Identify the choices available
Determine the benefits and costs of each choice
Choose the best alternative you did not select
Subtract the value of the chosen option from the value of the next best alternative
Use the formula: Opportunity Cost = Value of Best Foregone Alternative – Value of Chosen Option
If comparing money, calculate the difference in expected returns
If comparing time, calculate the value of the time spent on the chosen option versus the next best use of that time
If comparing resources, calculate what those resources could have produced in the next best alternative
Select the option with the highest net benefit if you want the lowest opportunity cost
Repeat the calculation for each alternative if comparing multiple options