Guided graph mode
Trace the shock, one step at a time
The AP exam does not just want the final graph. It wants the chain: a shock hits, a curve shifts, that changes an outcome, and sometimes the economy adjusts again on its own. Step through each event below and watch the graph move exactly as your written answer should, one labeled step at a time.
Tea Gets Pricier
Supply and DemandA jump in the price of tea (a substitute) shifts demand for coffee right to a new equilibrium.
Start in equilibrium
The market for coffee begins in equilibrium where supply and demand cross. At this price there is no shortage and no surplus, so price and quantity have no reason to change.
Now try it yourself: shift the curves in a graded FRQ drill, or open this graph in the free sandbox.
Common questions
- What is a graph walkthrough?
- It is a guided, step-by-step animation of an economic event on one AP Economics graph. You advance one step at a time, the curves shift as the causal chain unfolds, and each step explains what just moved and why. It is the watch-and-learn companion to actively drawing the graph yourself.
- Why does tracing a shock step by step matter for the AP exam?
- AP free-response questions reward showing the full chain of cause and effect, not just the final answer. The walkthroughs model exactly that habit: a shock hits, one curve shifts, that changes an outcome, which can trigger a further adjustment (like long-run self-correction). Practicing the sequence is how you earn every point on a graph FRQ.
- Which graphs and scenarios are covered?
- Seven core graphs: supply and demand, AD-AS, the money market, loanable funds, the Phillips curve, foreign exchange, and the labor market. Scenarios include multi-step processes a single shift cannot show, such as AD-AS self-correction to the long run, crowding out, and the short-run to long-run Phillips curve adjustment.
Ready to do it yourself? Try the draw-the-graph FRQ drills for graded practice, or explore any model freely in the graph sandbox.