9 Most Popular Types of Performance Reviews in 2025

A CEB study shows that 95% of HR leaders feel unhappy with traditional performance review systems.

An underwhelming performance review not only fails to bring about the right kind of change in the workforce but also decreases employee morale. It is extremely important for companies to conduct performance reviews the right way, as it is an excellent tool to reshape the potential of the employees.

Before you decide to go with a particular performance review format, it is wise to take a look at the popular types of performance reviews in 2025 and analyze their pros and cons. 

The time and energy an organization puts into developing a performance review process is substantial. Even when you do everything right, if the type of performance review does not align with the likes of your employees, you might not get the desired feedback from them. So, make sure you do not commit the mistake of picking the wrong type of performance review. 

This review gives a full-circle view of an employee’s performance. Instead of just hearing from a manager, the employee gets feedback from peers, direct reports, other managers, and sometimes even customers.

In simple terms, it’s not just one person’s opinion—it’s a team effort. The goal is to give employees a more complete and fair picture of how they’re doing at work.

Many employees feel traditional reviews are inaccurate or one-sided. That’s why companies use 360-degree feedback—it helps bring in more perspectives and gives a clearer, more balanced evaluation.

When is this used? Use 360-degree feedback when you want to focus on leadership development, communication skills, or teamwork. It’s especially helpful for roles that involve cross-functional work, managing others, or collaborating closely with different teams. Companies often use it during annual reviews or development planning for managers and team leads.

Pros

• Help employees see themselves from multiple points of view
• Creates a culture that gives importance to openness and collective feedback
• A great way to increase self-awareness among employees

Cons

• Complexity and length of the process can sometimes be overwhelming
• There is a risk of feedback being biased or influenced by personal relationships

Stack ranking—also known as forced ranking—is a performance review where employees are ranked from best to worst. Teams or managers place coworkers into categories like top performers, average performers, and low performers based on how they’ve done over a period of time.

It’s a very direct approach and can show who’s excelling and who might need support. Sometimes, employees even rank themselves and their teammates. This can reveal how team members view each other and themselves.

When is this used?
Stack ranking is often used in highly competitive workplaces or in companies looking to reward top performers and manage out underperformers. It works best in large teams where leadership wants a clear view of how people stack up—but it needs to be handled carefully to avoid harming morale.

Pros

• Excellent for creating a performance hierarchy
• Great way to motivate employees to work harder

Cons

• If not done carefully, it can lead to a work environment that is toxic
• Can be demotivating for employees that ranked the lowest

This is one of the oldest and simplest ways to review performance. In a graphic rating scale, managers rate employees on specific traits or behaviors—like punctuality, communication, or teamwork—using a fixed scale, usually from 1 to 10.

Each trait gets a score, and those numbers show how an employee is doing in different areas. For example, someone might get an 8 for teamwork and a 6 for time management.

When is this used? Companies often use graphic rating scales when they want a quick, standardized way to review performance. It’s especially helpful when managing large teams or when HR needs to compare performance across departments. It’s also useful for tracking improvement over time.

Pros

• One of the simplest types of performance review
• The quantitative data provided here is easy to analyze
• Standardized performance comparisons can be done
• Tracking improvements can be done 

Cons

• The capacity to provide the right feedback is limited
• Could be a bit too generic sometimes

In a team assessment, managers review how a group of employees performs together—rather than rating each person one by one. The focus is on things like teamwork, collaboration, and how well the group reaches shared goals.

This type of review works well when tasks are handled by teams, not individuals. Since many departments work this way, it makes sense to evaluate how the team functions as a whole.

When is this used?
Team assessments are great for companies where most work happens in groups. They’re especially helpful when managing large teams or in situations where it’s not practical to run individual reviews for everyone. Managers also use this method when they want to focus on group dynamics and collaboration.

Pros

• The concepts of collective success and shared responsibility can be developed
• Best for companies that rely heavily on teams
• Great way to identify team dynamics and how they contribute to performance

Cons

• There is a chance that individual contributions might be overshadowed
• Specific areas for individual improvement cannot be suggested
• Could inadvertently promote groupthink or discourage individual initiative

In project-based reviews, teams are evaluated after they finish a project. The goal is to look back and see what went well, what didn’t, and what the team can do better next time.

This method is common in companies that work on one project after another. It helps teams reflect on their performance and improve with each new project.

When is this used?
Use project-based reviews in organizations where work is organized around projects. They’re ideal for creative teams, IT departments, consulting firms, or any setup where success depends on how well a group delivers specific outcomes. It’s a great fit when you want feedback tied directly to a completed task.

