CONTEXT: The role of androgen excess as a contributing factor to abnormal glucose metabolism (AGM) and insulin resistance in women remains controversial. OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether hyperandrogenemia (HA) estimated by serum testosterone (T) level and free androgen index (FAI) at ages 31 and 46 is associated with insulin resistance, insulin secretion and AGM by age 46. DESIGN: Prospective study including 5,889 females followed at ages 31 and 46. SETTING: General community. PARTICIPANTS: Women with HA were compared with normoandrogenic women at ages 31 and 46. INTERVENTION: None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: AGM, including pre-diabetes and T2DM, homeostatic model assessments of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and of pancreatic β-cell function (HOMA-B). RESULTS: At age 31, HA women displayed increased HOMA-IR P=0.05), HOMA-B (P=0.006), and higher fasting insulin (P=0.034) than normoandrogenic women after adjusting for body mass index (BMI). At age 46, there was a nonsignificant trend towards higher fasting glucose (P=0.07) and glycated hemoglobin A1 (P=0.067) levels in HA women. Women in the highest T quartile (odds ratio [OR]= 1.80;95%CI, 1.15-2.82) at age 31 and in the two highest FAI quartiles at ages 31 (Q4:OR=3.76;95%CI, 2.24-6.32) and 46 (Q4:OR=2.79;95%CI, 1.74-4.46) had increased risk for AGM, independently of BMI, when compared with women in Q1. Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) was inversely associated with AGM (at age 31:Q4:OR=0.37;95%CI, 0.23-0.60, at age 46:Q4:OR=0.28;95%CI, 0.17-0.44). CONCLUSION: Hyperandrogenemia and low SHBG in early and middle age associates with AGM independently of BMI.