The intestinal crypt is a dynamic group of heterogeneous epithelial cells, many of which are cycling and in motion. Genetic models have led to tremendous progress in identifying distinct crypt cell types, but many questions remain unresolved, including the identities of intestinal epithelial stem cells (IESC) and whether a quiescent IESC sits atop a lineage hierarchy of the intestinal crypt. In this issue of Gastroenterology, Li et al1 apply single-cell transcriptomics to provide increased resolution of crypt cell identities.