low cost — cheap; not expensive
collocationB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
Not costing much money; affordable or inexpensive.
Say it like a native
Textbook The service is available at a minimal pecuniary outlay.
Native It's pretty low-cost.
'Low-cost' is natural; 'minimal pecuniary outlay' is absurd.
Pattern: low cost + noun
In use
- Many students prefer low cost accommodation near the university.money
- One advantage of public transport in my city is that there are many low cost options for students and elderly people.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ We took a low cost airline.
✓ We took a low-cost airline.
Hyphenate before a noun — 'a low-cost airline'.
Common collocations
low-cost— airline, option, housing, at
Don't confuse it
Similar to 'cheap', but 'low cost' is more neutral and often used in formal or business contexts.