The Van Westendorp Price Sensitivity Meter is a survey-based technique that estimates the range of prices a market will accept by asking buyers about price directly rather than inferring it from behavior. Developed by Dutch economist Peter van Westendorp in 1976, it remains one of the most widely used tools for getting an early read on willingness to pay when there is little or no transaction data to work from.

The method rests on four questions about a product or service, each asking the respondent to name a price:

• Too expensive. At what price is it so high you would not consider buying it?
• Too cheap. At what price is it so low you would question its quality?
• Expensive. At what price does it start to feel expensive but you would still consider it?
• Cheap. At what price does it feel like a bargain, a clearly good buy?

Plotting the cumulative responses produces intersecting curves. The point where “too cheap” and “too expensive” cross marks the optimal price point, where the fewest buyers reject the price on either end. The span between the lower and upper resistance points defines the range of acceptable prices, the band where the offer reads as neither suspiciously cheap nor out of reach.

Its value is in what it gives you cheaply and early: a defensible starting range before launch, a sanity check on a proposed price, or a way to compare sensitivity across segments. It is a strong input for value-based pricing work, not a replacement for it.

The limits are real. The meter captures stated preference, not what buyers actually do when money is on the line, and it tests price in isolation from competitors, features, and the value story that surrounds a real decision. It also says nothing about volume or pricing power; knowing the acceptable range is not the same as knowing how demand moves within it. Most teams pair it with conjoint analysis or live testing before committing to a number.

For B2B and PE-backed companies, the Van Westendorp meter is most useful at the front end of a pricing decision, such as a new product, a repackaging effort, or entry into an unfamiliar segment, where it narrows the field fast and keeps the first price grounded in buyer input rather than internal guesswork.

Setting price for something new and short on data? Schedule a discovery call with Acustrategy.