'Being A Woman Is So Expensive': Student's Post On X Ignites Pink Tax Discussion

Men and women frequently purchase identical day-to-day things. However, research reveals that consumer goods promoted and targeted towards women are often priced higher than equivalent goods marketed towards men. This distinction is referred to as the pink tax. This gender-based pricing is an extra cost for items that are normally marketed to women. It is only the firms enacting this tax that stand to gain from it. A heated argument arose on X (formerly Twitter) when a medical student shed light on the issue. The MBBS student gave practical examples to support her conclusions about the price gap.

She started by noting, “Being a woman is so expensive.” She said that the average monthly cost of period hygiene products is about Rs 150.

She continued by saying that a decent bra should cost between Rs. 400 and Rs. 500, and that “you need a good supportive bra to workout/run/sports which costs anywhere around Rs. 800-1500.”

On average, she said, women spend 7% more than males for comparable items. Examples of the extra costs women incur include 50% more for income protection, 29% more for razors, 16% more for body wash, etc.

“Most pink tax is found in personal care items and clothing,” she stated.

“On average women pay around $1300 (Rs 1 Lakh +) more than men for the same goods and services.”

The post got almost 7 lakh views on the social media platform. Reactions in the comments section were divided, with some people claiming that men usually foot the bill for these kinds of things.

A user commented, “And we the Men pay these all costs as Father or Husband !!!!!”

Another user mentioned, “One of my friends had a friend who had left his corporate job and started a business of these products. Heard he had up to 1000% margin.”

A third user said, “My wife is also a working woman, but whenever she visits a beauty parlour she takes my credit card.”

Meanwhile, a user mentioned, “and the main cost of skincare and other stuff as well.”

While some men suggested working harder and changing the gender, a women stated, “All these are related to health and hygiene. Taking care of your health at the right time is the most important thing that you can do without caring about the money you spent into it, lest more of your money should go into treating any health-related issues.”

The comments section was engaged in a heated debate.