To think being a woman costs more?

What size bust are you though?

I have big boobs and absolutely need to wear a bra most of the day.

I would get serious back pain after a while if I didn’t.

Period pants aren’t that expensive & don’t need replacing every month.

I agree! People love to be contrary, so yes, it is more expensive to be a woman than a man in regular society. Yes, lots of things are 'nice to have', but as people have demonstrated on these boards time and time again, if you look professional, you will, in the main, be promoted faster. Not having these things puts you at a disadvantage to a greater gender pay gap.

It doesn’t matter how much sanitary products cost - it’s still more than how much a man pays.

So the argument that being a woman is more expensive than a man stands because the things we need cost more money than the things they need.

Agree it’s discretionary spending. But I’m not walking round looking like an ogre, so I’ll stick with my regular hairdressing appointment and make up etc.

Well I've never been to Asia, and that's never going to be compulsory unless it's for work and then they pay.

I wouldn't go anywhere where I thought there was a risk of being raped but I wouldn't help myself to a larger part of the household budget because I was travelling alone and wanted to justify more expensive accommodation. If I choose to take an extra holiday I pay for it all myself.

If we're going to that extent then DP could argue that as a man he needs more food than me so his bill is higher because of that.

I'm 'groomed'. I am clean, my hair is brushed, and my personal hygiene is on point. That is groomed. And I'm a professional in a good career. Being groomed and professional does not mean having expensive hair care, makeup, etc. I'll admit I do have some expensive clothes, but some of them are literally a decade old at this point and still in good condition, so worth the investment. People take me seriously because of the person I can be and the skills I have - not because of the money I have or haven't spent.

It's difficult to frame.

But maybe the minimum level of "socially accepted/expected?" spending for a woman is higher.

The bit in quotes replace with your better term.

To me women are generally expected by society to spend (a lot) more on appearance/fashion/personal care than men.

A lot of mens fashion for example is pretty timeless. You can buy a quality suit and it lasts for years. And noone really cares if you wear it a lot.

I do up to a point. Sanitary products cost a small fortune over a woman's lifetime. I used to suffer every month badly, and went through at least £15 quids worth of stuff. Bra's of course, but it's even knickers tend to me more expensive than mens pants I find. Hair cut - men pay £30, women pay £100. There is a thing called 'pink tax' where things marketed for women are more expensive than those marketed for men. It does annoy me somewhat.

I crossposted. I haven't been to Asia, but I take your point there. Elsewhere I book the hotels I can afford, which are 3 star and use the public transport system or taxis. But men book taxis, too.

I have explained upthread.

Well you know me now, I don't and I'm in that category.

If you're high maintenance, just own that decision.

Same. Don't understand this post, either.

Do you not need a better class of hotel in Asia, say? Not dives. And a better class of transport?

I travel alone all over the place, what's your point?

Well pink tax exits but you have choice

I shave with Aldi own brand ‘men’s ‘ razor (£4.99 for the razor, £3 for 4 blades).

I do get my hair done - my choice

I don’t wax, wear make up daily, rarely wear tights (60 den from Primark).

no nails

I get taxis home from a night out if drinking but ‘dark’ doesn’t = taxi - buses and legs work once the sun goes down

my pants are from Asda, Bras various shops - I own 6 and rotate, period pants save money as well.

so I’m not sure if it costs more to be a woman - but it maybe does if we conform to societies pressure.

Does no one travel alone outside the UK? or even within the UK?

I must be in the 20% then.

Bar period products, I have no more costs than my DH does.

In fact he gets his hair cut more than me.

I don't get my hair cut. Just do it myself. I don't wax. Wear Bras. Wear any makeup. Use any skincare beyond soap and water.

I buy mens t shirts and jumpers because I prefer the material and fit.

I wear the same pair of shoes until they wear out and replace them with the same.

Literally my only woman related expense is period products and associated pain relief!

I'm aware of how much money I must have saved over the years, simply by not wearing makeup or spending on wax treatments. Or buying the blue razors.

But they're making a choice to do those things. It's no more compulsory than football, golf or going to the pub.

If a man said he needed extra spending money for a football season ticket because his boss and all his work colleagues had one, he'd be rightly told where to go. Same argument goes for all this apparently compulsory grooming. You don’t have to do it and nothing bad happens if you don't do it.

I feel like a guy listening to these "norms" because I am totally clueless. 🙈

Period products and bras are the only things you have a point with. Everything else IS a choice.

You only have to look at a high street and see how many nail bars/ salons/ beauticians there are.

All of the women on these thread cutting their hair and going bare faced are certainly the exception in my areas. Under 40, I'd say 80% of women are groomed and wearing make up/ expensive skincare/ hair coloured- clearly professionally and wearing far more clothes than equivalent men.

Yes it costs more to be the average woman in society than man, everyone's being so obtuse saying its not.

Yes, femininity is expensive.

We may want to smash the Patriarchy but we still have to live here. Good for any woman who never dyes hair or wears makeup. I confess, it's not me. We all pay a price for not knuckling down to beauty standards. It comes in how people treat you.

Yes and no.

Being a woman costs more for the simple fact we have periods.

But beyond that, no.

I don't pay for, buy or use any of the following:

Hair dressers
Waxing
Bras
Taxis
Anything else on your list.

So your list is totally optional and not needed.