Part of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky’s foundational research on cognitive biases.
Anchoring is the trick of showing you a high number first so every number after it feels small by comparison. The crossed-out “original price” next to a sale tag isn’t there to inform you — it’s there to set the reference point your brain uses to judge value.
How It Works
Your brain doesn’t evaluate prices in absolute terms; it compares them to whatever number it saw most recently. Show a $200 jacket marked down to $80 and the $80 feels like a steal — even if $80 is what the jacket is genuinely worth, and the $200 was never a real selling price.
Common Examples
| Where You See It | What They Do | What’s Really Happening |
|---|---|---|
| Online stores | Show a crossed-out “MSRP” or “list price” | The product was rarely sold at that price |
| Restaurant menus | Place one very expensive dish at the top | It makes the $30 dishes feel reasonable |
| Real estate | Show the most overpriced listing first | Other listings then look like bargains |
| SaaS pricing pages | Display a $499 “Enterprise” tier | It anchors you to pick the $49 “Pro” tier |
The Psychology Behind It
This is the anchoring bias, first documented by Tversky and Kahneman in 1974. Once a number is in your head, every later judgment drifts toward it — even when you know the anchor is arbitrary or irrelevant. The brain prefers easy comparisons over hard absolute calculations.
How to Protect Yourself
- Ignore the crossed-out price entirely — ask only “is this current price worth it to me?”
- Check price history tools (CamelCamelCamel, Keepa) before believing a “discount.”
- Compare with two or three competitors before deciding.
- Set your maximum price before you visit the product page.
- Be especially skeptical of “limited-time” anchors that reappear every week.
Key Takeaway
The crossed-out price is a reference point, not a fact. Judge a price by what it’s worth to you, not by what it’s compared to.