Barry Ritholtz, Columnist

Cheap Is Great, But Free Will Cost You

Whenever a company offers something at no charge, that means the price is hidden and out of sight.

October 17, 2018 at 11:00 AM UTC

Barry Ritholtz is a former Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He is chairman and chief investment officer of Ritholtz Wealth Management, and was previously chief market strategist at Maxim Group. He is the author of “Bailout Nation.”

If your bank gave you one of these, rest assured it wasn’t free.
Source: Science & Society Picture Library/Getty Images

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There is a basic, fundamental foundation upon which all of economics is built: everything has a cost. The effort to get around this concept is described informally by the phrase "there's no free lunch.”

What is a free lunch?2 The notion historically springs from the offer by saloon owners of a free meal to customers. Of course, the price of the lunch is included -- hidden if you will -- in the cost of the drinks.