The Gender Wealth Gap

Why women around the world own less wealth than men, from inheritance and land rights to earnings and care work, and how laws are changing.

Women on average own less wealth than men. This gender wealth gap is often larger than the gender pay gap, because it reflects not only earnings but also inheritance, property ownership and years spent out of paid work.

Causes

Lower lifetime earnings: pay gaps and time spent in unpaid care work reduce women’s ability to save.
Inheritance customs: in many societies, land and property have traditionally passed to sons.
Property registered to men: homes and land are often owned in a husband’s or father’s name.
Pension gaps: fewer years in paid work mean smaller pensions.
Financial access: women may have less access to bank accounts, credit and investment.

India’s legal changes

India’s Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005, gave daughters equal rights with sons to inherit ancestral property in Hindu families. A 2020 Supreme Court ruling clarified that daughters have these rights regardless of whether their father was alive when the law was amended.

Research by economists including Sanchari Roy, Siwan Anderson and Sonia Bhalotra found that earlier state-level reforms giving women equal inheritance rights were associated with improvements such as more education for daughters, though some studies also found unintended effects, such as increased conflict or son preference in some settings. Actual inheritance by women still lags the legal rights, as social norms and family pressure often lead women to give up their share.

Why it matters

Security: women with assets are better protected in case of divorce, widowhood or crises.
Bargaining power: ownership strengthens women’s influence in household decisions.
Protection from violence: some studies suggest women who own property are less vulnerable to domestic violence.
Access to credit, since property can be collateral.

Policies that help

Lower stamp duty for property registered in women’s names, offered by many Indian states.
Joint titling of homes, as encouraged under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana housing scheme.
Bank accounts for women, as expanded through Jan Dhan.
Enforcing inheritance rights.

The house in both names

A couple buys a home under a housing scheme that encourages registering it jointly or in the woman's name, with a lower stamp duty for women. Years later, when the husband dies, the wife's ownership is clear, and she is protected from losing her home to disputes with relatives.

Thinking equal laws mean equal ownership

Legal rights are essential, but social norms often lead women to give up inheritance in favour of brothers. Closing the gap requires awareness and enforcement as well as laws.

Key takeaways

Women own less wealth than men, often by more than the pay gap would suggest.
Causes include lower earnings, care work, inheritance customs and property registered to men.
India's 2005 amendment gave Hindu daughters equal inheritance rights, clarified by the Supreme Court in 2020.
Stamp duty concessions, joint titling and financial inclusion help close the gap.