What Demand Is:
Economists have a very precise definition of demand. For them demand is the relationship between the quantity of a good or service consumers will purchase and the price charged for that good. More precisely and formally the Economics Glossary defines demand as "the want or desire to possess a good or service with the necessary goods, services, or financial instruments necessary to make a legal transaction for those goods or services."What Demand Is Not:
Demand is not simply a quantity consumers wish to purchase such as '5 oranges' or '17 shares of Microsoft', because demand represents the entire relationship between quantity desired of a good and all possible prices charged for that good. The specific quantity desired for a good at a given price is known as the quantity demanded. Typically a time period is also given when describing quantity demanded.Demand - Examples of Quantity Demanded:
When the price of an orange is 65 cents the quantity demanded is 300 oranges a week.If the local Starbucks lowers their price of a tall coffee from $1.75 to $1.65, the quantity demanded will rise from 45 coffees an hour to 48 coffees an hour.
Demand Schedules:
A demand schedule is a table which lists the possible prices for a good and service and the associated quantity demanded. The demand schedule for oranges could look (in part) as follows:75 cents - 270 oranges a week
70 cents - 300 oranges a week
65 cents - 320 oranges a week
60 cents - 400 oranges a week
