How Wealthy Women Are Changing the World of Art Investing

Let us paint you a picture …

A well-diversified portfolio traditionally includes stocks, bonds, maybe a little real estate and perhaps some gold or private equity. But today, a growing share of wealthy investors’ assets are buying up prized artworks. High-net-worth collectors allocated an average of 20% of their wealth to art this year, up from 15% in 2024, according to the latest Art Basel and UBS survey. Ultra-high-net-worth investors with over $50 million in assets allocated 28% of their portfolios to art.

Notably, women — long stereotyped as more risk-averse — are now outspending men, reflecting greater earnings, financial literacy and inheritance, the research found. “A big part of the story is who has the wealth,” said Paul Donovan, chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Management. “We’re seeing a major global demographic shift in the growing wealth of women and the increasing share of female HNWIs.”

Sisterhood of Dada

Wealthy women investors are not only spending more on art than men, but they’re also more willing to fill out their collections with works from lesser-known artists and pieces from less-traditional media. Much of that shift is being fueled by the Great Wealth Transfer, which is first putting tens of trillions of dollars in women’s portfolios. “More wealth and inheritance in women’s hands means broader taste and greater openness to new works,” Donovan told Advisor Upside.

The study, which looked at data from last year and the first half of this year, found:

• Women’s average spending on art and antiques was 46% higher than men in 2024, and about 7% of women spent more than $1 million on art in the first half of 2025.
• Paintings are still king (or queen) in the art world, but compared with men, women are more likely to have photographs, films, digital art and emerging media in their collections. 
• High-net-worth women also have larger shares of works by female artists and new talent.

The Young Folks. Millennials and Gen Z are showing similar patterns. The Facebook generation led spending on decorative art and jewelry. Meanwhile, the TikTok crowd prefers handbags and digital art. Gen Z particularly likes sneakers, spending nearly five times higher on shoes than any other age group. 

“Collectors are showing greater openness to discovery,” said Donovan. “Keep women and next-gen collectors front of mind: They’re shaping discovery and broadening what gets seen and bought.”