What are the factors of production used in the making of goods and services?

Factors of production are essential to any economy, as they are the building blocks for all goods and services.

The four factors of production are land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship. They are the inputs needed for supply. They produce all the goods and services in an economy, measured by gross domestic product. 

Key Takeaways

  • Factors of production are the building blocks for goods and services in an economy.
  • The four factors of production are land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship.
  • Who owns factors of production and what they cost are both influential on the economy as a whole.

Land as a Factor of Production

Land includes all of the natural resources available to create supply, such as raw ground and anything that comes from it. It can be a non-renewable resource. That includes commodities such as oil and gold. It can also be a renewable resource, such as timber. Once man changes it from its original condition, it becomes a capital good. For example, crude oil is a natural resource, but gasoline is a capital good. Farmland is a natural resource, but a shopping center is a capital good.

Note

The income earned by owners of land and other resources is called rent.

The United States is blessed with an abundance of easily accessible natural resources, including fertile land and water. It has miles of coastline, lots of oil, and a moderate climate. That's an advantage over Canada, which has similar natural resources, but they are not always as accessible due to permafrost covering parts of the country's land.

Climate change is beginning to alter that, thawing permafrost in some areas and increasing access to oil and other natural resources. Climate change also will make it harder for Canada to utilize natural resources in some regions. It will reduce water supplies to its oil sands in Alberta, which may lead to a reduction in production.

Labor as a Factor of Production

Labor is the work done by people. The value of the workforce depends on workers' education, skills, and motivation. It also depends on productivity. That measures how much each hour of worker time produces in output. 

Note

The reward or income for labor is wages.

The United States has a large, skilled, and mobile labor force that responds quickly to changing business needs. It also benefits from productivity increases due to technological innovations. On the other hand, the U.S. labor force faces increasing competition from other countries. That's one reason why American jobs are being outsourced.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics measures the U.S. labor force. It releases the current U.S. jobs report the first Friday of each month. The report includes the employed and the unemployed. The employed only include people over 16 who worked in the past week. It excludes the active military and any residents of an institution. The unemployed are those who actively looked for a job in the past month. All the other jobless are not members of the labor force. 

Capital as a Factor of Production

Capital is short for capital goods.These are man-made objects like machinery, equipment, and chemicals that are used in production. That's what differentiates them from consumer goods. For example, capital goods include industrial and commercial buildings, but not private housing. A commercial aircraft is a capital good, but a private jet is not. 

Note

The income earned by owners of capital goods is called interest.

The United States is a technological innovator in creating capital goods, from airplanes to robots. That's why Silicon Valley is a critical comparative advantage in the global market.

The U.S. Bureau of the Census releases information on capital goods production with the monthly durable goods orders report. It reports on total capital goods order, shipments, and inventory. It also strips out defense and transportation. Those orders come in large batches. It can hide the real trends. Capital goods production has declined since the Great Recession of 2008. Demand for them hasn't returned to the same levels. As a result, companies aren't investing in new equipment. They are buying back stock shares, purchasing new businesses, and looking for opportunities overseas.

Entrepreneurship as a Factor of Production 

Entrepreneurship is the drive to develop an idea into a business. An entrepreneur combines the other three factors of production to add to supply. The most successful are innovative risk-takers. 

Note

The income entrepreneurs earn is profits.

The majority of entrepreneurs in the United States own small businesses. There are nearly 32.5 million small businesses in the United States that employ about 61 million people. One reason small businesses do so well is that it's relatively easy to get funded compared to other countries. Others raise money on the stock market by issuing an initial public offering. Shares in these companies are called small-cap stocks. 

Who Owns the Factors of Production

Ownership of the factors of production depends on the type of economic system and society. 

Factors of ProductionSocialismCapitalismCommunismAre owned byEveryoneIndividualsEveryoneAre valued forUsefulness to peopleProfitUsefulness to people

Why Some Think There Are Five Factors of Production

Capital finance is sometimes called the "fifth factor of production," but that's not accurate. Money facilitates production by providing income to the owners of production.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Why are the factors of production important?

Together, the factors of production make up the total productivity potential of a given economy. Understanding their relative availability and accessibility helps economists and policymakers assess an economy's potential, make predictions, and craft policies to boost productivity.

How do the four factors of production interrelate?

All four factors are necessary for production, and each has an impact on the others. For instance, more available capital can inspire more entrepreneurship, which necessitates more land and labor for production. Abundance or constraints on any of the factors will inevitably affect the others.

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Sources

The Balance uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

  1. University of Minnesota Libraries. "Principles of Economics: 2.1 Factors of Production."

  2. Bureau of Economic Analysis. "Gross Domestic Product."

  3. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. "Factors of Production - The Economic Lowdown Podcast Series, Episode 2."

  4. Springer Link. "Economic Rent and the Value of Land."

  5. National Snow and Ice Data Center. "People and Frozen Ground."

  6. Natural Resources Canada. "Continental Effects (North America)."

  7. Population Reference Bureau. "Offshoring U.S. Labor Increasing."

  8. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Current Employment Statistics - CES (National)."

  9. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "How the Government Measures Unemployment," Pages 4-8.

  10. Portland State University. "Chapter 7: External Economies of Scale and the International Location of Production," Page 131.

  11. U.S. Bureau of the Census. "Monthly Advance Report on Durable Goods Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories and Orders February 2020."

    Which factor of production includes human made resources used to produce a good or a service?

    The factors of production in an economy are its labor, capital, and natural resources. Labor is the human effort that can be applied to the production of goods and services.

    What are the 4 factors of production and give an example of each?

    These are the four factors or production:.
    Land as a factor of production. As a factor of production, land can take on various forms—from raw property to commercial real estate. ... .
    Labor as a factor of production. ... .
    Capital as a factor of production. ... .
    Entrepreneurship as a factor of production..