What is Resolution Rate?
Resolution rate shows how many customer issues are fully solved out of all those received in a set period.
It helps teams understand how well they are resolving problems, no matter how many interactions it takes. Unlike first contact resolution, it measures whether the issue was eventually fixed, not just if it was handled on the first try.
How Resolution Rate is Calculated
Resolution rate in customer service is calculated as the percentage of customer issues or tickets that are successfully resolved out of the total number of issues received. The formula is:
Resolution rate (%) = (Number of issues resolvedTotal number of issues received) x 100
This means you divide the count of resolved tickets by the total tickets received in a set period, then multiply by 100 to get a percentage. "Resolved" typically means the issue was fully addressed without needing further follow-up from the customer or support team. This metric shows how effectively the customer service team closes customer cases over time.
It’s important to distinguish resolution rate from First Call Resolution Rate (FCR), which measures only the issues resolved during the first interaction. Resolution rate accounts for all issues resolved eventually, regardless of how many contacts it took.
What’s Considered a Good or Benchmark Resolution Rate in Customer Service?
A good resolution rate in customer service is typically above 70%. Rates between 70–79% are solid, 80% or higher is world-class, and over 90% is excellent.
Benchmarks vary by industry; tech support may aim for 65–70% due to complexity, while retail tends to be higher. Higher resolution rates often lead to better customer satisfaction and loyalty.
How to Improve Resolution Rate
Customer service teams can raise their resolution rate by training agents well, giving them easy access to customer history and internal knowledge, and using tools like CRMs and chatbots.
Offering strong self-service options helps customers solve simple issues on their own, while freeing agents to focus on complex cases. Teams should also track performance, fix common problems, and give agents the power to solve issues quickly, all of which lead to faster resolutions and happier customers.
