Boosting agricultural production to meet the food demands of growing and more prosperous populations increasingly comes with a cost to the ecosystems upon which human life more broadly depends. Yet many developing countries (and some developed countries) do not acknowledge or understand these trade-offs. This is becoming one of the greatest challenges in achieving sustainable land use and the Sustainable Development Goals. Greater understanding of trade-offs, and how to analyse and better manage them, is needed. This paper summarises key concepts relating to trade-offs and synergies, including trade-off analysis and management, to make approaches and methods more accessible.