Monocots and dicots have great economic value in nearly every human society. Enormous time and effort is invested in their growth, harvesting, and processing, and great rewards are reaped from the sale of their parts and products.

Agriculture
Monocots and dicots account for a very large portion of the human diet, as well as the diet that nourishes livestock. Cereal grains are derived from the seeds and fruit of various grasses, all of which are monocots. The most widely consumed are maize, wheat, and rice, which combine to supply about 90% of global grain production. Other valuable cereals include barley, sorghum, millets, oats, and rye.

Most fruits, nuts, and vegetables are dicots. Dicots are grown for a much greater range of plant parts than monocots – roots (potatoes), stems (rhubarb), leaves (spinach), seeds (beans), and fruits (apples).

Monocots and dicots are also grown for the oils that can be extracted from them, largely from the seeds. Soybean, canola, sunflower seed, peanut, cottonseed, and olive oil (all dicot-derived), as well as palm and corn oil (monocots) are used in cooking, to manufacture industrial products, and as biofuels.

Horticulture and Forestry
The forestry and nursery industries are not quite as reliant on angiosperms as is agriculture. Most lumber comes from the gymnosperms, but hardwoods derived from dicots, such as cherry, maple, ash, and oak are harvested for flooring, furniture, and fine woodworking. Bamboo is receiving increasing attention as a quickly renewable source of furniture and flooring material.

Grasses, flowers, shrubs, and hardwood trees are mainstays of gardens, yards, parks, and public spaces. Their cultivation and maintenance are thriving industries.

Fiber
Flowering plants are an important source of fibers. Vegetable fibers come from the stems, seeds, leaves, and fruits of seasonal, herbaceous crops. Jute, linen, hemp, and ramie are produced by stripping the phloem out of the stem of dicots. Cotton fibers are derived from seeds. Sisal is made from agave leaves, and coir from coconut shells. These fibers are used for thread, textiles, rope, carpet, and fine papers.

Wood fibers are produced by pulping and then pressing plant matter into sheets of varying thickness and rigidity, from tissue to paper to fiberboard. Conifers are the most common source of wood fibers, but hardwoods, bamboo, hemp, cotton seeds, and sugar cane are also used.