Metrigy anchors our annual CX MetriStar Awards program on the core belief that the true measure of a technology solution is in how effectively it enables organizations to achieve tangible business success and cultivate positive customer sentiment. For the 2026 program, we gathered this information from 1,437 CX leaders across 10 countries. Based purely on these objectives, NiCE has achieved an unprecedented milestone, outperforming all other competitors for the fifth-consecutive year.In the 2026 CX MetriStar program, NiCE earned recognition in each of the product categories in which it has an offering, or seven in all. It received Metrigy’s MetriStar Top Provider awards for its agent assist, contact center-as-a-service (CCaaS), interaction analytics, knowledge management (KM), and voice of the customer (VoC) platforms. For its AI agent platform and workforce engagement management (WEM) suite, it received nods for Top Customer Sentiment.That NiCE did so well across the board speaks to the breadth of its AI-powered NiCE CXone platform, with solutions in these CX MetriStar categories building upon, informing, and reinforcing each other. When these seven technology areas operate as a unified, connected portfolio — which they do in CXone — they produce a ripple effect. For example, direct VoC feedback updates the knowledge base, a smarter knowledge base powers more accurate AI agents, AI-resolved interactions offload pressure from human staff, and automated coaching improves employee efficiency.Because MetriStar recognitions are driven entirely by quantitative customer data rather than analyst opinion, multiple wins carry serious weight. They prove that enterprise buyers find NiCE’s solutions to be highly reliable, technically advanced, and truly transformative to the business outcomes important to CX leaders.Metrigy asks research participants to provide information in two areas. They rate providers across seven to nine areas of sentiment per product area, using a 1-to-10 scale, where 1 is lowest and 10 is highest. Then, we ask how the use of each vendors’ product affects four business metrics: CSAT, revenue, operational costs, and operational efficiency. They use a five-point scale, ranging significant increase to significant decrease. Selections on the “significant” ends are weighted higher, and then we use a diffusion-index methodology (essentially, subtracting negative scores from positive scores) to tally scores. Here’s how NiCE performed, category by category.
AI Agent Platforms (Top Customer Sentiment)
NiCE scored an impressive 8.40 (out of 10) overall customer sentiment score for its self-service and automated process AI agents.
Key strengths – Customers awarded NiCE above-average scores for platform reliability (8.63), core AI/machine learning capabilities (8.56), and hands-on customer service (8.45).
Business impact – NiCE ranked as the number one performer for helping customers improve CSAT in the AI agent category with a score of 100, 14 points above the average, and received a solid score of 46 for operational cost, compared to the average of 37.
Agent Assist Applications (Top Provider)
NiCE secured an 8.55 overall customer sentiment score from research participants utilizing its real-time agent copilot applications, compared to 8.38 on average.
Key strengths – NiCE received its top rating, an 8.80—among the highest in this category—for analytics capabilities. Value, or bang for the buck, was another strong spot for NiCE, with its 8.70 score being among the highest, as well.
Business impact – Driven by features such as proprietary behavioral guidance nudges and automated post-interaction wrap-ups, NiCE netted a 261 business success score, compared to the overall score of 252, propelled by helping customers achieve strong cost savings, CSAT improvement, and revenue gains.
CCaaS (Top Provider)
The centerpiece platform, CXone, led NiCE to a standout performance in the foundational CCaaS category.
Key strengths – NiCE earned the highest overall customer sentiment score in this category, 8.88, compared to the 8.38 overall. It scored well above average in every category rated, and first across five sub-categories: AI capabilities (9.17), integrations with key applications (9.08), customer service (9.08), technical features (8.35), and analytics (8.28).
Business impact – NiCE claimed the second-highest business success score at 379, 54 points above average. It ranked first overall in driving improvements for both employee efficiency and CSAT, receiving a 133 score for each. NiCE also ranked highly for revenue, compared to a 93 average, earning a score of 100.
Interaction Analytics Platforms (Top Provider)
NiCE swept the interaction analytics category, demonstrating the deep analytical power behind its conversational insight tools.
Key strengths – NiCE landed the highest overall customer sentiment score at 8.66, compared to a low of 7.70 and an average of 8.38, and secured the top score in six of the eight categories: value or bang for the buck (8.80), accuracy of findings (8.70), integrations with key apps (8.70), technical features (8.70), measurable improvements from findings (8.70), and suggests actions to take (8.65).
