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Does Penis Size Matter?

Dr. Jason
Winters

Getty Images

How Big Is Normal? And Do Women Really Care? Get The Answers Here

Penis size is a major source of anxiety for a lot of guys. The anxiety can be bad enough that it completely
undermines their self-confidence as sex partners. This is understandable given the importance of the penis size in
many mens minds. Despite this very real feeling concern, is penis size that important when it comes down to doing
the dirty?

What Exactly Is Average?

Penis size, much like most human traits, follows the bell curve. This means that almost all guys fall within the
normal range. Very few men have penises that would be considered particularly small or large. At one end of the
penis size spectrum is congenital micropenis, defined as approximately 2.5 inches or less in length, fully erect.
About half of one percent of men would fall into this category. At the other end of the spectrum is someone like Jonah
Falcon, the man who currently holds the record for the largest penis. His penis is 13.5 inches erect, making it
extremely difficult if not impossible to have penetrative sex. So whats the average? A recent review of all the studies
examining penis length reported that the average penis length across more than 15,000 men of several ethnicities
was just shy of 5.2 inches, fully erect. A 2014 study of American men found that the average erect penis length was
about 5.6 inches. Other studies have reported a slightly longer average length. However, penis length studies are
characterized by two pretty significant problems that may lead to an overestimate of average penis length. First,
most studies depend on men to honestly self-report their penis lengths. Its too impractical and weird for study

participants to have them show up at the lab to be measured by researchers. As such, researchers depend on selfreport, but its presumed that men will round up or exaggerate their measurements. Second, men with smaller
penises probably avoid participating in this type of research.

What Does She Prefer?

Recent research emanating from UCLA found that women tended to choose an ideal penis size length of
approximately 6 inches. But, this was in absence of other very important variables (e.g., sexual skills, attentiveness,
attractiveness, intelligence, personality, chemistry, etc.). This is like asking a group of straight guys to choose a
partner based only on ideal breast size. Its a silly question to ask because the vast, vast majority of men make
decisions about who theyll sleep with or date based on many other more important traits. Another recent
study asked women to rank order seven penis attributes. Girth was ranked fourth and length sixth. The top three
were general appearance, pubic hair appearance, and penile skin. In other words, even when forced to choose
amongst a set of penis features, size didnt really matter that much to the women in the study. It might also be helpful
to know that anecdotally, for every woman who prefers a larger penis, theres likely one who prefers a smaller penis.
Over my career doing research and clinical work, Ive heard many times from women with well-endowed partners
how uncomfortable sex can be. Bigger isnt always better.

Is Size Really That Important?

In the largest and most comprehensive study of mens and womens reasons to have sex, researchers from Texas
identified 237 different motivating factors. Several physical attributes including facial attractiveness, eyes, and
general attraction showed up on the list. Penis size... did not.

Does Her Satisfaction Depend On Your Size?

There are piles of studies on sexual satisfaction and they have collectively produced a long list of things that make
for good sex. Things such as attentiveness, sexual skills, confidence, comfort, aspects of the relationship, and
attitudes towards sex appear to be very important. Penis size is only ever mentioned in studies that exclusively
focus on penis size and sexual satisfaction. Even then, penis size does not appear to be that important. Also worth
mentioning, the vast majority of women do not orgasm through vaginal penetration; they require stimulation of the
clitoris, which has nothing to do with penis size. Additionally, those who do orgasm through penetration typically do
so as a result of simulation of the mythical G-spot. While theres no specific G-spot structure, there is a region
about 2 inches into the vagina on the front wall that when stimulated, will lead to serious pleasure and orgasm for
some women. That pleasure is likely the result of stimulation of the inner part of the clitoris and tissue around the
urethra. For the minority of women who do orgasm from vaginal penetration, research has shown that penis length is
unimportant to most of them. In other words, a larger penis is not critical for G-spot stimulation or vaginal orgasms.
Additionally, a larger penis can make oral and anal sex more difficult.
RELATED READING: The Giant Guide To Small Penises
ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

What's The Take-Home Message?

In the end, being a superstar in bed has very little do with penis size and all to do with many other important factors.
Getting hung up on penis size, despite its perceived importance, distracts you from being a badass sex partner.
Sexual satisfaction for you and your partner will be hindered, but not because of the size of your penis. A distracted
and anxious sex partner simply isnt in the game. Dont let your penis size worries get in the way of what would
otherwise be awesome experiences.
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Penis Size