Activation Rate

The percentage of new users or customers who reach a defined milestone that indicates they have experienced genuine value from your product.

Activation is the single most predictive metric for long-term retention. A user who activates (completes onboarding, creates their first project, makes their first sale) is 3-5× more likely to stay.

You define activation as "user creates their first project within 7 days." Of 200 new sign-ups, 80 activate. Activation rate = 40%. Improving this to 55% dramatically reduces churn.