What is an example of the anchoring effect?

The "was $200, now $120" tag: The crossed-out price is the anchor. $120 feels like a steal next to $200, whether or not the item was ever worth either number.

Where do you see the anchoring effect in everyday life?

The "was $200, now $120" tag; The first offer in a negotiation; Restaurant menu "decoy"; "Limit 12 per customer"; Asking salary expectations.

How do you avoid the anchoring effect?

Before negotiating or valuing anything, decide your own number first, so the other side's figure can't quietly drag yours.

Sticky Idea

Thinking, Fast and Slow · Daniel Kahneman

The anchoring effect examples

Curated by Paulo de Vries · reviewed 2026-05-31

The anchoring effect is how the first number you see drags your judgment toward it — even when that number is arbitrary or irrelevant. Examples:

What is the anchoring effect? Read the full idea →

5 examples of the anchoring effect

The "was $200, now $120" tag
The crossed-out price is the anchor. $120 feels like a steal next to $200, whether or not the item was ever worth either number.
The first offer in a negotiation
Whoever names a price first sets the anchor, and the final deal usually lands closer to it than to where the other side would have started.
Restaurant menu "decoy"
A $90 dish makes the $45 mains look reasonable — the expensive option isn't there to sell; it's there to anchor.
"Limit 12 per customer"
Just seeing the number 12 nudges shoppers to buy more than they would with no limit at all.
Asking salary expectations
The first figure mentioned anchors the whole conversation, which is why naming a number too low can quietly cost you for years.

How to spot it in yourself

Before negotiating or valuing anything, decide your own number first, so the other side's figure can't quietly drag yours.
Treat a slashed "original price" as an anchor, not information; judge the item on what it's worth to you.
When a figure lands in your head, ask "would my estimate be different if I'd never heard this?"

You'll forget most of this by next week.

That's just how memory works. Lock the anchoring effect in with a 5-minute active-recall session — spaced repetition, no signup.

Try this idea free →

One tap adds it to your review queue — we bring it back right before you'd forget.

The anchoring effect examples

5 examples of the anchoring effect

The "was $200, now $120" tag

The first offer in a negotiation

Restaurant menu "decoy"

"Limit 12 per customer"

Asking salary expectations

How to spot it in yourself

You'll forget most of this by next week.

Related ideas