What key factor does price elasticity of demand depend on?

The price elasticity of demand measures how sensitive the quantity demanded of a good is to a change in its price. One of the critical factors that this elasticity depends on is how much consumers are willing to change their quantity demanded in response to a change in the price of the good itself. When the price of a product increases, if consumers significantly reduce their quantity demanded, the product is said to have elastic demand. Conversely, if quantity demanded changes little in response to a price change, the product exhibits inelastic demand.

While the other factors listed, such as consumer preferences, income levels, and the availability of competing products, do influence demand, the core concept behind price elasticity focuses specifically on the relationship between price changes and quantity demanded. This relationship highlights how consumers react to price variations, making the price of the product the central factor in determining price elasticity of demand.