A new survey confirms what many probably suspected: raising a daughter costs more than raising a son -- especially in a few specific categories.
After surveying parents from around the country, MoneyTips found that 60% of parents believed that their daughters cost them more than their sons. This belief was substantiated by the monthly cost estimates they provided.
$80 more per month
The survey looked at Boy Vs. Girl costs in five categories: food, school, extracurricular activities, clothes, and transportation.
There were no categories in which boys cost parents more than girls. However, there were two categories -- clothing and school supplies -- in which parents reported spending more on daughters than they did on sons.
How much more? MoneyTips estimates that parents spend $80 per month more on girls, which works out to $960 more per year and $17,280 over the course of the next 18 years.
Expensive clothes and parties
What, specifically, tends to drive up the cost of raising a daughter? Fancy dresses may be one culprit, but there are other areas where girls seem to have more expensive taste.
A study by lovemoney.com found that girls cost more than boys because they have more expensive hobbies, wear more expensive clothing, and throw more expensive parties.
But when the holidays roll around, it's the boys who may take a bigger bite out of parents' wallets. The study found that parents spent more on Christmas presents for their sons than for their daughters.