Definition & Classification of Wants: Needs, Comforts and Luxuries

To understand wants, one should recognise the difference between Wants and Desires.

Human beings have many desires. They can desire the ownership of a good house, a car, luxurious furniture and clothing, and large bank balances. 

But having a desire is different from the capacity to satisfy the desire. Here comes the difference between desires and wants.

Definition of Wants

Wants can be defined as desires that are backed by the purchasing capacity of the person desiring. So all desires are not wants. To be treated as a want, your desire must be capable of being satisfied.

Desires can be satisfied when you have the purchasing power in terms of money or kind. So, wants are different from desires.

Even though you can not satisfy all desires, your purchasing capacity can convert some of those desires into wants. 

Consumers' actions are motivated by the desire or instinct to satisfy their wants. But their funds may force them to choose among different desires and needs.

In Economics, this activity of satisfying needs or wants governs the various business activities and business decisions of producers and manufacturers of goods. 

Markets also respond accordingly and are completely controlled by these changing needs and wants of people.

Consumers act according to the urgency of wants. Most urgent wants are satisfied first, then lesser emergency wants, and lastly, superfluous wants are satisfied (if affordable).

Some desires are to be satisfied compulsorily, and they become their needs.

Basically, all desires are broadly classified into needs and wants.

Wants vs Needs

Let us look into the difference between Needs and Wants.

Needs:

Needs are those without which one can not survive. For example: food, clothes, and shelter. These are the most basic requirements for anyone to survive. One may manage without them for one or two days. But ultimately, he needs these items to survive. So these items are categorised as Needs.

Wants:

Wants contain a wider choice of requirements to satisfy their desires. Wants can include needs also. But needs can not include wants. You can survive without having or satisfying most of these wants desired by you. For example, costly food, a bicycle or bike, a movie or TV set, a mobile, etc. All these are wants. But they can not be needs. You can still survive without these items.

So, the major distinction between Needs and Wants is the ability to survive.

Classification of Wants into Three Groups

In Economics, wants are classified into Necessities, Comforts, and Luxuries.

Necessities or Necessaries
Necessaries are just like needs. You can't live without satisfying these necessities. Food is necessary to survive. Water is a necessity for living. Similarly, you need air to breathe and survive. So all these are classified as necessities because you can't survive without them. According to this assumption, food, clothes, and shelter fall under necessities.

Comforts
A comfort is something which gives you relief. A fan gives you comfort in breathing the air. An extra side dish of food gives you comfort in eating your food more enjoyably. A bicycle provides you relief in travelling. All these items can be treated as comforts. They are not necessities as you can live without them. They are needed only to aid your living conditions.

Luxuries
Luxuries are those which are even more superfluous than comforts. They provide you with much more comfort in your life and are very costly, and are of a high-standard living. A luxurious bungalow or a stay in a five-star hotel, very costly food with wide varieties of dishes, a high-definition LED TV, an air conditioner, Aeroplane travel, etc., all these can be examples of luxuries. These items give you a very superior standard of living which is not at all necessary under ordinary circumstances for your survival. So these are termed as luxuries.

Needs and Wants Change According to Circumstances

The above explanations of necessities, comforts, and luxuries are a view generally accepted by all economists under normal circumstances. 

But what is regarded as comfort or luxury may be at times considered as a necessity under certain different circumstances.

For example, if you are burning up at a temperature of 50 degrees Celsius, then a cool breeze from an air conditioner can become a necessity for survival. So, in this case, the air conditioner may become a necessity for you.

So, comforts and luxuries can sometimes become necessities under specific circumstances.

With the advancement of technology and changing habits of people, this classification of human wants may also undergo changes. 

Many items of comfort and luxury may now be regarded as necessities. Mobile phones, color TVs, coolers, and even ACs have become part of everyday life in most homes. They have become a necessity for most people.