TINSTAAFL
There
Is
No
Such
Thing
As
A
Free
Lunch
Economists use that phrase to answer your question. There is always an opportunity cost. I wager that sometimes the opportunity cost is *relatively* nothing, but only in a relative sense. For example, checking the weather on my phone, on the margin, has an opportunity cost so little (the calories I could have not spent to put my phone in front of my face, swipe up, and tap an app) that it is relatively nothing, but it does cost me something. This is also a great example of how the opportunity cost of checking the weather has changed. Before we had smart phones, I may have had to consult a farmer's almanac, make sure I was around during the weather segment on the news, etc. The opportunity cost of checking the weather has decreased sharply in the last 15 years!
There
Is
No
Such
Thing
As
A
Free
Lunch
Economists use that phrase to answer your question. There is always an opportunity cost. I wager that sometimes the opportunity cost is *relatively* nothing, but only in a relative sense. For example, checking the weather on my phone, on the margin, has an opportunity cost so little (the calories I could have not spent to put my phone in front of my face, swipe up, and tap an app) that it is relatively nothing, but it does cost me something. This is also a great example of how the opportunity cost of checking the weather has changed. Before we had smart phones, I may have had to consult a farmer's almanac, make sure I was around during the weather segment on the news, etc. The opportunity cost of checking the weather has decreased sharply in the last 15 years!