Shopping and make-up boost female surfers

The number of UK women surfing the web is rising but men still make up over half of the total internet users, according to a study by research company Nielsen/NetRatings.

The UK, along with Sweden, has the highest proportion of female surfers at just over 45 per cent of those online.

The total figure across Europe is 42 per cent, up from 41 per cent last year but the research claims the rate of growth is so slow it will be 2010 before as many women as men are online.

This contrasts starkly with the US, where 51 per cent of surfers are female.

Tom Ewing, European market analyst at Nielsen/NetRatings, said more sites need to aim content specifically at women.

“Getting more women online matters because there is still the perception of the internet as a very male-dominated place. That needs to change in order for a greater range of sites to win a large female audience. Changes are taking place but it’s a very slow process in some markets,” he said in a statement.

The study found the sites that attracted female surfers most included shopping, travel, education, finance and health and beauty sites. UK websites with the greatest proportion of women users included Abbey National, Debenhams, Marks & Spencer, Next and Tesco according to the research.