Ceist Eile

Ceist Eile is in development. Features, questions and prices may change while we refine it.

Subjects · Leaving Cert Economics

Leaving Cert Economics: Elasticity of demand

How often Elasticity of demand comes up on the Economics papers, every year it was asked, and questions to try.

HL Asked on 5 of the last 5 Higher Level papers, most recently in 2025. banker

OL Asked on 3 of the last 5 Ordinary Level papers, most recently in 2024. most years

Elasticity of demand, Higher Level(8 marks)

Quick ones on Elasticity of demand.

(a)Price rises from €4 to €6 and quantity demanded falls from 100 to 60. What is the arc PED?
  1. -0.8 (price inelastic)
  2. -1.25 (price elastic)
  3. -20 (price elastic)
(b)Demand for a firm's product is price elastic. To raise total revenue, it should…
  1. Keep price fixed, as revenue cannot change
  2. Raise its price
  3. Lower its price
(c)Which good is most likely to have price-inelastic demand?
  1. Cigarettes
  2. Foreign holidays
  3. One brand of crisps
Show the answers

(a) -1.25 (price elastic)

(b) Lower its price

(c) Cigarettes

Your turn: Higher Level questions on Elasticity of demand.

Higher Level

Asked on 5 of the last 5 Higher Level papers, most recently in 2025. banker

Every paper, year by year

YearWhere it came up
2025Q7, Q14
2024Q16
2023Q2
2022Q1, Q15
2021Q13

Links open the State Examinations Commission’s paper for that year.

More Elasticity of demand questions

Elasticity of demand, 2 marks

A good has a PED of zero. Its demand is…

  1. Perfectly elastic: any price rise loses all buyers
  2. Unit elastic: quantity changes by the same %
  3. Perfectly inelastic: quantity doesn't respond to price
Show the answer

Perfectly inelastic: quantity doesn't respond to price

A PED of 0 means quantity demanded is the same at every price, drawn as a vertical demand curve. Some life-saving medicines come close.

Elasticity of demand, 3 marks

Why is demand for one brand of petrol more price elastic than demand for petrol as a whole?

  1. Petrol is an inferior good for drivers
  2. Other brands are close substitutes
  3. One brand of petrol is a necessity
Show the answer

Other brands are close substitutes

If one brand raises its price, drivers switch to another station. Petrol in general has few substitutes in the short run, so overall demand is inelastic.

Elasticity of demand, 3 marks

Incomes rise by 10% and demand for bus journeys falls by 3%. What is the YED?

  1. -0.3: an inferior good
  2. +0.3: a necessity
  3. -3.33: a luxury
Show the answer

-0.3: an inferior good

YED = %ΔQ ÷ %ΔY = -3 ÷ 10 = -0.3. A negative YED means an inferior good: as incomes rise, some people switch from buses to cars.

Ordinary Level

Asked on 3 of the last 5 Ordinary Level papers, most recently in 2024. most years

Every paper, year by year

YearWhere it came up
2025Not asked
2024Q15
2023Not asked
2022Q9
2021Q3

Links open the State Examinations Commission’s paper for that year.

More Elasticity of demand questions

Elasticity of demand, 2 marks

Price elasticity of demand (PED) measures?

  1. How supply responds to a price change
  2. How price responds to a change in income
  3. How quantity demanded responds to a price change
Show the answer

How quantity demanded responds to a price change

PED compares the percentage change in quantity demanded with the percentage change in price. It tells a firm how buyers will react if it changes its price.

Elasticity of demand, 3 marks

A good with a PED of -0.4 is?

  1. Unit elastic
  2. Price inelastic
  3. Price elastic
Show the answer

Price inelastic

Ignoring the minus sign, 0.4 is less than 1, so quantity changes by a smaller percentage than price. Demand is price inelastic, as with necessities like electricity.

Elasticity of demand, 3 marks

Price rises by 10% and quantity demanded falls by 20%. PED is?

  1. -2 (price elastic)
  2. -0.5 (price inelastic)
  3. -20 (price elastic)
Show the answer

-2 (price elastic)

PED = % change in quantity demanded ÷ % change in price = -20 ÷ 10 = -2. Ignoring the sign, 2 is greater than 1, so demand is price elastic.

Other Economics topics

All of Leaving Cert Economics