Supply and Demand Graph Maker
A free supply and demand graph maker. Type the demand and supply curves to get the equilibrium, shifts, consumer and producer surplus, price ceilings and floors, taxes and the AD–AS model, then download a PNG, SVG or PDF.
Price form: demand P = a − bQ, supply P = c + dQ. A slope of 0 draws a horizontal (perfectly elastic) curve.
Free, no sign-up. Downloads carry a small scientificfigure.com mark.
Supply and demand graph styles
Four looks the AI supply and demand graph generator draws, each on a different graph: a textbook supply shock, a lecture slide on rent control, an infographic of a coffee tax and hand-drawn notes on a recession.
Supply and demand graph examples
Six supply and demand graph examples drawn by the AI supply and demand graph generator, each a real render of the prompt on its card: a supply shock, rent control, a coffee tax, a recession in the AD–AS model, a minimum wage and a four-panel shifts figure. Pick one to open it in the generator.
For handouts and exam answers. Swap gasoline for any market.
Large type and one callout, made for the projector.
Icons and plain-English boxes for non-economists.
AD–AS revision notes. Ask for an SRAS shift to show stagflation.
The price floor most courses teach. Change the wage in the prompt.
All four shifts on one page, a ready revision sheet.
What is a supply and demand graph?
A supply and demand graph plots price on the vertical axis and quantity on the horizontal axis, with a demand curve sloping down and a supply curve sloping up; the point where they cross is the market equilibrium price and quantity. Shifting a curve shows how a change in income, costs or policy moves that equilibrium, and the areas between the curves and the price measure consumer surplus, producer surplus and deadweight loss.
About this supply and demand graph maker
- Computes the equilibrium price and quantity from curves written as P = a − bQ or as Qd = a − bP.
- Shifts demand, supply or both and marks the old and new equilibria, E₁ and E₂, with dashed lines to the axes.
- Shades consumer surplus, producer surplus, tax revenue and deadweight loss and lists the value of each area.
- Draws binding price ceilings and price floors and measures the shortage or surplus they cause.
- Draws a per-unit tax or subsidy on buyers or sellers and splits its burden between the two sides.
- Draws the AD–AS model with SRAS, a vertical LRAS at potential output and the recessionary or inflationary gap.
- Exports PNG, SVG and PDF from the browser with no sign-in.
How to make a supply and demand graph
- 1
Enter the two curves
Type the demand and supply equations in the supply and demand graph maker, as P = 12 − Q or as Qd = 100 − 2P, or start from one of the examples.
- 2
Shift a curve or add a policy
Choose what changes and drag the slider, or open Price controls & taxes for a ceiling, floor, tax or subsidy. The equilibria, areas and labels move with it.
- 3
Read the numbers and download
The line under the graph gives the new price, quantity and surplus, and Full table lists every value. Download a PNG, SVG or PDF, or copy the table.
How to find the equilibrium price and quantity
Equilibrium is the one price at which the quantity buyers want equals the quantity sellers offer. On a supply and demand graph it is the point where the two curves cross; with equations it takes one line of algebra.
Curves written as prices
- 1Demand P = 12 − Q, supply P = 2 + Q.
- 2Set them equal: 12 − Q = 2 + Q, so 2Q = 10 and Q* = 5.
- 3Put Q* into either curve: P* = 12 − 5 = 7.
Curves written as quantities
- 1Demand Qd = 100 − 2P, supply Qs = −20 + 4P.
- 2Set Qd = Qs: 100 − 2P = −20 + 4P, so 6P = 120 and P* = 20.
- 3Then Q* = 100 − 2 × 20 = 60.
Above P* quantity supplied exceeds quantity demanded, a surplus that pushes the price down; below P* the shortage pushes it up. That pull toward the crossing point is why the equilibrium holds.
Shifts in demand and supply
A shift moves the whole curve: right for an increase, left for a decrease. More demand raises both price and quantity; more supply lowers the price and raises the quantity. A change in the good’s own price never shifts its curve; it moves the market along it.
Demand increases
Price ↑ · Quantity ↑
Higher income (for a normal good), a dearer substitute, a cheaper complement, more buyers, tastes moving toward the good, expected price rises.
Demand decreases
Price ↓ · Quantity ↓
Lower income (for a normal good), a cheaper substitute, a dearer complement, fewer buyers, tastes moving away from the good.
Supply increases
Price ↓ · Quantity ↑
Cheaper inputs, better technology, good weather for a crop, more sellers, a subsidy.
Supply decreases
Price ↑ · Quantity ↓
Dearer inputs, such as crude oil for gasoline, a poor harvest, fewer sellers, a per-unit tax.
In each graph the lighter curve is the one before the change; E₁ is the old equilibrium and E₂ the new one.
Consumer and producer surplus on a supply and demand graph
Consumer surplus is the area under the demand curve and above the price; producer surplus is the area above the supply curve and below the price. Together they make total (social) surplus, which is largest at the equilibrium quantity.
- Consumer surplus = ½ × Q* × (demand intercept − P*) = ½ × 5 × (12 − 7) = 12.5.
- Producer surplus = ½ × Q* × (P* − supply intercept) = ½ × 5 × (7 − 2) = 12.5.
