Economic rent

Difference between marginal product and opportunity cost

Summary

In economics, economic rent is any payment to the owner of a factor of production in excess of the costs needed to bring that factor into production. In classical economics, economic rent is any payment made or benefit received for non-produced inputs such as location (land) and for assets formed by creating official privilege over natural opportunities. In the moral economy of neoclassical economics, assuming the market is natural and not the product of state and social contrivance, economic rent includes income gained by labor, state beneficiaries, or other "contrived" exclusivity, such as labor guilds and unofficial corruption.

Originally created by Enchanter

4/26/2003, 12:28:49 PM

Modified

5/2/2026, 9:33:01 PM

Recent revisions

MartinPoulter5/2/2026, 9:33:01 PM

/* See also */ linked in nav template + linked in body text

MartinPoulter5/2/2026, 9:31:02 PM

/* See also */ alphabetise

MartinPoulter5/2/2026, 9:30:15 PM

/* See also */ already linked in body text

PK24/25/2026, 10:38:22 AM

/* Origins of the term */ [[WP:FIXDABLINKS|Disambiguating links]] to [[Edward West]] (link changed to [[Edward West (economist and judge)]])

Not-cheesewhisk3rs3/31/2026, 8:29:19 AM

Fix reference spacing per [[MOS:REFPUNCT]]

Meleager913/20/2026, 4:30:12 AM

ce

Bearcat2/17/2026, 4:32:49 AM

no redlinked categories; only categories that actually exist are permitted

AnomieBOT2/15/2026, 6:06:16 PM

Dating maintenance tags: {{When}} {{Citation needed}}

Kmf5892/15/2026, 4:05:39 PM

merge quasi-rent into this page as the distinction with rent is subtle and warrants context

Kmf5892/15/2026, 3:34:33 PM

streamline and clarify

Gonnym1/5/2026, 5:39:03 PM

clean up, [[WP:AWB/T|typo(s) fixed]]: mid 1900s → mid-1900s

GoingBatty12/26/2025, 5:48:47 PM

/* Classical rent (land rent) */ fixed reference

~2025-43044-5612/26/2025, 4:35:22 PM

/* Classical rent (land rent) */ Added West as originator

~2025-43044-5612/26/2025, 4:29:34 PM

/* Classical rent (land rent) */ Need West as codiscoverer. Citation is probably formatted bad.

Πpuπsnuπ11/9/2025, 5:48:49 AM
Wegesrand8/29/2025, 4:31:30 PM

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Duncnbiscuit8/3/2025, 9:22:17 AM

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Duncnbiscuit8/3/2025, 9:18:36 AM

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Duncnbiscuit8/3/2025, 9:08:04 AM

/* Labour */ added Citation

OAbot6/16/2025, 12:12:30 AM

[[Wikipedia:OABOT|Open access bot]]: doi updated in citation with #oabot.

Contributors

Source: WikipediaView full article