cost-efficient

American  

[kawst-i-fish-uhnt, kost-] / ˈkɔst ɪˈfɪʃ ənt, ˈkɒst- /

adjective

1. cost-effective.

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Other Word Forms

• cost-efficiency noun
• cost-efficiently adverb

Compare meaning

How does cost-efficient compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• cost-effective vs. cost-efficient

Example Sentences

"Its more realistic trajectory is to become the world's largest AI adoption market, embedding AI at scale through digital public infrastructure and cost-efficient applications," she said.

From Barron's • Feb. 20, 2026

Western drugmakers are increasingly seeking to access China’s expanding pipeline of cutting-edge therapies and tap its vast, cost-efficient research and development ecosystem.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 9, 2026

Miliband told the BBC that the government's plan is the "the most cost-efficient long-term way to make a difference to people" and bring energy bills down.

From BBC • Jan. 20, 2026

Another benefit for Rubin CPX is that it uses GDDR7 memory, which is more cost-efficient than high-bandwidth memory components used in Google’s tensor processing units and Amazon’s Trainium chips.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 8, 2025

Outsourcing news bulletins to India also allows Reuters to extend the breadth of its reporting to more small-cap companies, companies it was not cost-efficient for Reuters to follow before with higher-paid journalists in New York.

From "The World Is Flat" by Thomas L. Friedman