Top-2-box (T2B) scoring is the percentage of respondents who choose the two most favorable options on a rating scale, such as "Agree" plus "Strongly Agree" on a 5-point scale. It collapses a multi-point scale into one easy-to-read number that captures strong positive sentiment. Its mirror image, bottom-2-box (B2B), is the percentage who pick the two least favorable options.
What top-2-box means
Rating-scale questions give you a distribution across several points (for example 1 to 5, or Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree). That distribution is precise but hard to summarize. Top-2-box reduces it to a single percentage: how many respondents landed in the top two boxes. It answers the question "what share of people feel strongly positive?" rather than "what is the average?".
- Top-2-box (T2B) = the two highest scale points combined.
- Bottom-2-box (B2B) = the two lowest scale points combined.
- The middle point(s) are excluded from both, so T2B and B2B usually do not sum to 100%.
The formula
Top-2-box % = (responses in the top two options ÷ total responses to the question) × 100
Bottom-2-box uses the same formula with the two lowest options. Always divide by the number of people who answered that question, not the total number of respondents in the study.
Worked example
A 5-point satisfaction question gets 250 answers:
| Rating | Count | |---|---| | 5 (Very satisfied) | 90 | | 4 (Satisfied) | 80 | | 3 (Neutral) | 40 | | 2 (Dissatisfied) | 25 | | 1 (Very dissatisfied) | 15 |
- Top-2-box = (90 + 80) ÷ 250 = 170 ÷ 250 = 68%
- Bottom-2-box = (25 + 15) ÷ 250 = 40 ÷ 250 = 16%
The neutral 3s (40 responses) sit in neither box, which is why 68% and 16% do not add to 100%.
When to use it
Reach for top-2-box when you want a clear headline number, when you are reporting to non-technical stakeholders, or when you care specifically about strong sentiment rather than the average. It is more robust to a few extreme answers than a mean, and it makes scales with different numbers of points easier to compare. Use the average instead when you need a continuous metric for trend math, and use the full distribution when the shape matters (for example a polarized split). Note that top-2-box is best on scales with at least four points so the top two options are clearly distinct from the middle.
How to do this in SegmentOS
SegmentOS computes top-2-box for you automatically on rating-scale and Likert questions. On the results page, a rating question with four or more points shows a Top-2-Box chip and a Bottom-2-Box chip alongside the average, calculated as the percentage of responses in the two highest (or two lowest) options. For Likert questions, SegmentOS uses the ordered scale labels to identify the top two and bottom two. You can compare these figures across audience groups with segmentation, and learn more about scale options in question types.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between top-2-box and the average score?
The average summarizes the whole distribution as a single mean, while top-2-box reports only the share of people in the two most favorable options. Top-2-box highlights strong positive sentiment and is less affected by a handful of extreme answers.
Do top-2-box and bottom-2-box add up to 100%?
Usually not. Any middle or neutral options sit in neither box, so the two figures plus the excluded middle account for 100%. On a 5-point scale, for example, the neutral 3s are left out of both.
Can I use top-2-box on a 3-point scale?
It is not recommended. With only three points, the top two options would cover most of the scale and the metric loses meaning. Top-2-box works best on scales with at least four points.
Should I use top-2-box or top-3-box?
Top-2-box is the most common standard and focuses on strong sentiment. Top-3-box (or top-box, just the single highest option) are valid variants; pick one and apply it consistently so your numbers stay comparable over time.