellation goes through. Put it first on the cancel page, and link the button to the page where customers can pause their plan.
Keeping the door open
Find out who might come back, ask permission to stay in touch and note when their plan ends.
- 04Yes / No
Would you consider coming back later?
Whether the customer would consider returning. Select Yes in Results to filter the page and read why those customers left, since their reasons are the easiest to answer.
- 05NPS
Would you still recommend us to someone else?
The recommend question asked on the way out. Results shows detractors, passives and promoters, and a promoter who cancels points to a reason outside the product, such as budget or a change of role.
- 12Yes / No
May we contact you about your feedback?
Asks if your team may contact the customer about what they said. Give every Yes an owner in the inbox, and reply within a few days.
- 15Consent
May we check in with you in a few months?
Asks permission to check in a few months later. Keep the plan end date next to it, so your team knows when to get in touch.
- 16Date
When does your current plan end?
The date the current plan runs out. Results shows a calendar of picked dates, which helps you time a win-back offer before access ends.
Tips for asking about churn
Small choices that get honest, useful answers.
- 01
Ask on the way out
Show the survey on your cancel page inside your web app, before the cancellation is confirmed, while the reason is fresh.
- 02
Make every question optional
Let customers cancel without answering. A required survey on the way out reads as an obstacle and gets rushed answers.
- 03
Offer a pause first
Some customers only need a break. Show the pause option before the questions, and compare cancellations before and after you add it.
- 04
Read the reasons every month
Look at the share for each reason month by month, and read the open answers behind the one that grows.
Add these questions to a survey
From the library to the first answers.
- 1
Open the library
In the Usertick survey editor, choose From library, filter by industry and topic, and add several questions at once.
- 2
Or paste your own list
Paste questions reads up to 10 questions from any text on Free, 100 on Starter and 200 on Pro and above, keeps your wording and picks an answer type for each.
- 3
Choose where it runs
Show the survey on your website, send it by email, share its link and QR code, or switch it to a conversation.
- 4
Read the answers
Results counts every score and choice, and Usertick reads each written answer and files it by topic, on every plan.
Templates and more questions about churn
Full surveys that ask about the same things, and neighboring topics in the library.
Templates
Browse all templatesFrequently asked questions
At the moment of canceling, on the cancel page inside your web app, or by email within a day or two. Usertick doesn't send automatically when a subscription ends in your billing system, so email recent cancellations in daily or weekly batches.
Three or four. Ask the main reason, one open question on what would have kept them and whether they would come back, and make every question optional.
Yes. Targeting by pages shows the survey only on the pages you choose, and from Starter, or on 1 survey on Free, a click on the cancel button or a custom event from your code can open it.
Offer a pause or help first, and read the reasons before you reach for a discount. Customers who leave over a missing feature or a change on their side are unlikely to stay for a lower price.
Yes. The question library comes with every plan, the free plan included, and the free plan covers 150 responses a month across your surveys.
Yes. Once a question is in your survey, reword it, change its options or its answer type, and add logic to skip it for some answers.
Yes. The library is translated into Usertick's built-in languages, and in any other language it shows in English for you to translate.
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