Gender differentials in disaster preparedness might reflect differences between men and women in environmental concerns, risk perception, intrahousehold agreement, altruism, access to assets and resources and in the perceived effectiveness of the preparedness action. This study aims to empirically explore gender differences in disaster preparedness drawing on rich survey data for two emerging economies: Brazil (2015/16) and Thailand (2013). It aims to answer three research questions: Are there gender differentials in preparedness, everything held constant? Does the education level of the respondent interact with gender in escalating (undermining) preparedness? Does the previous disaster experience of the respondent interact with gender in escalating (undermining) preparedness? We apply a quasi-experimental research design based on regression adjustment. Taken together, our results challenge the existence of a gendered nature of preparedness to floods, as we find no clear-cut pattern for gender effects, controlling for demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, past exposure, and flood risk.