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down-market

American  
[doun-mahr-kit] / ˈdaʊnˌmɑr kɪt /

adjective

  1. appealing or catering to lower-income consumers; widely affordable or accessible.


adverb

  1. in a down-market way.

down-market British  

adjective

  1. relating to commercial products, services, etc, that are cheap, have little prestige, or are poor in quality

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of down-market

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The shift down-market is driven by the fact that even the financially comfortable are acutely aware of how much more expensive everything is today.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 18, 2026

The destruction in consumer demand started down-market among the low- and middle income households, Brusuelas says.

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

At this point, “those guys” are down to standout starting pitchers Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery, down-market starters Mike Clevinger and Michael Lorenzen, and extremely old starters Zack Grienke, Johnny Cueto and Rich Hill.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2024

Tesla has loosely followed Musk’s famous 2006 “master plan” of designing high-end EVs before moving down-market with more affordable models.

From Slate • Jan. 10, 2023

As luxury has gone down-market, the marketplace has simply gone one better, rolling out ever-pricier goods and pitching them to the ever-loftier rich.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times