Average size: what the medical studies actually say
What do the studies actually say about average penis size? The figures exist, they vary between continents, and they hold a few surprises — not least regarding the relationship between the flaccid and erect states.
The European averages
Averages have been studied in a number of scientific publications. There is considerable variation between ethnic groups and continents. The European averages are as follows:
- Flaccid: length 9 cm, girth 9 cm.
- Erect: length 12 to 13 cm, girth 12 cm.
A patient with a flaccid girth of 7 or 8 cm may be described as slender. A patient reaching 13 or 14 cm when erect may be described as thick. These reference points, often unknown, make it possible to place one's own anatomy objectively rather than judging it on an impression.
The relationship between flaccid and erect
Worth remembering: girth generally gains +3 cm between the flaccid and erect states. A patient with a flaccid girth of 9 cm will generally reach 12 cm when erect; at 8 cm flaccid, 11 cm erect. There is variation: a penis that is slender when flaccid may make up the difference by gaining +4 cm when erect. This is why appearance when flaccid — the only state visible in a changing room or shower — tells you little about the reality when erect.
Finally, a patient who has had one or two penoplasties will in any case present, when erect, a girth well above average — considerably thicker during intercourse than that of most men.
Variation between continents
Measurements vary between regions of the world: Asia ranks lowest, Africa highest; Europe and North America sit around the average. South America, owing to historical migration from Africa, often shows substantial dimensions, in both length and girth. In the Near and Middle East, girth is frequently thick.
What these figures say — and do not say
These averages have one virtue: they place each person within an objective reality, far from the distorted standards conveyed by pornography. But they set no norm to be met. Falling slightly below a statistical average is neither abnormal nor problematic. These figures should serve to inform and to put things in perspective, not to feed a complex. It is in that spirit — informative, never prescriptive — that they should be read.