- Our society has an unhealthy obsession with penis size, so it's normal to wonder how your junk measures up to the average penis.
- A review published in the British Journal of Urology International assembled data from 17 studies examining the penis size of more than 15,000 men.
- Here's what they learned about the length and girth of an average erect and flaccid penis.
It should come as no surprise that penis size is one of the most frequent sources of insecurity for men. At some point in your life, you’ve probably wondered how your penis measures up to other people's—whether your length and girth are big, small, or totally average. Maybe you've even dug out the measuring tape, whipped out your peen, and measured, and then promptly consulted Google to see what to make of your 5-inch, 6-inch, or 7-inch penis.
Praying for your junk to be at least average is common, considering our society has an unhealthy obsession with penis size. Of course, how much you're packing downstairs is in no way indicative of your character, but many men perceive this to be the case, especially if they've ever been ridiculed by their friends—or worse, a sexual partner—for the size of their penis. It can be traumatizing. There's no telling how many men have purchased sports cars, motorcycles, or phallus-shaped yachts in a misguided attempt to add a few extra inches to their manhood.
While there are medical procedures to increase your penis size, they’re invasive, cost-prohibitive, and dangerous. Besides, most only boost your length and girth by a little bit; you’re not going to leave the doctor’s office with an anaconda in your pants. The good news is that your penis probably isn’t as small as you may think it is. Porn, where most dudes are packing massive members, has distorted our sense of what “average” actually means.
What's the length and girth of an average penis?
According to a review conducted at King's College London and published in the British Journal of Urology International, the average erect penis size is 5.2 inches in length and 4.6 inches in circumference, a.k.a. girth. They found that the average flaccid penis length—from the base to the opening on the tip—was 3.6 inches, and the circumference, measured around the base or mid-shaft, was 3.7 inches.
The researchers came to this conclusion after reviewing 17 studies that examined the penis size of more than 15,000 men.
Wonder how exactly you fit in? Here’s some more context: Guys in the 95th percentile for erect length—meaning out of 100 men, only five would have longer penises—measured about 6.3 inches. Men in the 5th percentile averaged about 4 inches. In other words, anything between around 4 inches and 6.3 inches when erect covers 90 percent of guys.
Does penis size actually matter? Let's discuss:
The researchers also explored some of the most common “indicators” of penis size to see if there was an actual connection. Height was slightly related, meaning that the taller men were, the larger their erect penises tended to be—but only to a small extent, says study author David Veale, M.D.
On the other hand, other measurements that have been thought to point to penis size were actually pretty useless. Factors like a guy’s weight, length of his index figure, and foot size weren’t consistently predictive.
Even if your penis size is a little shorter than average, that’s no reason to worry: “That’s not an issue to 85 percent of women,” says Veale. In fact, women might actually prefer smaller penises. Bigger isn't always better.
Wherever you fall on the penis spectrum, you can maximize your pleasure by picking the best sex positions for every penis size. No sports cars or motorcycles required.
