Needs vs wants, what’s the difference? In economics, wants are often distinguished from needs. A need is something that is necessary for survival whereas a want is simply something that a person would like to have. Let’s start with an example: your team. I’m sure your team is working on a new super cool project. Every day you say: “This product will be disruptive because this cool features, we do better than oldstyle inc. and we are the new black.” It doesn't matter.