cash cow
2 antonyms and opposites of cash cow, grouped by meaning.
Noun — A product, business unit or investment that reliably generates far more money than it costs to run, often used to fund riskier parts of a company.
Antonyms
How to use cash cow
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
Informal but entirely acceptable in business writing and journalism.
Etymology
A figurative compound: a cow that can be milked continuously without further outlay, applied to a source of steady income.
Full origin of cash cow →Frequently asked questions
Is calling something a cash cow an insult?
Not usually about the money, but it can be dismissive about the thing itself. Describing a film franchise or a university course as a cash cow implies it is kept alive for revenue rather than merit, so the term often carries a mild sneer even while conceding the profits are real.
What is the difference between a cash cow and a loss leader?
A cash cow makes money and is kept because of it. A loss leader deliberately makes little or no money — it is priced low to pull customers in so they buy something profitable alongside it. One is the source of profit, the other is bait for it.
Where does the term come from in business?
It is standard vocabulary in portfolio analysis, where products are sorted by market share and market growth. The cash cow label marks the high-share, low-growth box: dependable, unexciting, and used to fund the growth areas.