Investopedia contributors come from a range of backgrounds, and over 25 years there have been thousands of expert writers and editors who have contributed. Thomas J. Brock is a CFA and CPA with more ...

Nick Lioudis is a writer, multimedia professional, consultant, and content manager for Bread. He has also spent 10+ years as a journalist. Michael Boyle is an experienced financial professional with ...

Great question. Unfortunately, there isn’t a standard answer, although there is a well-known joke economists like to tell regarding the difference between the two. But, let’s come back to that later.

Economic growth is most often measured by growth in gross domestic product (GDP), which is the value of all final goods and services produced in an economy. Recent revisions to the first quarter 2014 ...