The two biggest factors that increase your chances of suffering migraines are being a female and having close relatives with migraines (or another headache disorder such as cluster headaches). If both of your parents have migraines, you are very likely to have them as well, and even if only one parent has them you are at increased risk for eventually getting migraines.

Women are around three times as likely to suffer from migraines as men. In general, younger women are more likely to be affected than older women and many women tend to have headaches just before or shortly after onset of menstruation. For these women, pregnancy or menopause may also change the frequency or severity of their migraines.