Glossary3 min read · Updated May 20, 2026
What Is The Mom Test?
The Mom Test is a set of rules for customer conversations that keep feedback honest, so good that even your mom couldn’t give you a false positive.
Definition
The Mom Test is a set of rules, from Rob Fitzpatrick’s book of the same name, for talking to customers so that you get truthful, useful answers instead of polite encouragement. The name captures the goal: ask questions so well-formed that even your mom, who loves you and wants you to succeed, couldn’t mislead you.
The three rules
At its core, the Mom Test is three habits:
- Talk about their life, not your idea.
- Ask about specifics in the past, not generics or opinions about the future.
- Talk less and listen more.
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