Competitive dressing in the workplace is fast increasing and women spend 18 per cent of their salary - an average of 341 pounds a month - on their working clothes.
Seven out of ten women are under pressure to dress to get noticed, found the survey carried out by Brother UK, a company that supplies office products.
One in four women said they have consciously changed the way they dress to compete with colleagues and sixty per cent have bought new clothes to help them further their career.
Women also admitted labelling their colleagues based on their office attire.
Over half of women admitted they judged their female colleagues based on what they wear to work and over a third worry about what people would think if they wear the same clothes too often.
"This research shows how important office appearance is, and how women are consciously using clothes as tools to get ahead," Grace Woodward, celebrity fashion stylist who worked with Brother on the study, said.