It's true, women have come a long, long way — especially in the world of economic equality. But despite it being the 21st century, women are still being punished by the "pink tax" — the extra money we pay for everyday items and experiences...
1.
"Haircuts: I wear my hair very short, as short as most men; it's cut with clippers and a small amount with shears. It takes my stylist 10 minutes to wet, cut, and dry my hair, and I pay double what she charges men. I never go back and have her 'fix' things."
2.
"Canesten/clotrimazole is a cream for fungal infections like yeast infections or athlete's foot. The name-brand marketed for athlete's foot is around $3 cheaper than the same size of the same product marketed toward yeast infections, at least in my area."
"Fun fact: When I worked at a pharmacy years ago, an angry older man put up an enormous tantrum because he was prescribed clotrimazole for athlete's foot, and the pharmacist gave him Canesten in a pink box labeled for yeast infections, even though his insurance covered more of that type than the blue box for athlete's foot.
I don’t know if he thought he would spontaneously grow a vagina or something, but he was happier to pay $9 more to make sure all the employees knew he was coochie-free."
—u/neuro_illogical
3.
"Car repair and home-related repair/upgrades. I've dealt with certain people or businesses many times who try to blatantly gouge me in both industries and tell me things that were wildly untrue because they assumed I was a 'stupid' woman who didn't know anything."
—[deleted]
4.
"Sterilization — it's more expensive, more invasive, and has higher risks for women. Plus, a lot of younger child-free women get turned down by doctors who invalidate their personal decision regarding their own bodies with comments like 'you're too young to know,' 'what if your hypothetical future husband wants kids (even though you don't),' 'but being a mother is the best thing a woman can be/ultimate thing she should want,' and similar remarks."
5.
"Underwear."
—u/GrayDottedPony
"I'm 26, and I've started wearing men's boxer briefs at home as pajama bottoms because they’re so comfy. I have since noticed ads for 'lady boxers' and other brands of boxer briefs 'made for women' that are three times the price of men's.
Was the marketing team thinking, 'Women are saving money by buying men's underwear? Better trick them into paying the pink tax again.'"
—u/SmallCouchPotato
6.
"Any parent-related products targeted at mothers, like diaper bags. I’ve seen ads for diaper bags for dads vs. mums, and the women's was dumb — a diaper bag isn’t supposed to be fashionable; it’s supposed to be functional."
—u/BundleOfSad
7.
"Denim — not just in terms of money but in time, too. Most men can pop into any store, from Walmart to Nordstrom, buy their size, and it will fit. Women have to try on a million different pairs just to find jeans that fit, and then have them tailored."
8.
"Mortgages, car loans, dry cleaning services, and especially health care and health insurance (women pay more for health insurance as they are considered 'higher risk' since they visit the doctor more frequently)."
"The one thing men generally pay more for is car insurance."
—u/lydviciousss
9.
"Deodorant! And I don’t understand why. As a result, I’ve purchased men’s deodorant for the past few years, and I see no downsides: it smells better, it’s cheaper, and it lasts longer."
—u/starskyandbutch
10.
"Menstrual products: I worked at the retail store where my country buys its products, and I was SHOCKED because I didn’t understand what the 'pink tax' truly was, and the moment I saw the pack of pads I use that cost around $6 (at the cheapest store) was $1.50 for stores to buy and resell made me sick to my stomach."
11.
"Glasses can be more expensive. My glasses had to be reshaped multiple times because they were the only option, which were men's, as they were the only square lenses offered at the time and cheaper than the majority of the dainty women's selection they gave me."
—u/BundleOfSad
12.
"Undershirts. I try to avoid buying shirts that may 'require' them, but occasionally I get one, and I've found that women's undershirts (camis) are usually at least $10 each, whereas you can buy a five-pack of men's for $25–30, so I buy those now."
—[deleted]
13.
"The thing I'm still struggling to come to terms with is how much money I spend on looking presentable for work while knowing the gender wage gap is real. Men mostly get the privilege of looking the same at work as they do at home; however, women don't often get that privilege. We're expected to pay more for grooming than our male counterparts by the very men paying us less."
15.
"Literally pink-colored products. And I don't mean the same item in one package marketed to men and another for women — just everyday products that come in a variety of colors, but somehow the pink ones are inexplicably more expensive. For example, when I was still doing deployments, it was popular for people to have noise-canceling headphones, usually in black. I got a pink pair so it would be easier to tell which ones were mine, since I was one of the very few women around. The pink variety inexplicably cost significantly more than black. If the same item comes in multiple color varieties, usually black and blue will be cheapest, but pink will have some markup."
16.
"I’ve seen identical kids' toys with the only difference being the gender they are marketed to, and the 'girl version' typically costs more."
—[deleted]
17.
And finally: "Life in general costs more for women! It starts with menstruation-related items (pads, tampons, menstrual cups) that men typically don't need to worry about, contraceptive-related costs (daily contraceptive pill, IUD), pregnancy-related costs (vitamins/supplements, scans and treatments depending on where you live), and even postpartum complications (dealing with hemorrhoids, prolapse, varicose veins, etc.)."
"Then some things that should cost the same for men and women don't — even 'razors for women' cost more due to the pink tax. It all leaves me rolling my eyes."
—u/DoctorElleGee
Did any of these surprise you? Women, what common items or habits are you still paying a "pink tax" on? Feel free to tell us in the comments or answer anonymously using the form below!
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.
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