Anchoring Effect

The Anchoring Effect is a cognitive bias where individuals rely heavily on the first piece of information they encounter (the “anchor”) when making decisions. In UX design, this can be leveraged to influence user decisions, such as setting a high initial price on a product to make subsequent lower prices seem like better deals. Anchoring can impact pricing strategies, offers, and the perceived value of services or products.

The anchoring effect is one of the most powerful and underused tools in SaaS pricing design. By showing a higher-tier plan first, or crossing out a "full price," you make your actual price feel like a deal — even if nothing changed. Getting your pricing page anchor right can meaningfully shift which tier users choose without changing the price itself.

Notion shows the Business plan ($15/user) prominently before the Plus plan ($8/user), making Plus feel like a bargain. The expensive option anchors the user's perception of value before they see anything cheaper.