- Total surplus = 25. Trading any quantity other than 5 gives less, and the part lost is the deadweight loss.
- Under a price control, tax or subsidy the triangles shrink or change shape; the Price controls & taxes tab redraws each one and recomputes its area.
Price ceilings and price floors
A price ceiling is a legal maximum price and a price floor a legal minimum. A ceiling below equilibrium causes a shortage, a floor above it causes a surplus, and both cut the quantity traded and create deadweight loss.
Rent control as a price ceiling
The market clears at $1,750 a month with 25 thousand apartments. A $1,250 ceiling raises the number renters want to 35 thousand and cuts the number landlords offer to 15 thousand: a shortage of 20 thousand, and only 15 thousand are rented.
A $1,250 ceiling leaves 15 thousand supplied and 35 thousand demanded.
The minimum wage as a price floor
The labour market clears at $17.50 an hour with 25 thousand workers. A $20 minimum wage brings 30 thousand people into the job search while firms hire 20 thousand: a surplus of labour, that is unemployment, of 10 thousand.
At a $20 floor 20 thousand are hired and 30 thousand look for work.
- A ceiling at or above equilibrium, or a floor at or below it, does not bind: the market trades at equilibrium as if it were not there.
- Only the short side of the market trades: under a ceiling the quantity supplied, under a floor the quantity demanded.
- OpenStax names the minimum wage as the best-known price floor; the US federal minimum was $7.25 an hour in 2022.
Taxes, subsidies and deadweight loss
A per-unit tax drives a wedge between the price buyers pay and the price sellers keep. The quantity traded falls, the government collects the tax on every unit still sold, and the trades that no longer happen are the deadweight loss.
- 1Shift supply up by the tax: a $2 tax on P = 2 + Q gives S + tax: P = 4 + Q.
- 2The new crossing with demand gives the quantity and the buyers’ price: 12 − Q = 4 + Q, so Q = 4 and buyers pay $8.
- 3Sellers keep $8 − $2 = $6. Tax revenue = $2 × 4 = $8, the rectangle between the two prices.
- 4Deadweight loss = ½ × $2 × (5 − 4) = $1, the triangle back to the old equilibrium.
Who bears a tax depends on elasticity, not on who hands the money over. Levying the same $2 on buyers shifts demand down instead and gives the same prices. If demand is more inelastic than supply, buyers bear most of the tax; if supply is more inelastic, sellers do. Here the slopes are equal, so each side pays $1.
A subsidy is the same wedge the other way: sellers receive more than buyers pay and the quantity rises past equilibrium. With a $2 subsidy the government pays $12, buyers and sellers gain $11 between them, and the $1 difference is deadweight loss.
Perfectly elastic and perfectly inelastic demand
Perfectly inelastic demand is a vertical curve: buyers take the same quantity at any price. Perfectly elastic demand is a horizontal curve: above that price they buy nothing. The same $2 tax lands on opposite sides of the market in the two cases.
With perfectly inelastic demand, buyers pay the whole tax
With demand fixed at 5 units, a $2 tax raises the price buyers pay from $7 to $9 and the quantity does not change, so there is no deadweight loss. OpenStax gives life-saving drugs and gasoline as goods with highly inelastic demand.
With perfectly elastic demand, sellers pay the whole tax
With demand flat at $7, buyers will not pay more, so a $2 tax leaves sellers with $5 a unit; the quantity falls from 5 to 3 and the deadweight loss is $2.
The AD–AS model
The AD–AS model is the supply and demand graph of a whole economy: the price level on the vertical axis, real GDP on the horizontal, aggregate demand (AD) sloping down, short-run aggregate supply (SRAS) sloping up and long-run aggregate supply (LRAS) vertical at potential GDP.
- Short-run equilibrium is where AD meets SRAS. AD: P = 180 − 8Y and SRAS: P = 20 + 8Y meet at real GDP 10 and price level 100, on LRAS.
- A recessionary gap opens when AD falls: shifting AD left by 2 moves equilibrium to real GDP 9 and price level 92, one unit below potential.
- An inflationary gap is the reverse: AD rises and equilibrium output climbs above potential.
- Stagflation: SRAS shifting left by 2 raises the price level to 108 and cuts output to 9 at the same time.
Shift of a curve vs movement along a curve
A change in the good’s own price moves the market along a curve; a change in anything else that affects buyers or sellers shifts the whole curve. Mixing the two up is the most common mistake on a supply and demand graph.
| Movement along a curve | Shift of a curve | |
|---|---|---|
| Called | Change in quantity demanded (or supplied) | Change in demand (or supply) |
| Caused by | A change in the good’s own price | Income, tastes, prices of related goods, population, expectations (demand); input prices, technology, natural conditions, government policy (supply) |
| On the graph | A point slides along the same curve | The whole curve moves right (increase) or left (decrease) |
| Equilibrium | Unchanged curves, so the same crossing point | A new crossing point, E₂ |
| Example | Coffee costs more, so people buy fewer cups | Incomes rise, so people buy more cups at every price |
OpenStax Principles of Economics 3e, section 3.2: the price of the good itself is not among the factors that shift its demand or supply curve.
