Palu defined the index with respect to a cluster tilting object in a suitable triangulated category, in order to better understand the Caldero-Chapoton map that exhibits the connection between cluster algebras and representation theory. We push this further by proposing an index with respect to a contravariantly finite, rigid subcategory, and we show this index behaves similarly to the classical index.Let C be a skeletally small triangulated category with split idempotents, which is thus an extriangulated category (C, E, s). Suppose X is a contravariantly finite, rigid subcategory in C. We define the index ind X (C) of an object C ∈ C with respect to X as the K 0 -class [C] X in Grothendieck group K 0 (C, E X , s X ) of the relative extriangulated category (C, E X , s X ). By analogy to the classical case, we give an additivity formula with error term for ind X on triangles in C.In case X is contained in another suitable subcategory T of C, there is a surjectionThus, in order to describe K 0 (C, E X , s X ), it suffices to determine K 0 (C, E T , s T ) and Ker Q. We do this under certain assumptions.