A cohort groups users around a shared starting point, such as sign-up week. Aggregate active users can hide attrition when new acquisition grows.
Rows in the demo represent sign-up weeks and columns represent weeks since sign-up. Cells fill over time to compare retention across acquisition groups.
Recent cohorts have shorter observation windows, so empty future cells are not churn. State whether retention means return, purchase, or another action.
When to use
Use it to compare product adoption or repeat purchase across acquisition periods.