AP Micro Unit 2 Review: Supply and Demand
AP Micro Unit 2 covers demand, supply, elasticity, market equilibrium, consumer and producer surplus, price controls, taxes, and the effects of trade policy. At 20–25% of the exam it is the highest-weighted micro unit alongside Unit 3, and its graphs appear inside almost every later unit.
What's in Unit 2
- 12.1 Demand
- 22.2 Supply
- 32.3 Price Elasticity of Demand
- 42.4 Price Elasticity of Supply
- 52.5 Other Elasticities
- 62.6 Market Equilibrium and Consumer and Producer Surplus
- 72.7 Market Disequilibrium and Changes in Equilibrium
- 82.8 The Effects of Government Intervention in Markets
- 92.9 International Trade and Public Policy
Watch the video lessons
- AP Micro 2.1 · 8 min videoDemand: Law of Demand, Shifts vs Movements, TRIBE
- AP Micro 2.2 · 8 min videoSupply: Law of Supply, Marginal Cost, Supply Shifters
- AP Micro 2.3 · 10 min videoPrice Elasticity of Demand: Midpoint Formula + Total Revenue Test
- AP Micro 2.4 · 9 min videoPrice Elasticity of Supply: Midpoint Method, Worked Example
- AP Micro 2.5 · 10 min videoIncome Elasticity and Cross-Price Elasticity (Normal, Inferior, Substitutes)
- AP Micro 2.6 · 10 min videoConsumer Surplus and Producer Surplus: How to Calculate
- AP Micro 2.7 · 10 min videoShortages, Surpluses and Shifting Supply and Demand
- AP Micro 2.8A · 9 min videoTaxes and Subsidies: Tax Incidence, Revenue, Deadweight Loss
- AP Micro 2.8B · 9 min videoPrice Ceilings, Price Floors and Quotas
- AP Micro 2.9 · 10 min videoTariffs, Import Quotas and International Trade
Study this unit free on EconLearn
Market equilibrium, curve shifts, price controls, and economic shocks.
Full lesson, practice questions & flashcards →Price elasticity of demand, total revenue test, and cross-price elasticity.
Full lesson, practice questions & flashcards →Teaching this unit? Ready-made lessons: Supply and Demand Bell Ringer, Price Elasticity of Demand Bell Ringer, Supply and Demand Lesson Plan for High School, Elasticity Lesson Plan with Total Revenue, Price Ceiling and Price Floor Activity, Local Market Research Economics Project and Supply and Demand Substitute Lesson Plan
What to master for the exam
- Master the double-shift rule: when both curves shift, either price or quantity is indeterminate.
- Use the midpoint formula for elasticity and connect elasticity to the total revenue test.
- Draw binding price ceilings (below equilibrium → shortage) and floors (above equilibrium → surplus) with the resulting deadweight loss.
- Show tax incidence: the more inelastic side of the market bears more of the tax.
AP Micro Unit 2: common questions
What is on AP Micro Unit 2?
Demand, supply, all the elasticities (price elasticity of demand and supply, income, cross-price), market equilibrium with consumer and producer surplus, price ceilings and floors, taxes and tax incidence, and basic trade policy. It is worth 20–25% of the AP Micro exam, tied for the largest share.
How do you remember what shifts demand vs supply?
Demand shifters are buyer-side: tastes, income (normal vs inferior goods), prices of related goods, expectations, and number of buyers. Supply shifters are seller-side: input costs, technology, taxes/subsidies, expectations, and number of sellers. A change in the good's own price never shifts its curve, that is a movement along it.
Last updated