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Static, Percentage, or Segment?

March 12, 2026·4 min read
Start small. Then scale.

Choose the right rollout strategy — safety, control, or precision.

Why Flag Types Matter

Not all feature flags solve the same problem. Choosing the right type determines rollout safety, targeting precision, and system behavior.

The Three Types

Staticon/off globally

Use when: Kill switch, controlled launch, internal testing

"Enable for my account in production to verify before launch"

PercentageN% of users, consistent per user

Use when: Canary releases, gradual rollouts, A/B testing

"5% → watch dashboards → 25% → 50% → 100%"

Segmentrules matched against user attributes

Use when: Plan-based access, beta groups, regional rollouts

"Enterprise plan users in the EU only"

When to Use Each

Type
Use Case
Targeting
Static
Safety / kill switch
All users
Percentage
Rollout control
N% of users
Segment
Business logic
Attribute rules

Real Example

A company launches a new payment provider. Here's how all three types come together:

Staticinitial control — off by default, flip on for internal testing
Percentagegradual rollout — 1% → 5% → 25% → 50% → 100%
Segmententerprise users first — rule-based, not random

Mental Model

Static
safety
Percentage
experimentation
Segment
precision

Most production systems use all three together.

FAQ

What is the difference between static and percentage flags?

Static flags apply to all users. Percentage flags target a consistent subset, hashed per user ID.

When should I use segment-based flags?

When you need precise control based on user attributes — plan tier, country, beta group, or custom rules.

Can these be combined?

Yes — most real-world systems use static, percentage, and segment flags together.

Start Using the Right Strategy

Release Anchor supports all targeting modes — static flags, percentage rollouts, and segment targeting — with instant switching between strategies.

Related topics

#feature flags#percentage rollout#segments#targeting rules#gradual rollout#feature management