Free tool

Support Escalation Rate Calculator

Escalation rate = tickets escalated to tier 2 or engineering ÷ tickets handled × 100. With 1,500 tickets handled and 180 escalated, the escalation rate is 12.0% and 88.0% are resolved at tier 1. At 45 minutes per escalated ticket against 12 for the rest, escalations add 99 hours, about $2,970 at $30 an hour.

Escalation rate

12.0%

180 tickets left tier 1. Tag each escalation with a reason for a month: the top two or three reasons are often fixable with training, system access or a macro.

Resolved at tier 1

88.0%

Extra time from escalations

99 h

About $2,970 at $30 per hour.

Escalation rate = 180 ÷ 1,500 × 100 = 12.0%
Extra time = 180 × (45 − 12) min ÷ 60 = 99 h

Frequently asked questions

How do you calculate escalation rate?
Divide the number of tickets passed to a higher tier or another team by all tickets handled in the period, then multiply by 100. 180 escalations out of 1,500 tickets is an escalation rate of 12.0%.
How much do escalations cost?
Multiply escalated tickets by the extra minutes each one takes compared with a ticket solved at tier 1, then convert to hours and apply a loaded hourly cost. 180 tickets × 33 extra minutes is 99 hours, or $2,970 at $30 an hour.
What is a good escalation rate?
It depends on your product and how your tiers are set up, so many teams track their own trend rather than a fixed target. Tagging each escalation with a reason for a month usually shows a few causes, such as missing access or training, that tier 1 could handle.

About the author

Abdessamad Ghanem

Customer Experience & Customer Success Consultant · Founder of Clarivoxx

Abdessamad Ghanem works across Customer Support, Sales, Customer Success, Account Management and Partner Management. He writes Clarivoxx Insights for B2B SaaS professionals who own retention, adoption and customer outcomes.