Pros

• Aligns performance evaluation directly with tangible business outcomes
• Encourages project ownership and accountability among team members

Cons

• Variability in project scope or team role can make equitable assessment challenging
• May not fully account for non-project-related activities and contributions
• Employees not engaged in major projects may feel undervalued
• Can lead to short-term focus, neglecting long-term development and contributions

Peer assessment is when employees give feedback on each other’s performance. Instead of just hearing from a manager, team members review how well their coworkers work, communicate, and contribute to the team.

These reviews often stay anonymous so people feel more comfortable being honest. It’s a useful way to understand how well someone works with others and fits into the team.

When is this used?
Peer assessments are helpful in team-based environments where collaboration matters. Companies often use them to evaluate interpersonal skills, teamwork, and communication—things managers might not always see firsthand. It’s also a good tool to spot early signs of conflict or misunderstandings.

Pros

• A great choice to reveal aspects of performance that supervisors might not see
• Can be more acceptable to employees, since they get the feedback from colleagues rather than management.

Cons

• There could be logistical challenges in collecting, compiling, and anonymizing feedback
• There is a great chance for such reviews to be extremely biased

In a narrative assessment, managers write a detailed summary of an employee’s performance instead of scoring them with numbers or checking boxes. It’s more like a short essay where the manager talks about the employee’s strengths, challenges, progress, and anything else they feel is important.

This type of review is personal and flexible, which makes it great for capturing the full picture of someone’s work—not just the numbers.

When is this used?
Use narrative assessments when you want a more personalized review process. They’re helpful in smaller teams, creative roles, or leadership positions where standard questions may not cover everything. This method works well for ongoing development conversations or when giving rich, thoughtful feedback matters more than making direct comparisons.

Pros

• Flexibility
• Great for customized reviews

Cons

• It requires significant training to ensure evaluators provide balanced and constructive narratives

Check-ins are short, informal conversations between managers and employees that happen regularly—weekly, monthly, or just whenever needed. Instead of waiting for formal reviews, managers use check-ins to ask how things are going, offer support, and keep communication flowing.

They’re quick, flexible, and help catch small issues before they become big ones. Plus, they show employees that their manager is paying attention and cares about their growth.

When is this used?
Check-ins work best in fast-paced or agile work environments where things change quickly. They’re also great for managers who want to build stronger relationships with their team and keep a pulse on how everyone’s doing between formal reviews.

Pros

• It is quite adaptable in nature
• Excellent for building a good relationship between managers and employees
• Can quickly address problems and support continuous improvement

Cons

• Without clear structure, these can become informal and less impactful
• Relies heavily on the manager’s commitment to the process for effectiveness

BARS is a performance review method that combines numbers with real behavior examples. It uses a list of clear statements that describe how an employee behaves in certain situations. Each behavior is matched with a score, usually on a numeric scale.

This method helps make reviews more fair and less based on personal opinion. It’s great for companies that want something formal, detailed, and easy to measure.

When is this used?
Use BARS when you need to standardize performance reviews across roles or departments—especially in roles with clear, repeatable tasks. It works well in structured environments like customer support, manufacturing, or compliance-heavy industries, where specific behaviors are tied to job success.

Pros

• The evaluation is clear and objective
• Standardization of evaluation is easy
• Minimizes the influence of evaluator biases
• Facilitates clearer communication about expectations and performance standards

Cons

• May not fully capture the complexity or the dynamic nature of certain roles
• Developing BARS is time-consuming and requires a lot of initial effort

What Type of Reviews Does Your Company Perform?

If you feel like you could use some aspect of all of these types of performance reviews, please feel free to do so. The best type of performance reviews are usually an amalgamation of all these types.

With ThriveSparrow, you can create a performance review surveys, and perform continuous feedback, all in one place.

FAQs

1. What are the 5 performance ratings?

The five common performance ratings used in reviews are:

1. Outstanding / Excellent – The employee consistently goes above expectations.
2. Exceeds Expectations – The employee often performs better than what's required.
3. Meets Expectations – The employee consistently does what’s expected.
4. Needs Improvement – The employee is doing part of the job but has areas to work on.
5. Unsatisfactory – The employee is not meeting key job expectations.

These ratings help managers quickly summarize how well an employee is doing.

2. What are the different types of performance rating scales?

There are a few common types of rating scales used in performance reviews:

1. Numerical Scale – Rates performance using numbers (e.g., 1 to 5 or 1 to 10).
2. Descriptive Scale – Uses words like “Excellent,” “Good,” “Average,” or “Poor.”
3. Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS) – Combines a numbered scale with clear examples of behavior for each level.
4. Checklist Scale – Managers check off statements that apply to the employee’s performance.
5. Graphic Rating Scale – A visual scale (like a line or bar) where managers rate different traits (e.g., punctuality, teamwork).

Each scale gives structure to reviews and helps standardize how performance is measured.