What is Kano Model?
The Kano model is a framework for prioritising product features by how they affect customer satisfaction. It sorts features into categories such as basic needs (must-haves), performance features (more is better) and delighters (unexpected pleasers), recognising that not all features influence satisfaction equally.
Reviewed by Gensudo Team · 23 July 2026
In more depth
Developed by Noriaki Kano in the 1980s, the model challenges the assumption that improving every attribute raises satisfaction equally. Basic features cause dissatisfaction if absent but little delight if present; performance features scale with investment; delighters create outsized satisfaction but are unexpected, and decay into basics over time. Features are usually classified by surveying customers about both their presence and their absence.
Why it matters
The Kano model helps teams avoid over-investing in features customers merely expect while neglecting the few that create genuine delight or, worse, shipping delighters while the basics are broken. Because delighters erode into expectations over time, the model also explains why yesterday's differentiators become today's table stakes, prompting continuous reinvestment rather than one-off wins.
A product example
For a hotel-booking app, reliable search is a basic need (its absence infuriates, its presence goes unnoticed), faster results is a performance feature, and a surprise free room upgrade is a delighter, guiding the team to fix reliability before chasing novelty.
Documents where this shows up
Prioritisation Framework for Heads of Product · Product Roadmap for Product Managers
Related terms
MoSCoW Prioritisation · RICE Scoring · Product Backlog · Feature Creep