Sexual violence and its underreporting are major social problems. This study examines why victims choose — or choose not — to report recent sexual violence to the police. It uses data from the French victimization survey conducted annually from 2007 to 2019 on a large, nationally representative sample. Analysis shows that the propensity to report sexual violence is significantly higher among victims with low socioeconomic status and those who sustained physical injuries. Leveraging unique data on the reasons for not reporting, the study discusses the mechanisms through which these two structural factors operate on the reporting process. The lower reporting rate among victims of higher socioeconomic status is better explained by their greater awareness of the low likelihood of a successful trial than by a fear of social stigma. Conversely, the significant impact of physical injuries on reporting stems more from closer alignment with the “classic rape” stereotype than from perceived prospects for winning a case based on concrete evidence.