Is it “If money were not an object” or “If money were not an option”?

The phrase "If money were not an option" is often used to mean "Don't worry about how much it would cost". However, I just noticed that the last word, option, makes it sound like saying "If spending money was not one of your options".

Should I keep using this phrase? Or is it a mutation of the phrase "If money were not an object" ? Going by exact quote searches with Google, they're about the same: "if money were not an object" (32,400 results) and "If money were not an option" (27,500 results). Or would I be far better off using neither of these and just saying "If money were not an issue" ?

Solution 1:

I always say "money is no object" (well, I would if it weren't—sigh), and I never say "money is not an option". I suspect that "option" is a newer variant, based on a mishearing of "object", since it doesn't make much sense when you think about it. "Object" and "issue" are established idioms; I have my doubts about "option".

In books, "money is no object" is certainly the commonest form, as you can see in this Ngram:

Solution 2:

I read

If money were not an option

as meaning

We have 3 options, A, B and Money. Let's suppose we only consider A and B.

Perhaps a little old-fashioned, but i prefer

Were money not an object