TryGOLD- Free

What's It Really Like to Be a Stay-at-Home Girlfriend?
Cosmopolitan US|Fall 2024
Spoiler: The junior tradwife life isn't as rosy as it looks online.
- ERIKA W. SMITH
What's It Really Like to Be a Stay-at-Home Girlfriend?

By this point, you've definitely seen a tradwife come across your social feeds. Watching their videos is like getting slingshotted into the past. Clad in 1950s-style aprons, newborns strapped to their chests, these women make cereal and snack crackers from scratch while embodying ultratraditional gender roles. "The man, he is the provider, the main breadwinner....The woman, the wife, she is a homemaker....She does the cooking and the cleaning," declares Estee Williams (@Estee CWilliams) to her more than 190,000 TikTok followers in one video. Taken collectively, #tradwife posts like these read like a pre-Feminine Mystique guide to middle-class white womanhood one that's attracting a growing number of younger, unmarried women eager to try out the lifestyle for themselves as stay-athome girlfriends, or SAHGs.

Perhaps the sheer size of these popular fandoms is the appeal. Nara Smith (@NaraAzizaSmith) and Hannah Neeleman (@BallerinaFarm), mega-influencers whom many view as tradwives, have 7.6 million followers on TikTok and 9 million followers on Instagram, respectively. Perhaps it's the aspirational homes, the carefully curated hair and makeup looks, all those picture-perfect baked goods. Maybe it's the promise of a more secure, less stressful life-a tantalizing lure for overworked, underpaid young women. Or maybe all of the above are why terms like "Stay-at-Home Girlfriend," "Life as a Stay-at-Home Girlfriend," "Stay-at-home

GF," and "SAH GF" each have somewhere between 23 million and 43 million posts on TikTok alone.

This story is from the Fall 2024 edition of Cosmopolitan US.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the Fall 2024 edition of Cosmopolitan US.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM COSMOPOLITAN USView All
Forever and Always
Cosmopolitan US

Forever and Always

Real ones know that before everything else, Rihanna was a Cosmo girl.

time-read
1 min  |
Spring 2025
State of Gracie
Cosmopolitan US

State of Gracie

Pop star Gracie Abrams has built a millions-strong fandom on songs about heartbreak. But she's a real sucker for Valentine's Day.

time-read
8 mins  |
Spring 2025
DATING ACROSS THE LINES
Cosmopolitan US

DATING ACROSS THE LINES

There's no question that we're living-and looking for love-in contentious times, where extreme political ideologies have all but divided parts of the dating pool. Or have they? Vera Papisova investigates.

time-read
10+ mins  |
Spring 2025
Serena Page & Kordell Beckham Exit the Villa
Cosmopolitan US

Serena Page & Kordell Beckham Exit the Villa

They won big on Love Island USA. Now the reality stars turned America's unofficial first couple are talking fame and fashion.

time-read
4 mins  |
Spring 2025
Olivie Blake Doesn't Mind if You Know Her Secret
Cosmopolitan US

Olivie Blake Doesn't Mind if You Know Her Secret

The author of the viral Atlas series is stepping away from the fantasy genre with her next book, Gifted & Talented. For our new column The Scroll, she shares an exclusive excerpt and reveals what it's really like to write a bestseller.

time-read
2 mins  |
Spring 2025
Post-Birth Control Syndrome Is Real
Cosmopolitan US

Post-Birth Control Syndrome Is Real

Millions struggle with symptoms after going off the pill. Why is it so hard for them to find answers?

time-read
3 mins  |
Spring 2025
The Sweet Life of Mack and Brenda
Cosmopolitan US

The Sweet Life of Mack and Brenda

The very private couple is finally ready to hard-launch.

time-read
10 mins  |
Spring 2025
The Stars on Your Favorite Stars
Cosmopolitan US

The Stars on Your Favorite Stars

In every issue, astrologers break down the cosmic compatibility of celebrity couples. Are they meant to be...or will they have broken up by the time this story comes out?

time-read
3 mins  |
Spring 2025
There Are Many Ways to Polyamory
Cosmopolitan US

There Are Many Ways to Polyamory

Your guide to understanding it all.

time-read
3 mins  |
Spring 2025
Everybody Loves Kiernan Shipka
Cosmopolitan US

Everybody Loves Kiernan Shipka

The 25-year-old actor has been laserfocused on her career since her days as a child star on Mad Men--but now, after releasing five whole movies this year (!), she's ready for something else.

time-read
1 min  |
Spring 2025

We use cookies to provide and improve our services. By using our site, you consent to cookies. Learn more