Study reveals whether a man’s penis size actually matters.

You’ve probably heard the age-old line: “It’s not what you’ve got, it’s what you do with it.” But a new Australian study has stepped in and asked: is there something to what you’ve got after all?

Does size really matter? (Jordan Lye/Getty)

What did the researchers do?

• Scientists from Australian National University, Monash University, and La Trobe University showed 105 heterosexual women life-size, 3D computer-generated images of male bodies. Bob Wong Lab+3ABC+3PubMed+3
• These images varied by three major traits: height, body shape (measured by shoulder-to-hip ratio), and flaccid penis size. Bob Wong Lab+1
• The women rated how sexually attractive each figure was on a scale. CBS News+1

What did they find?

• Size does matter—but with caveats. Larger flaccid penis size did increase attractiveness ratings. CBS News+2PubMed+2
• However, the effect levels off beyond a certain point (i.e. more size doesn’t always mean more perceived attractiveness). That’s called diminishing returns. ABC+2PubMed+2
• Body shape was really important. Broad shoulders and a strong shoulder-to-hip ratio had a larger influence overall. ABC+2PubMed+2
• Height also played a role: larger size had a stronger attractiveness boost in taller men than for shorter men. PubMed+2ABC+2

What this means in real life

• If you’re wondering whether worrying about size is worth it: yes, it can make a difference, but it’s not the whole story. Other traits matter a lot—especially body shape and height.
• Past a certain size, adding more doesn’t help much in the attractiveness department. There’s a point where extra size adds little.
• The study doesn’t tell us everything—sample size was modest (105 women), all from Australian universities. So cultural, personal, and individual variation will be big troublemakers in generalizing. ABC+1

Bottom line

Penis size does matter—up to a point. But it’s far from the only thing people care about. If you’ve got height, good body proportions, confidence, etc., those may count just as much—or more. What’s been shown is that attractiveness is multi-dimensional.

Bratwurst or chipolata? (Juan Moyano/Getty)

References & Further Reading

• The primary study: “Penis size interacts with body shape and height to influence male attractiveness.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. PubMed+1
• News coverage: ABC News on how size matters to women in this study. ABC
• National Geographic article discussing evolution and preferences. National Geographic