Comparison of male and female armor in Skyrim – from top to bottom: Nightingale, Dragonscale, Glass, Ebony, Fur, and Daedric. This isn’t all of them, of course! There are a million and one armor types in this game.
So yeah, there’s some boob-plate-ness, some more egregious than others (ahem, ebony – I’m looking at you) but on the whole, coverage-wise, they are exactly the same.
Where the male is completely covered, the female is too; where the female is half-naked, so is the male.
Three cheers for Elder Scrolls!
A response to this question. Thanks for all the answers in the comments!
Apparently the consensus on female armors in Skyrim is just like pippinpants describes it: as covering as male one, even if boobplate-y at times.
YAY for Elder Scrolls!
More on Skyrim armor here.