OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence and characteristics of women with history of induced abortion among those who became pregnant, living in Vila Mariana, São Paulo, in 2006. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study involving 555 women, aged 15-49 with history of pregnancy. The women were classified as being without abortion (68.5%), with spontaneous abortion (22.7%) or induced abortion (8.8%). Age, education, number of live births, difference of number of children from the desired, and acceptance of abortion comprised the initial multinomial logistic regression model to describe the profile of women. RESULTS: The odds ratio of having carried on without abortion induced abortion was 28.3 times (p<0.001) for those who had no children, 6.4 times (p<0.001) among those who accept abortion, and 4.9 times higher (p=0.002) in under 4 years of study, increased by 8% for each one year increment in age (p<0.001). The odds ratio of having a spontaneous miscarriage over without abortion was 15.0 times (p<0.001) for those who had no children; 3.6 times higher (p=0.055) in under 4 years of study, increased by 5% per year of age (p<0.001) and acceptance of abortion practice was not significant. CONCLUSIONS: The main factor for the occurrence of abortion was not having live births, indicating a tendency of abortions to occur in the early reproductive life. Less education and acceptance of the practice were other variables associated with induced abortion. There was evidence of omission of the statement of abortion in the responses of the interviewees.