A Confidence Gap Leads More Women To Overpay On Their Car Loan

Caribou’s survey reveals more women struggle to afford their car payments, yet men are nearly twice as likely to refinance for a better loan.

There is a well-documented gender divide in how Americans earn, save, and invest. Various studies show that women earn less, save less for retirement, and report lower financial confidence than men.¹ What’s less often examined is how that divide plays out in the specific, high-stakes experience of managing an auto loan, one of the largest monthly obligations Americans carry.

Caribou’s 2026 Car Loan Sentiment Survey of 2,000 U.S. auto loan holders surfaces a striking pattern: women experience more financial strain than men when it comes to their car payments, yet they are less likely to have taken action to lower them.² Men are nearly twice as likely to have checked whether they qualify for a better rate (39% vs. 20% of women), and more likely to report that they’ve refinanced an auto loan. Why that may be the case comes down to a major confidence gap along gender lines.

Women report more financial stress and more doubt. A “pink tax” may explain both. 

The financial pressure women feel around their car payments shows up clearly in the data. Twenty-six percent of women say their current car payment is difficult to afford, compared to 17% of men. 

For women, this financial strain goes back to their experience at the dealership. Women are more likely than men to doubt whether they received the best deal when they originally financed their vehicle, a skepticism that correlates with academic research. A study published in Marketing Science found that female car buyers are charged higher dealer interest rate markups than men purchasing identical vehicles from the same dealership in the same week, a disparity researchers have described as a “pink tax” in auto lending.³

However, one finding in Caribou’s survey reveals a surprising deviation. Men were more likely than women to report feeling pressured during their original financing process (47% vs. 42% of women). A possible explanation could be that men may simply feel the stakes more acutely, both because they tend to approach dealership negotiations expecting a favorable outcome, and because societal norms have long held men to a higher standard of financial savviness. Either way, neither group ends the process with much confidence. Only about 1 in 5 borrowers across both genders say they “definitely” received the best financing terms available.

Women would use car loan savings for essentials. Men would use it to invest.

When asked what they would do with $150 in monthly savings from refinancing, men and women revealed a clear difference in how they experience financial pressure.

Women are more likely than men to say they’d use those savings to pay down other debt (66% vs. 53% of men) or cover everyday expenses like groceries and gas (61% vs. 50% of men). Men, by contrast, are more likely to direct savings toward longer-term investments (44% vs. 35% of women). 

For a significant share of women borrowers, lowering a car payment is not an optimization exercise but rather a way to get out from under debt or cover essential expenses. 

Men report higher confidence in financial literacy—and that leads to action. 

The most consistent explanation for the gender gap in refinancing action is self-reported financial confidence. Men in Caribou’s survey are about 1.6 times more likely than women to describe themselves as very confident in their understanding of personal finance topics, and that confidence tracks closely with behavior. Borrowers who feel financially knowledgeable are more likely to seek out better rates, check their eligibility, and follow through.

Thirty-nine percent of men have checked to see if they qualify for a better rate, compared to 20% of women. Sixty-three percent of men say they’re likely to consider refinancing in the next 12 months, compared to 48% of women.

Men and women also differ in where they turn when researching refinancing options. Women are more likely to start with well-known and established sources such as banks or credit unions (34% vs. 22% of men), while men express more interest in financial websites and generative AI tools. 

Buying behavior may also play a role in refinancing interest. Men in the survey are more likely to have purchased new cars (73% vs. 52% of women), which tend to carry higher loan balances. In a higher-rate environment, the monthly dollar savings from refinancing a larger balance are simply bigger, which may make the decision feel more worth pursuing.

A confidence gap means money left on the table for borrowers who need it most.

Across virtually every dimension of Caribou’s survey—payment difficulty, doubt about original deal terms, intended use of savings—women are carrying more of the financial weight that refinancing is designed to relieve. Men and women both recognize the benefits of refinancing, but what differs is whether that awareness turns into action.

For women already stretched thin by their monthly payments, the gap isn’t an abstraction. It’s real money—potentially thousands of dollars a year—that stays locked in a loan most have never thought to challenge. For those ready to revisit their car loan, Caribou’s auto refinance calculator can estimate how much you could save by refinancing.