13 h 19 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 13 h 19 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
Who gets the wealth a country creates—and why do some shares grow while others shrink?
In On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation, David Ricardo asks how wealth divides among landowners, owners of capital, and workers. His starting point is the value of goods: what makes one thing exchange for another? From there, he builds a chain of arguments about labour, rent, wages, and profit, with each question leading into the next.
Behind these abstract arguments stand concrete pressures: costly food, heavy debts, and competing claims on Britain's wealth. Ricardo explores why land earns rent, how rising wages affect profits, and where taxes really fall. His case for open trade challenges the Corn Laws, which keep foreign grain out of Britain, and asks readers to rethink what countries gain from exchange.
What you’ll discover
- Labour behind value Explore Ricardo's argument that goods exchange mainly according to the labour needed to produce them.
- Land and its rewards Follow his explanation of rent through differences in the quality of land.
- Wages against profits See why Ricardo connects rising wages with falling profits in the division of wealth.
- The gains from trade Examine why exchange can benefit countries even when one does everything better.
- Who really pays taxes Trace how taxes draw on income or capital, with consequences for a country's growth.
Who will love it
Readers who enjoy clear reasoning, worked examples and big questions about money will feel at home here. It suits students of economics, history and politics, and anyone curious about why rents, wages, profits, taxes and trade move as they do.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Production leaves a question of shares
- Usefulness does not measure exchange value
- Dear corn creates rent
- Competition draws prices toward production costs
- Wages follow the cost of living
- Dearer food puts pressure on profits
- Trade can benefit the stronger producer
- Markets decide who bears a tax
- Follow labour, income and moving capital
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook and the audiobook open when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation
by David Ricardo · 1817
Ricardo uses hunters, fishermen and Portuguese wine to explain relative value, capital and gains from foreign trade.
Challenging5–10 hours to read2 languages
Learn a language with challenging classicsSpanishFrenchGermanItalianJapanesePortugueseEnglishHow we measure levels
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then USD 0.14 a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
In short
What decides how a nation's harvest is shared among landowners, the owners of capital and the workers? David Ricardo calls this the principal problem of political economy.
On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation at a glance
- Reading time
- About 7 h5 h 35 min fast, 8 h 20 min slow
- Length
- 100,000 words
- Library level
- Challenging long sentences, a rich vocabulary
- First published
- 1817by David Ricardo
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Labour, not usefulness, sets what goods are worth
Ricardo starts with a puzzle he takes from Adam Smith. Water and air are essential to life, yet they trade for almost nothing. Gold is far less useful, yet it exchanges for a great quantity of goods. So usefulness is needed for value, but it cannot measure it.
His rule is that goods which effort can multiply take their exchange value from the labour needed to make them. In a nation of hunters, if a beaver takes twice the labour of a deer, one beaver trades for two deer.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1817
- Language
- English
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Ricardo, David. On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/on-the-principles-of-political-economy-and-taxation.
Ricardo, D. (2026). On the principles of political economy, and taxation. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/on-the-principles-of-political-economy-and-taxation (Original work published 1817)
Ricardo, David. On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/on-the-principles-of-political-economy-and-taxation.
@book{ricardo2026principles,
author = {Ricardo, David},
title = {On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/on-the-principles-of-political-economy-and-taxation},
note = {First published 1817}
}
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is On the Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation about?
It explains how a nation's produce is shared among landlords, capital owners and workers as rent, profit and wages, and how value, foreign trade, money and taxes shape that split. Ricardo builds the argument step by step with worked examples.
What is Ricardo's labour theory of value?
Ricardo claims that goods which can be multiplied by human effort trade at ratios set by the labour needed to make them. That labour includes the work behind the tools, ships and machines used in production.
What is the difference between natural price and market price?
The natural price is the cost of production, including ordinary profit. The market price is what buyers actually pay on a given day. Competition and the movement of capital keep pulling the market price toward the natural price.
The author
David Ricardo
1772–1823 · British classical economist
David Ricardo (1772–1823) was a British economist, banker and politician. He was born in London and worked on the London Stock Exchange. He published On the Principles of Political Economy and Taxation in 1817. He served in Parliament from 1819 until his death in Gloucestershire, where he owned Gatcombe Park.
More like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
Popular in philosophy & ideas
See all
