Left-Digit Bias: What Does It Mean?

Left-digit bias is the tendency to judge a number mostly by its leftmost digit, so a price of $599 feels much cheaper than $600. It's the reason so many prices end in .99, a retail strategy often called charm pricing. Left-digit bias is a close relative of anchoring bias: your brain locks onto the first digit it reads and gives it more weight than the rest of the number. It shows up in big purchases, too, like a car payment that feels manageable because it stays under $600 a month.

Knowing about left-digit bias won't make it disappear, but rounding prices up before you decide can help. Thinking of $29.99 as $30, or $599 a month as $600, gives you a clearer picture of what you're actually spending.