In Economics in Plain English, the new economic explainer video series from The Atlantic, business editor Derek Thompson answers big and small questions selected from hundreds of reader submissions.

The cost of airport food is soaring. Travelers passing through airports tend to expect to pay more for basic items such as water bottles — but why is it so much more expensive? A reporter for USA ...

You may gawk at the price of bottled water at, say, sporting events. At Target Field, home of the Minnesota Twins, a bottle of water will cost you between $5.49 and $10.49, an online menu shows. If ...

I used to grab a plastic water bottle without thinking twice. It was easy. Convenient. The thing you just did when you were ...

An curved arrow pointing right. Airports rely on you spending money inside the terminal. In 2024, US airports generated over $1 billion of revenue from purchases like $6 bottled water, $27 beers, and ...

A new study has found that there are dozens of unregulated harmful chemicals in a number of popular brands of bottled water.