pain point

noun

plural pain points

: a persistent or recurring problem (as with a product or service) that frequently inconveniences or annoys customers

When you're in an established market, you have an established customer; their needs and pain points are clearly laid out on your competitors' review sites.—

Billy Polson

Customer service, which has been a pain point of bigger banks for years, is also improving in that it's getting faster and requires little from you.—

Chris Welch

broadly : something that is a recurring source of trouble, annoyance, or distress

Meanwhile, ironing is a pain point with her boyfriend because she loves the look of a crisply pressed men's shirt. "He never irons his shirts and it drives me crazy," she [Elyse Moody] says. —

Jura Konicus

Examples of pain point in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Struggles with refunds through BNPL Returns and billing disputes have been particular pain points for shoppers using the installment plans. —

Alina Selyukh, NPR, 22 May 2024 China’s latest housing initiative is aimed at vacant properties, a major pain point in a crisis that’s dragged on for almost three years. —

Tom Hancock, Fortune Asia, 20 May 2024 Harry Balzer, a restaurant industry analyst at the NPD Group, predicted after the death of McDonald’s $1 cheeseburger that fast-food chains conscious of customer pain points would be the ones to come out on top. —

Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 14 May 2024 Recognizing the common pain points of late payments, lack of transparency, and inefficient billing processes, Accru has developed a transparent payment solution that puts clients at the forefront. —

Molly Peck, USA TODAY, 12 May 2024 Schools have become a major pain point for the thousands that moved to Miami in recent years. —

Patrick Clark, Fortune, 9 May 2024 Together, Airbnb hopes the trio of new features will alleviate previous pain points and help streamline group travel. —

Rachel Chang, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 May 2024 Digital fundraising platforms have also introduced more transparency and engagement, which are major pain points for traditional fundraising methods. —

Tyler Shepherd, USA TODAY, 10 Apr. 2024 After a rather extraneous earthquake conversation, I was informed that a major pain point for earthquake survivors is being able to get in and out of their rooms. —

Meredith Woerner, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pain point.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.