Consumer Surplus Calculator
Estimate consumer surplus as the area of the demand triangle: half the gap between willingness to pay and the price, times quantity.
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Enter the price gap and quantity to see consumer surplus.
Worked example
With these example inputs:
- Willingness to pay minus price$30
- Quantity500
Consumer surplus: $7,500
- Price gap$30.00
- If the first figure were 10% higher$8,250
Frequently asked questions
How is consumer surplus calculated?
For a straight-line demand curve it is half the gap between the highest willingness to pay and the market price, multiplied by quantity. A $30 gap over 500 units is $7,500.
What does consumer surplus represent?
It is the value buyers get above what they actually pay, the benefit of buying at the market price rather than the most they would have paid.