A joint report recently released by Art Basel and UBS has found that, in comparison to men, high-net-worth (HNW) women spend more money on art collecting. In 2024 alone, women collectors outspent their male counterparts by 46%, as based on a sampling of 3,100 HNW individuals across 10 major markets.
Although male Gen X and boomer collectors outspent their women counterparts, Gen Z and millennial women outperformed men, according to the report. As for what they were buying, women collectors gravitated more toward works by female artists, seeing a 10% higher share on these works in contrast to that of men. Notably, this trend was also reflected in their holdings: 49% of the works in women’s collections were by female artists, compared with just 40% in men’s. In Mainland China, women collectors were also spending more than twice as much as their male compatriots.
“There are pockets of very high spending,” Clare McAndrew, founder of Arts Economics and author of the recent report, noted. “In Mainland China in particular, a small but very wealthy group of women are spending a lot on art—quite a bit more than men. Over the past few years their influence has grown—building private collections, setting up museums.”
Aside from this, women seemed more likely to pursue “riskier purchases,” per Art Basel. Unlike men, women were much more likely to buy work by an unknown artist, at 55% versus 44%. They were also inclined to admit publicly that their taste in art differed from that of their peers, offering a glimpse into how risk management—or a lack thereof—has impacted the art market across gender lines.
“Most of the academic literature casts women as more risk-averse in fields like finance, sports, and healthcare,” McAndrews added. “In our research, the picture is more nuanced. Female collectors are clear-eyed about risk and often more attuned to it—but, despite this, they are more likely to act and take chances when it comes to their collecting. You could say they feel the fear and do it anyway.”
Across both genders, the average spending last year was $438,990 on an average of 14 works. Still, UBS estimates that women controlled more than a third of global wealth by the end of 2024—a contributing factor, perhaps, to the study’s results. Today, women as well as the younger generations command more capital and, in turn, play a significant role in reshaping art collecting, which seemingly skews toward female and emerging artists.
“The survey portrays a market in transition,” Art Basel concludes in a statement. “In 2025, there are more routes than ever from studio to wall, as traditional players adapt to a new generation of collectors and artists who want to do things differently.”
To dig deeper into these findings, you can download the full Art Basel and UBS Survey of Global Collecting 2025.
According to a new report released by Art Basel and UBS, women allocate more money toward collecting art than men.
In 2024 alone, women collectors outspent their male counterparts by 46%.
The report states: “In Mainland China in particular, a small but very wealthy group of women are spending a lot on art—quite a bit more than men.”
Sources: The New Power Buyers: How Women Are Rewriting the Rules of Art Collecting; Art Basel and UBS Survey of Global Collecting 2025; Wealthy women spend more on art than men, Art Basel report reveals
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