The article calls attention to gender as a dimension of the expansion of US consumer debt. The first section emphasizes that gender is not a dummy variable but an evolution of habits of thought. The second section discusses how changing gender relations are connected to gendered product differentiation and market expansion. In the final section we connect gendered market expansion and changing gender habits of thought to the expansion of consumer borrowing. We argue that in addition to the acknowledged role of credit, gender relations have also masked the structural financial fragility of households.JEL categories: B52, B54, D14, R20 2