Business impact – NiCE is situated comfortably above the 249 average with an overall 266 business success score, ranking first in helping customers reduce operational cost with a score of 66 against a modest 19-point category average.
KM Platform (Top Provider)
NiCE’s knowledge repository serves as the cornerstone of successful self-service, as evidenced by its performance in this category.
Key strengths – NiCE scored just above average with an 8.31, compared to 8.29. It earned its highest score, 8.45, for reliability as well as ease of managing content. With an 8.41, NiCE was second for value of the platform, or bang for the buck.
Business impact – NiCE’s business success score of 254 placed it above average (248), with its strongest showing—in the top two—in reducing operational costs.
VoC Platforms (Top Provider)
NiCE’s VoC platform allows companies to transform direct customer feedback into actionable performance gains.
Key strengths – NiCE scored a solid score of 8.39, well above the 8.29 average. It earned its top score, among the top three, for customization of the tool, with an 8.55. AI capabilities and programmability netted NiCE its next-highest scores, an 8.45 for each.
Business impact – NiCE received above-average business success scores for CSAT, employee efficiency, and revenue improvements, landing in the top two for the latter.
WEM Suites (Top Customer Sentiment)
NiCE demonstrates high sentiment in unifying front- and back-office workforce operations.
Key strengths – NiCE scored among the top three providers for AI capabilities (8.65) and ability to assist with corporate CX initiatives (8.53), as well as above average for optimizing contact center operations (8.35).
Business impact – NiCE earned its strongest scores in this category for employee efficiency and cost savings.
NiCE’s outstanding performance in Metrigy’s 2026 CX MetriStars Awards program highlights the company’s clear leadership in the AI-driven CX landscape. The true winners, however, are NiCE customers, whose positive business outcomes show how their contact center technology serves as an engine for success.Read the full Metrigy 2026 MetriStar reports.
Frequently Asked Questions
NiCE earned recognition in all seven product categories where it has an offering. It received MetriStar Top Provider awards for agent assist, contact center-as-a-service (CCaaS), interaction analytics, knowledge management, and voice of the customer (VoC). It also earned Top Customer Sentiment honors for its AI agent platform and workforce engagement management (WEM) suite. This marks NiCE's fifth consecutive year outperforming competitors in the program.
The awards are based entirely on quantitative customer data rather than analyst opinion. For 2026, Metrigy surveyed 1,437 CX leaders across 10 countries. Participants rate providers on seven to nine sentiment areas using a 1-to-10 scale, then report how each vendor's product affects four business metrics: CSAT, revenue, operational costs, and operational efficiency. Because the results reflect real buyer experience, multiple wins signal that enterprises find NiCE's solutions reliable, technically advanced, and tied to meaningful business outcomes.
Top Provider reflects the strongest overall combination of customer sentiment and measured business impact within a category. Top Customer Sentiment recognizes the highest customer perception scores across rated attributes such as reliability, AI capabilities, and value. NiCE earned Top Provider in five categories and Top Customer Sentiment in two (AI agent platforms and WEM).
CCaaS was a standout. NiCE earned the highest overall customer sentiment score in that category at 8.88 (versus an 8.38 average) and ranked first across five sub-categories, including AI capabilities (9.17) and integrations (9.08). It also posted the second-highest business success score at 379, ranking first in driving improvements to both employee efficiency and CSAT. In interaction analytics, NiCE swept the category with the top sentiment score (8.66) and led in reducing operational costs.
Customers tied NiCE to measurable gains across CSAT, revenue, operational cost, and efficiency. NiCE ranked number one for improving CSAT in the AI agent category (a score of 100, 14 points above average), first in reducing operational costs in interaction analytics (66 versus a 19-point average), and first in both employee efficiency and CSAT improvement in CCaaS. Agent assist delivered a 261 business success score, ahead of the 252 average.
The breadth reflects the connected design of the NiCE CXone platform. The seven categories build on and reinforce one another: VoC feedback updates the knowledge base, a stronger knowledge base powers more accurate AI agents, AI-resolved interactions reduce pressure on human staff, and automated coaching improves employee efficiency. Operating as a unified portfolio produces a compounding effect that individual point solutions can't match.
