Jurgen Klopp says the price is the last thing he thinks of when signing a player, following the £75m purchase of Virgil van Dijk.
Liverpool announced on Wednesday that Van Dijk would join them from Southampton on January 1 for what is a world-record fee for a defender.
The £75m fee also blitzes Liverpool's previous record for money spent on a player, but Reds boss Klopp says that is not a consideration for him.
When asked about the money currently being spent in the transfer market, the German said: "I'm surprised by the development in the last two years.
"The last half of the year changed everything. As a club we cannot change that.
"The last thing I think about is the price. Not because I like throwing money around but because we are only thinking about the player.
"It's not nice, but that's the market and the world and we have to adapt to the market."
The January transfer window opens on Monday and several of Liverpool's fringe players have been linked with loan moves away from the club, including Danny Ings.
However, Klopp insists that, while there is interest in some of his players, they will only leave if it suits the club.
He said: "First thing we have to make sure is we have the squad we need for the second half of the season.
"The perfect situation is for the club and the player, but if not the club needs to come first.
"There's a few interested in players of ours, but nothing's decided so far."