What does science say about average penis sizes from around the world?

Few things get tempers flaring and national stereotypes pumping than a map of penis size. But how do they stand up to the medical studies looking into this very sensitive issue?

A recently released interactive map from TargetMap shows certain findings of erect penis length from across the globe. You can see the interactive map here. To see each country's given statistics just hover over it with your mouse or give it a tap.

According to the map, within North America the average erect penis size is 14.2 centimeters (5.59 inches), in India the average is 9.3 centimeters (3.6 inches), and the largest is central and west Africa – particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, who reportedly have an average of 17.9 centimeters (7 inches).

But hold tight. Before you get the tape measure out, there are a few things you need to take into account.

Statistics can be a fickle thing. If you poke into the data a little bit deeper, it’s near-impossible to find where or how the data was acquired. Perhaps most importantly, the only link to the source of the data is fromandromedical.com – a website which sells penis enlargement gadgetry.

Other studies have shown very different results. A 2015 study in the British Journal of Urology took a look at a selection of 20 screened and accountable studies on the penis size of 15, 521 men from around the world.

Looking at average non-erect length, their meta-study found the average length worldwide was 9.16 centimeters (3.6 inches). In Nigeria, western Africa, the average length was 8.16 centimeters (3.2 inches), India it was 8.21 centimeters (3.23 inches), South Korea was 7.7 centimeters (3 inches), Germany was 8.6 centimeters (3.38 inches), USA was 8.85 centimeters (3.48 inches), and Jordan was 9.3 centimeters (3.66), to name but a few.

In terms of average erect length – which wasn’t was hugely looked into across the studies – India was 12.93 centimeters (5.09 inches), USA was 12.89 centimeters (5.07 inches), Turkey was 12.73 centimeters (5.01 inches), and Germany was 14.48 centimeters (5.7 inches).

It’s not quite the vast regional divides seen on the map, to say the least.

But besides anything else, does it really matter? Another recent survey found only 11.2 percent of women felt penis size was of any real importance, whereas 67.4 percent said that it was somewhat important but not of any overriding significance, and the other 21.4 percent could not have cared less. Additionally, it revealed that men often overestimated average penis size compared to women.

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