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I'm learning kanji through WaniKani, and stumbled upon three pieces of
vocabulary that have similar meanings, but no clear guidance on which should
be used in which occasion:

  * 女{おんな}の子{こ}: defined as girl, young girl, young lady, young woman
  * 女子{じょし}: defined as girl, woman
  * 女{おんな}の人{ひと}: defined as woman

The first one is clearly the one that stands out as clearly referring to young
women, and [this answer](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/33922/1330)
corroborates that and clarifies the difference between the first two. That
same question also states that the 子{し} in 女子{じょし} doesn't refer to child, but
is instead a kind of "counter."

In that case, it becomes unclear to me when 女子{じょし} and 女{おんな}の人{ひと} should be
used. Or simply 女{おんな}, for that matter.

P.S.: haven't gotten to 男{おとこ} yet, but I assume the same principles will
apply there too?
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question
word-choice nuances
What is the difference between 女子 and 女の人?
In most cases when you want to say _woman_ in a sentence, you can use 女の人 or
possibly 女性{じょせい} is safer because it is more polite, even if sometimes 女の人
may sound natural.

As suggested in the linked answer, 女子 is more used in contexts like "for
female" or, in recent usage, to refer to a category of women who are engaged
in a certain kind of activities. An example of the former is 女子トイレ. For the
latter, ゴルフ女子 means _women who paly golf_ and バイク女子 means _women who ride
motor bikes_.

女 sounds usually vulgar if used to mean _women_. It can appear in the sense of
_for female_ as in 女湯{おんなゆ} (bath for women, in public bath).

So, in the sense of _woman_ , the difference of 女の人/女子/女 is more a matter of
collocation/usage.

* * *

Note that a student can call female classmates 女子. So they can say 女子と話した ( _I
talked with a female classmate_ ), which would sound odd if a 30 year old guy
says it (He should say 女性と話した if it is an adult woman; 女の子と話した if a young
woman/girl).

* * *

Similarly 男性{だんせい} would be the most common if you mean a male individual.
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女子 means female, often in an official capacity (as mentioned in your link),
e.g. in sport or public bathrooms. That being said, you will also see 女性{じょせい}
and 男性{だんせい}, or simply 女 and 男 as an abbreviation on public bathroom doors.

This [blog](https://jonellepatrick.com/2019/10/07/find-public-bathroom-
restroom-tokyo/) shows bathroom doors with 女性 on the outside, and 女子トイレ on a
sign inside.

[![Public bathroom doors with 女性 on the outside, and 女子トイレ on a sign
inside](https://i.stack.imgur.com/zwZ9U.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/zwZ9U.jpg)

This [blog](https://brightoneagle.wordpress.com/2014/09/27/japanese-toilets-
explained/) shows bathroom doors with just 女 and 男 as essentially
abbreviations.

[![Public bathroom door with just 女 and 男 as essentially
abbreviations](https://i.stack.imgur.com/g7t3C.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/g7t3C.jpg)

A [2009 study](https://www.nhk.or.jp/bunken/summary/kotoba/term/131.html) by
the NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute showed that, while the exact
percentages vary from one age cohort to the next, roughly 50% of people felt
that 女子 referred to women until they graduate from high school, 20% felt it
applied until age 20 (the age of majority at the time in many cases), and 20%
felt there was no age limit.

[![Age limit for the word
女子](https://i.stack.imgur.com/aCZVM.gif)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/aCZVM.gif)

In contrast to signs where 女 is simply used as a short form, or to book titles
where it might be used for emphasis, saying 女 by itself in everyday
conversation is considered rude, macho, or at the very least old-fashioned.
The most common acceptable way to refer to women is 女の人, and in many technical
or formal contexts 女性 is used.
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answer