Thesaurus article: costing less money than expected

costing less money than expected

These words all refer to something that costs less money than you expected.

The most common word is cheap.

The meal was cheaper than I expected.
That's cheap for a holiday package.

The opposite of cheap is expensive.

He wore an expensive watch.

For more opposites of cheap, see the article at expensive.

If something is cheap enough for most people to be able to buy, you can say that it is affordable, inexpensive, or reasonable.

There's very little affordable housing around here.
They sell inexpensive children's clothes.
I thought the food was very reasonable.

If something is very cheap, you can say informally that it is dirt cheap.

Most of the books they sell are dirt cheap.

Cut-price or cut-rate is sometimes used to describe something that is cheaper than usual. Cut-price is more common in UK English, and cut-rate is more common in US English.

Travellers can search the internet for cut-price airfares.
We managed to get cut-rate tickets the day before the show.

A piece of equipment that is cheap to use is often described as economical.

I need a car that's reliable and economical.

Budget can be used before a noun to describe things that are suitable for people who do not have a lot of money to spend.

We stayed in a budget hotel.

You say that the price of something is low.

The company sells its products at a low price.

For words having to do with the amount of money that something is being sold for, see the article at cost.

Related articles

Word of the Day

comfort zone

UK
/ˈkʌm.fət ˌzəʊn/
US
/ˈkʌm.fɚt ˌzoʊn/

a situation in which you feel comfortable and in which your ability and determination are not being tested

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