Where supply and demand graphs are used
Supply and demand graphs are the standard way to show how a market reacts to a change, from a first economics class to a policy brief.
Economics homework and exams
Introductory micro and macro courses, AP and IB economics ask for the graph, the right curve shifted and the new equilibrium labelled; letters mode gives the P₁, Q₁ style labels textbooks use.
Lecture slides and handouts
One graph per change, exported as SVG so it stays sharp on a projector and in a printed handout.
Policy briefs
Rent control, minimum wages, sugar taxes and farm subsidies are argued with the same picture: who pays, how much trade is lost, how large the shortage or surplus is.
Case studies and reports
A price shock, such as gasoline after a rise in crude oil prices, reads faster with the before-and-after graph beside the text.
Supply and demand graph maker FAQ
How do you draw a supply and demand graph?+
Put price on the vertical axis and quantity on the horizontal axis, draw demand sloping down and supply sloping up, and mark where they cross as the equilibrium. Label the curves D and S, run dashed lines from the crossing point to both axes and label them P* and Q*. In the supply and demand graph maker above, typing the two equations draws all of this to scale.
How do you find the equilibrium price and quantity from equations?+
Set quantity demanded equal to quantity supplied and solve. With Qd = 100 − 2P and Qs = −20 + 4P, 100 − 2P = −20 + 4P gives P = 20, and either equation gives Q = 60. Written as prices, P = 12 − Q and P = 2 + Q meet at Q = 5 and P = 7. The supply and demand graph maker takes both forms and prints the answer under the graph.
What happens when demand and supply both shift?+
One of price and quantity moves in a known direction and the other depends on which shift is larger. If both increase, quantity rises but price can go either way; if demand rises while supply falls, price rises but quantity is uncertain. Set both shifts in the supply and demand graph maker to see which wins: with both curves shifting right by 2 in the coffee example, quantity rises from 5 to 7 and price stays at $7.
What is the difference between a shortage and a surplus?+
A shortage is quantity demanded minus quantity supplied when the price is held below equilibrium; a surplus is quantity supplied minus quantity demanded when it is held above. In the rent control example a $1,250 ceiling under a $1,750 equilibrium leaves 35 thousand renters looking for 15 thousand apartments, a shortage of 20 thousand.
How do you calculate consumer and producer surplus?+
With straight-line curves both are triangles: consumer surplus = ½ × quantity × (demand intercept − price) and producer surplus = ½ × quantity × (price − supply intercept). At P = 7 and Q = 5, with demand starting at 12 and supply at 2, each is ½ × 5 × 5 = 12.5. The supply and demand graph maker shades both areas and lists their values in the full table.
How do you show a tax on a supply and demand graph?+
Shift supply up by the tax, or demand down by it, and read two prices at the new quantity: what buyers pay on the demand curve and what sellers keep on the supply curve. The rectangle between the two prices is the tax revenue and the triangle back to the old equilibrium is the deadweight loss. A $2 tax in the coffee example cuts the quantity from 5 to 4, raises $8 and costs $1 of deadweight loss.
Why is the long-run aggregate supply curve vertical?+
Because in the long run output is set by potential GDP, the labour, capital and technology an economy has, not by the price level. OpenStax calls the vertical line at potential GDP the long-run aggregate supply (LRAS) curve. Short-run aggregate supply slopes up because, while input prices stay fixed, a higher price level makes producing more profitable.
Can I put a supply and demand graph in Google Docs, Word or PowerPoint?+
Yes: download it from the supply and demand graph maker and insert the file. In Google Docs and Google Slides use Insert › Image › Upload from computer; in Word and PowerPoint use Insert › Pictures. Use SVG in Word and PowerPoint so it stays sharp at any size, and PNG in Google Docs.
Is this supply and demand graph maker free?+
Yes. The supply and demand graph maker computes and draws every graph in your browser with no sign-in, and PNG, SVG and PDF downloads are free with a small corner mark. Paid plans export without the mark. The AI supply and demand graph generator, for textbook, slide, infographic and hand-drawn versions, uses credits.
Sources
- 3.1 Demand, Supply, and Equilibrium in Markets for Goods and Services — Principles of Economics 3e, OpenStax
- 3.2 Shifts in Demand and Supply for Goods and Services — Principles of Economics 3e, OpenStax
- 3.4 Price Ceilings and Price Floors — Principles of Economics 3e, OpenStax
- 3.5 Demand, Supply, and Efficiency — Principles of Economics 3e, OpenStax
- 5.2 Polar Cases of Elasticity and Constant Elasticity — Principles of Economics 3e, OpenStax
- 5.3 Elasticity and Pricing — Principles of Economics 3e, OpenStax
- 24.2 Building a Model of Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply — Principles of Economics 3e, OpenStax
- 25.1 Aggregate Demand in Keynesian Analysis — Principles of Economics 3e, OpenStax
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Make the supply and demand graph you need
The supply and demand graph maker draws equilibrium, shifts, surplus, price controls, taxes and AD–AS from your own numbers, free in your browser, or as a textbook figure, slide or infographic from the AI generator.
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