In 2025, women accounted for 47 percent of gamers in the United States, up from 46 percent of U.S. gamers identifying as women during the previous year.

What percentage gamers are female? Almost half of gaming audiences in the United States are female. This development has been ongoing for years, and whereas women are under-represented in games media and the industry, they make up a sizable chunk of gamers and spending power. There are some differences in terms of genre preferences but as a whole, female gaming audiences in the United States are just as engaged as their male counterparts.

As of March 2025, ** percent of video gamers in the United States were female, with the remaining ** percent of U.S. video gaming audiences were male. Currently, there are approximately *** million gamers in the United States.

As of March 2025, 27 percent of female adults in the United States spent one to five hours per week playing video games. A further 20 percent of female respondents stated that they spent six to ten hours on video gaming in an average week. In contrast, 12 percent of male respondents indicated that they spent 11 to 15 hours per week on video games. Overall, 17 percent of responding women were non-gamers and did not spend any time on video games but only 14 percent male adults in the United States were a non-gamer.

A survey conducted in the third quarter of 2024 found that over 92 percent of female internet users aged 16 to 24 years worldwide played video games on any kind of device. During the survey period, 93 percent of male respondents in the same age group stated that they played video games. Worldwide, over 83 percent of internet users were gamers.

As of March 2025, approximately 48 percent of gaming audiences in the United Kingdom (UK) were female, with the other 52 percent being male. In 2022, there were approximately 39.9 million gamers in the United Kingdom.

In 2024, men in the United States spent approximately 42.6 minutes per day on games and using a computer for leisure. General video gaming use among the U.S. population increased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Between May and December 2020, U.S. men spent an average 49.2 daily minutes on playing games and using computers for leisure, up from 36 minutes per day in the corresponding period of 2019. Women spent an average 25.8 minutes per day on gaming and leisure computer use.

According to a February 2025 survey of gaming audiences in the United States, male gamers were more likely than female ones to play video games for at least one hour per week — with one exception. Among the Boomer generation, 52 percent of female gamers played video games for at least an hour weekly, while only 55 percent of male gamers in that age group stated the same.

A January 2021 survey of global gaming audiences found that **** percent of female and **** percent of male gamers played more than ** hours of video games a week. In total, the average time spent on gaming per week amounted to **** hours.

A September to November 2024 survey found that 69 percent of male UK gamers ever played games online. The online gaming reach among female gamers in the United Kingdom was 57 percent, up from 23 percent in 2018. In the most recently measured period, young people were most likely to play games online, with online gaming penetration among those aged 16 to 24 standing at 82 percent.

A September to November 2024 survey of UK adults aged 16 years and older found that 85 percent of respondents aged between 16 and 24 years played video games, down from a 92 percent gaming penetration among the same age group in 2020. Overall, gaming uptake increased in 2020 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Video games industry in the UK In 2023, consumers in the United Kingdom spent over 3.16 billion British pounds on digital and online games. In regard to the annual contribution of the video games industry to the UK Gross Domestic Product, it amounted to 3.68 billion British pounds in 2023. Mobile games The popularity of mobile gaming increased over the last decade and overtook games consoles and TV for the first time in 2014. As of 2024, approximately 34 percent of UK adults reported playing games on their mobile phone, the highest rate ever reported. The most downloaded gaming apps in the UK include puzzle and casual titles such as Supermarket Simulator and Block Blast.

According to a survey of global internet audiences in the third quarter of 2024, 83.6 percent of internet users played video games on any device. The Philippines had the highest video gaming usage reach, ranking first with a gaming penetration of 96.6 percent. Indonesia ranked second, with 96.4 percent of responding internet users stating that they played video games. The United Kingdom and Japan ranked last, with 71.1 and 64.4 percent of internet users, respectively, reporting their participation in video gaming. The impact of mobile gaming The global gaming penetration among online users was over 83 percent, highlighting how much of a mainstream hobby gaming has become. Additionally, as shown by the many mobile-first digital markets with strong gaming reach, the impact of readily available mobile gaming devices cannot be overstated. A survey from the third quarter of 2024 found that smartphones were the most popular way to play video games worldwide, with more than 67 percent of respondents stating to play video games in such a way. This usage rate was miles ahead of second-ranked laptop or desktop PCs, which only 34 percent of global gamers stated to use. Who are the global gaming audiences? A survey conducted in the third quarter of 2023 found that 89.6 percent of female internet users aged 16 to 24 years worldwide played video games on any kind of device. During the survey period, 92.6 percent of male respondents in the same age group stated that they played video games. Gaming is a more popular activity among younger age groups, but even seven in ten respondents between 55 and 64 years old stated that they were gamers. Gaming genre preferences vary by age group, but overall, shooters and action-adventure games rank first in terms of popularity among users. Other popular gaming genres were simulation and sports games.

Video gaming is no longer just a hobby for teenage boys - it is enjoyed by people of all genders, ethnicities, and ages, and this is beginning to be reflected in the representation of society within video games. In 2016, just two percent of video games had female protagonists, but this figure jumped to 18 percent in 2020.

As of 2024, approximately a third of first-person shooter (FPS) gaming audiences in the United States were female. Men accounted for the majority of shooter gamers. Shooters are one of the most popular video gaming genres, and the most prominent example is the best-selling Call of Duty series.

According to a survey between September and October 2023, boys in the United States were more likely to identify as gamers than girls. In total, ** percent of male teen survey respondents aged 13 to 17 years stated that they played video games and ** percent said they identified as gamers. While ** percent of responding teen girls also played video games, only ** percent of the group also self-identified as a gamer.

A September to November 2024 survey of UK adults aged 16 years and older found that almost three in ten male respondents had ever played games on a gaming console. In the United Kingdom, men were more likely to play console games than women, but female console gaming audiences grew significantly since 2019. Console gaming is the second-most popular type of video gaming in the UK, ranking only behind mobile gaming in terms of audience reach.

According to a survey that was conducted in August 2024, **** percent of male internet users in Japan played online games. Women were less likely than men to play online games.

An October 2021 survey of gaming audiences in the United States found that a significant majority of female gamers preferred to play single player games where the only opponent was the game or the computer. Only ** percent of male respondents stated the same. Over a quarter of male respondents stated that their main way of gaming was online with friends, highlighting the social aspect of gaming as an activity.

In Sweden, men watch other people playing video games more often than women. This is the result of a survey, conducted in 2019, among online gamers aged 12 years and older. In detail, roughly a quarter of male respondents stated to use platforms like Twitch or YouTube to watch people playing video games. By contrast, the share of women was nine percent.

When it comes to pC/laptop video game players in the United States, 42 percent of female consumers fall into this category in the U.S.Statista Consumer Insights offer you all results of our exclusive Statista surveys, based on more than 2,000,000 interviews.

Nearly 70 percent of Hungarian men were video game players as of 2020. At the same time, more than five out of ten women played video games.