One of the lamentable facts of life is that nobody can have everything that he or she wants. This is due, in part, to scarce resources. Whether a teenager with a part-time job or a wealthy business-person, no single person owns all of the money in the...

Opportunity Cost An opportunity cost is defined as the value of a forgone activity or alternative when another item or activity is chosen. Opportunity cost comes into play in any decision that involves a tradeoff between two or more options. It is...

The non-monetary cost of undertaking an action or performing a function. Such a cost comprises the use of resources, locations and time that would otherwise be available for other purposes. Generally for something to be described as an opportunity cost...

In economic terms, the opportunities forgone in the choice of one expenditure over others. For a consumer with a fixed income, the opportunity cost of buying a new dishwasher might be the value of a vacation trip never taken or several suits of clothes...

Opportunity cost is a central concept of microeconomics. A focus on opportunity cost rather than measures of accounting cost is a central characteristic of economic...