One-Way Door Decision
What is a one-way door decision?
A one-way door decision (also called a Type 1 or Level 1 decision) is a consequential and irreversible—or nearly irreversible—decision that must be made methodically, carefully, and slowly with great deliberation and consultation.
The concept, introduced by Jeff Bezos in his Amazon shareholder letters, uses the metaphor of walking through a door. Once you walk through and don't like what you see on the other side, you can't get back to where you were before. An example of a one-way door decision in product would be deciding which companies to acquire to build out your product portfolio.
These decisions contrast with two-way door decisions, which are changeable and reversible. With two-way door decisions, you can walk through, see what's on the other side, and come back through if you don't like it.
When should teams use the one-way door framework?
The one-way door/two-way door framework helps teams decide which decisions should be made quickly and which should be more deliberate and cautious.
For one-way door decisions, teams want to slow down, take time, collect data, and get it right the first time. Because these decisions are hard or impossible to reverse, rushing leads to costly mistakes.
However, in the world of digital products, most decisions are two-way door decisions, not one-way doors. If you're deciding whether to invest in one feature over another—as long as you're thinking iteratively and not in terms of long-term product initiatives—this is typically a two-way door decision. As you start to experiment with a feature, you'll quickly learn if you made the right decision. If you were wrong, you can always reverse course and pick a different solution or even a different opportunity altogether.
Not only are most digital product decisions two-way doors, but teams also have fast feedback loops. If teams make the wrong decisions, they'll know soon enough, especially if they have a continuous discovery practice.
Learn more:
- How Much Time Should You Spend in Product Discovery?
- Prioritize Opportunities, Not Solutions
Related terms:
- Two-Way Door Decision
- Continuous Discovery
- Experiments
Last Updated: October 25, 2025