Imagine you're shopping for a new laptop. One model costs $999, while another costs $1,000. Logically, the difference is just one dollar. Yet many people instinctively feel that the first option is significantly cheaper.
Psychology says this reaction isn't a coincidence. For decades, psychologists, marketers, and behavioral economists have studied why prices ending in .99 influence buying decisions. Research suggests that the effect comes from the way the brain processes numbers, attention, and value rather than from poor math skills.
