What is the average erect penis length worldwide?

1. Why the headline numbers cluster near 13 cm

Multiple large reviews and meta-analyses converge on an erect mean roughly 13 cm. A staff-measured pooled analysis reported 13.12 cm (5.16 in) as the average erect length ^[1] and science reporting of that work repeated the 13.12 cm figure ^[5]. Other medical summaries synthesize the literature to a plausible range of 5.1–5.5 inches (about 12.9–14.0 cm) ^{[3] [2]}. Where sources agree, the central estimate is consistently close to 13 cm rather than popular myths of much larger averages ^[2].

2. Measurement method matters — professional vs. self-report

Studies that rely on men measuring themselves, often via online surveys, consistently report larger means (sometimes cited near or above 6 in/15 cm), whereas studies with researchers measuring men in clinical settings report smaller, more consistent means close to 13 cm ^{[2] [1]}. Researchers note volunteer bias (men who think they are larger being more likely to participate) and inaccuracies in self-measurement as principal reasons for inflated self-reported figures ^{[4] [2]}.

3. How researchers standardize measurements

The accepted clinical approach measures from pubic bone (with fat pad compressed) to the tip of the glans along the top of the penis; girth is usually measured at base or mid-shaft ^{[5] [1]}. Reviews that used standardized, staff-taken measures produced the 13.12 cm average and are considered more reliable than internet self-reports ^{[1] [5]}.

4. Reported international variation and its limits

Some country-by-country rankings claim substantial differences (with East and Southeast Asian countries often reported lower and some South American countries higher), but data quality, sampling, and adjustments for self-report bias vary widely ^{[6] [4]}. One compilation that adjusted self-reports estimated a global mean of 13.12 cm (5.16 in) after corrections ^[6] — the same central number as clinician-measured reviews — underscoring that apparent national extremes may narrow once bias is addressed ^{[6] [1]}.

5. How to interpret percentile context (what’s “small” or “large”)

Analyses present percentiles to help people benchmark: a penis of about 10 cm erect is near the 5th percentile, while around 13 cm sits near the population mean, and very large values cited in popular culture (e.g., 7 in/18 cm) would be rare outliers ^{[5] [1]}. Medical reviews emphasize that most concern about being “too small” reflects perception rather than statistical abnormality ^[2].

6. Conflicting studies and recent claims — what to watch for

Some recent papers and summaries have suggested increases over time or higher contemporary averages (for example, a World Journal of Men’s Health study cited by a health-education site reporting a rise toward 6 in), but these findings are not presented across the larger body of clinician-measured data and may reflect sampling or methodological differences ^{[7] [4]}. Available sources do not present a consensus showing a secular increase; the dominant reviews still center on ~13 cm ^{[3] [2]}.

7. Practical takeaways and limitations in the record

If you want a single best figure from the peer-reviewed, clinician-measured literature, use ~13.12 cm (5.16 in) as the global mean for erect length, with a reasonable confidence interval placing typical averages between about 12.9–14.0 cm (5.1–5.5 in) ^{[1] [3] [2]}. Limitations: many country rankings rely on self-report or small samples and are sensitive to corrections; ubiquitous public misconceptions stem from biased self-surveys and selection of extreme examples such as pornography ^{[4] [2] [5]}.

If you’d like, I can summarize the specific studies behind the 2014/2015 review, list percentile cutoffs, or show how self-report corrections change country rankings using the datasets in the sources above.