twentyfivecents@dollarish sent us a disturbing
article from MSN Money about how women are typically charged more than men for essentially the same products.
Women-targeted products, such as lotion, shampoo, razors, and so on, can cost as much as 50% more than their male or unisex equivalents, according to Consumer Reports. Occasionally the ingredients differ slightly to include special lotions or scents, but it's rarely enough to justify the markup. Most manufacturers realize that women are often the key purchasers in a household, so they are sometimes willing to spend more on themselves.
But the higher prices are not limited to everyday products:
- As documented in a 2006 study, 41% more women pay high-cost sub-prime mortgages than men, which can mean an extra $120 a month or so.
- Women's insurance premiums can be 22% to 50% more expensive than men's.
- And of course, women continue to bring home only 78% of what a man of equal experience would earn. So it's not like we're rolling in cash.
I always knew that women earned less than men, but the markup on everyday products was really news to me. Next time I run out of shampoo, deodorant, or anything like that, I'm definitely going to look into purchasing a men's equivalent.
And I can't stress enough how so often
the products contain identical ingredients. For example, Clinique's M Lotion for Men is exactly the same as their women-targeted Dramatically Different, however the latter is almost twice as expensive.
Are you surprised that women's products are so much more expensive? Will you take this into account next time you go shopping?Image Source
Comments (201)
i feel bad for the men who buys these things for women :]
well that is a bunch of BS. but since when have businesses been moral? =P
@princessremy@xanga - hahahaha
i kinda of noticed that...
It's a matter that businesses know that women do most of the shopping and women are usually stereotyped as being more shallow and status-oriented, so that may be why products are higher. Just what I think, anyway.
i HATE people trying to take advantage of me just cuz i have boobs and a vagina.
Check out the cost of taking clothes to the cleaners. Here it's men's shirts $1.00 each vs womens plain blouses at $3.25.
Wow really? I should start cross dressing.
Whatever. I'll just buy the guy stuff then.
It's worse than you think. Women are told that they need things that they don't need. While I could go on about personal products, that's a little to personal for some. Instead, I'll vent about household cleaners, which are targeted to women. A tremendous amount of advertising goes into bathroom cleaners, when all a person really needs is either Pinesol or bleach, scouring powder, vinegar, and rubber gloves.
No I am not surprised. I do take this into consideration when I shop. Woman get caught up on what their friends have or are using, manufacturer's know this.
@Alatariel40@xanga - I agree. Recently I have started using the inexpensive items my grandmom used to clean my bathrooms. Baking soda, and vinegar work great and cost a lot less than the pretty packaged cleaners that are a lot more expensive.
not really suprised. most of the ads are targeted toward women, they have to make up that money somehow.
Yes, that's sexist. We should sue!
i love this post and it legit expands on some idea i presented in this post: http://www.tripcrazed.com/717578098/the-american-burqa/
i promise they're on the same topic, not just blatantly promoting myself =)
This is a great little article. Very eye-opening. I already purchase some "men's" products, for myself. For one, I ONLY use "men's" razors. They are just SO much better, and still less expensive, than the women's equivalents. There are a few decent ones for women, but they cost about $9 a pop, which is nuts. The only issue with buying men's toiletries, is that the added scents, are usually pretty masculine smelling. I would rather my pits smell like flowers, than Old Spice, ya know? But I am definitely going to have to check out the men's Clinique lotion! I use Dramatically Different, right now, and it's great, but so expensive! I didn't even know that they had a men's line, so I will be checking this out, for sure!
I use a mixture of male and female products, best of both worlds really.
Price isn't a huge issue for me, you learn to accept that in this world women are always going to get treated differently, it's just a fact of life.
hooray for being treated differently cuz i have a vagina!!!!!
-___-
Wow, what bullshit, we shouldn't be charged more!!!
Excellent article! Shame on Chanel, Estee Lauder, Elizabeth Arden... oops all women .
No wonder they're so keen on protecting their products:
http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com/Financial/Estee-Lauder-files-suit-over-fragrance-imitations
Heehee i always knew this :D i use a mans shaver to shave. Not only do they last ALOT longer, they give me a WAY closer shave ((closer than the super expensive woman ones that 'claim' they are the closest shave ever)) ...and if i'm using shaving cream, i use the mens one. The moisterizer in it keeps my legs smooth :D and yeah it smells different than the womans one, but i put lotion on after anyways and you can't smell the cream.
The only thing i buy for women instead of men is face products. But thats because all the sensative skin ones are for women. Oh and i do sneak in womans shampoo xD cos they smell so good! but i share with my hubby.
it's all relative. a lot of guy products are more expensive too. it just depends on what it is. you can't just say "women pay more for stuff." for instance, i wanted to buy a scarf from target. i thought i'd look at the men's scarves since theirs are classier (women's scarves always have tacky prints on them). the men's scarves were twice as much: $25! while the women's scarves were on sale for $10 (marked down from $12.99). men's clothing in general is usually more expensive. plus, men usually pay more for car insurance.
Clothes cost way more for men than for women. Just look at the prices of sweaters or jeans or anything else at Macys or JC Penney.
I'm not really that surprised...a lot of prices are marked up for "prettier" packaging that tends to come w/ products targeted/sold for women.