Meaning & use
retail value
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
The price at which something is normally sold to ordinary customers in a shop.
Grammar: Often with an or the when giving a figure: a retail value of $50.
Patterns
- a retail value of something
- the retail value of something
The watch has a retail value of about $200.
Prizes in the contest have a total retail value of $5,000.
The retail value of the coat is higher than what we paid.
noununcountablebusiness
The amount used in insurance or donation records to describe what an item would cost if bought new from a store.
Grammar: Used when comparing with what an item could be sold for second-hand.
Patterns
- estimate the retail value of something
The insurer asked for the retail value of the stolen laptop.
She listed the retail value of each donated item on the form.
Resale prices are usually lower than the original retail value.
Common combinations
- estimated retail value
- The estimated retail value of the bag is $90.
- total retail value
- The total retail value of the prizes exceeded $10,000.
- retail value of
- What is the retail value of this phone?
- approximate retail value
- The approximate retail value is shown on the box.
- below retail value
- We sold it below its retail value.
Synonyms and how they differ
- retail price
- Retail price is the actual tag price, while retail value can be an estimate of what a store would charge.
- list price
- List price is the maker's suggested price, which stores may change.
- market value
- Market value is what buyers would pay now, often lower than retail for used goods.
- sticker price
- Sticker price is a casual term, most often used for cars, whereas retail value is broader.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: retail value or resale value?
retail value vs resale value
Resale value is what you could get when selling a used item, while retail value is the price when new in a shop.
Practice
The raffle prize has a ____ of $300, though you may not be able to sell it for that much.
Choose one answer.
Retail value is the normal store price. Used goods sell for less, which is why the sentence adds the warning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “retail value”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.