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Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2021

Are men and women often charged different prices for the same goods and services?

Lisa Freedland, Gigafact
yes

Some products marketed for women have been priced higher than identical products marketed to men, often differentiated only by packaging or descriptions. A distinguishing feature can be use of the color pink, giving rise to the term “pink tax” for such practices.

A 2015 study by New York City’s consumer affairs department analyzed price differences for about 800 goods including toys, clothing and personal-care products. It found that women’s products cost more 42% of the time, while men’s products cost more 18% of the time.

California banned gender distinctions in service pricing in 1995, but there are no rules against the practice in much of the U.S. A 2016 analysis from a congressional committee found evidence of unfair gender-based pricing in services. New York state enacted a broad prohibition on “pink taxes,” covering goods as well as services, in 2020.

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