Clients of prostitutes or sex workers are sometimes known as johns[citation needed] or tricks in North America and punters in Britain and Ireland.
In common parlance among sex workers as well as with others, the act of negotiating and then engaging with a client is referred to as turning a trick.
In some places, men who drive around red-light districts for the purpose of soliciting prostitutes are also known as kerb crawlers.
[4] Studies reveal that most clients seek out sex with prostitutes to satisfy otherwise unfulfilled sexual desires or simply as a means to establish social bonds with women.
"[7] According to Sabine Grenz of the University of Gothenburg, clients come from all socio-economic classes, and include "stockbrokers, truck drivers, teachers, priests or law-enforcement officials.
[10] According to Melissa Farley, executive director of Prostitution Research & Education, 60% of clients wear condoms.
[13] In Canada, the average age of a client is between 38 and 42 years old who has purchased sex roughly 100 times over their lifetime.
[20] According to Chris Atchison, a former sociology instructor at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada, and founder of John's Voice, clients are verbally abused, robbed and physically assaulted at a rate of 18%, 14% and 4% respectively[21].
[34] In some nations where prostitution is legal such as the Netherlands, rather than being viewed as accessories to human trafficking, clients are called on to join efforts to eradicate its practice by being asked to look out for signs of abuse.
[36] In 2023, advocates for the decriminalization of sex work in Canada had their constitutional challenge dismissed by the Ontario Superior Court.