<p>Marginal utility is the increase in utility per unit increase in a good. Marginal rate of substitution is like the exchange rate between two goods given a level of utility.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-14T22:48:24.983Z
2021-11-14T22:48:24.983Z
kleinerde
<p>To Answer your question, suppose that you have the following utility function
<span class="math-container">$$ U ={U(x,y)}$$</span></p>
<p>Then the<br />
marginal Utility of good x will be <span class="math-container">$MU_x = \frac{\partial U}{\partial x} $</span> <br />
and<br />
marginal Utility of good y will be <span class="math-container">$MU_y = \frac{\partial U}{\partial y} $</span></p>
<p>The Marginal rate of substitution will be
<span class="math-container">$$
MRS = \frac{MU_x}{MU_y}
$$</span></p>
<p>In summary Marginal utility shows how your utility changes when you consume more unit of a given good.
Marginal rate of substitution shows how much you have to give up of one good if you want to consume more of another good keeping the utility at the same level.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-14T22:01:40.420Z
"*Marginal rate of substitution shows how much you have to give up of one good if you want to consume more of another good.*" This is not well put, as the sentence does not contain any information about utility levels.
Giskard
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-15T10:31:19.857Z
Thanks for pointing that, the answer has been updated
Macosso
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-14T20:35:00.847Z
2021-11-15T11:06:58.793Z
2021-11-15T11:06:58.793Z
Macosso
<p>While studying for my microeconomics class, I realized that I could not fully understand the meanings of Marginal utilities and marginal rate of substitution. Can anyone explain to me the difference between these two and what they mean, briefly and with examples? thanks in advance</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-14T19:33:41.877Z
These are standard concepts that should be covered in your textbook/class notes. Have you read those? Perhaps you can point out the specific aspects of those concepts that you couldn't understand? Was it a particular phrase/expression/formula in the definitions that's unclear?
Herr K.
<microeconomics><utility><nonexpert>
marginal utility and Marginal rate of substitution
burak sariaslan
# marginal utility and Marginal rate of substitution

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-11-14)

While studying for my microeconomics class, I realized that I could not fully understand the meanings of Marginal utilities and marginal rate of substitution. Can anyone explain to me the difference between these two and what they mean, briefly and with examples? thanks in advance

**Tags:** microeconomics, utility, nonexpert

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: These are standard concepts that should be covered in your textbook/class notes. Have you read those? Perhaps you can point out the specific aspects of those concepts that you couldn't understand? Was it a particular phrase/expression/formula in the definitions that's unclear?  

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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2021-11-14. Score: 2

Marginal utility is the increase in utility per unit increase in a good. Marginal rate of substitution is like the exchange rate between two goods given a level of utility.


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### Answer by username_3 on 2021-11-14. Score: 2

To Answer your question, suppose that you have the following utility function
$$ U ={U(x,y)}$$

Then the  
marginal Utility of good x will be $MU\_x = \frac{\partial U}{\partial x} $   
and  
marginal Utility of good y will be $MU\_y = \frac{\partial U}{\partial y} $

The Marginal rate of substitution will be
$$
MRS = \frac{MU\_x}{MU\_y}
$$

In summary Marginal utility shows how your utility changes when you consume more unit of a given good.
Marginal rate of substitution shows how much you have to give up of one good if you want to consume more of another good keeping the utility at the same level.

> **Comments:**
> **username_4**: "*Marginal rate of substitution shows how much you have to give up of one good if you want to consume more of another good.*" This is not well put, as the sentence does not contain any information about utility levels.  
> **username_3**: Thanks for pointing that, the answer has been updated  

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