What does 'scalable' mean in business?

Question

Accepted Answer

**What it means:** Able to grow in size or output without requiring proportionally more resources. A scalable business can handle significantly more customers without significantly more cost per customer.

"Is the model scalable? Can it support ten times the users?"
"Software is scalable in a way that manufacturing isn't."

**Why it matters:** Investors love scalable businesses because growth becomes increasingly profitable. Once the infrastructure is built (a software platform, a delivery system), adding more customers costs relatively little.

**Scalable vs non-scalable:**
- Software: highly scalable (one more user costs almost nothing extra)
- Restaurant: less scalable (more customers require more staff, space, food)
- Consulting: less scalable (more clients require more consultant hours)

**As jargon:** "Scalable" became a buzzword in startup culture. "Is it scalable?" is asked even of things that clearly are or clearly aren't. Use it precisely to avoid sounding like you're filling space.

**Tags:** business English, startups, growth, technology