Price difference in products targeted for women in Argentina 2018-2024
In 2024, products targeted toward women in Argentina cost an average of 11 percent more than products targeted toward men, despite possessing similar functions and characteristics. Four years prior, in 2020, the price difference amounted to over 12 percent. Over the past six consecutive years, the average gender-based price difference, also referred to as pink tax, corresponded to 12 percent.
The Pink Tax
The gender-based price difference known as pink tax refers to the tendency to sell products marketed for women at a higher price. However, this concept is nothing new. According to research from Germany from 2016, products of the same brand are much more expensive for women than men. For instance, women paid an average of 47 percent more than men for day creams and around 55 percent more for perfumes. And a 2019 study from France indicated that three-quarters of perfumes were more expensive in their women’s version than in their men’s version.
The Feminine Hygiene Market
Personal care and hygiene products are particularly affected by the pink tax, especially because female hygiene products are taxed at rates higher than expected for essential items and are even classified in tax brackets for luxury items in some countries. While efforts have been made to reduce the so-called “tampon tax” in Europe, such as Germany reducing taxes on feminine hygiene products to 7 percent from 19 percent in 2020, none of the EU-27 countries have fully eliminated this tax. The global market value of just sanitary napkins amounted to 20.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2018 and is projected to reach roughly 28 billion dollars in 2024.