Do women report higher sexual satisfaction with partners above average penis size?
Executive summary
Available studies give mixed signals: a small academic survey of 50 U.S. college women found 90% preferred penile girth over length for sexual satisfaction (45 of 50) and authors argue this contradicts Masters and Johnson’s claim that size has no physiological effect [1]. Larger, more recent popular surveys and reviews report that many women rank emotional connection, technique, or girth above length; one online summary says only 21% of women considered length important and about 32% considered girth important [2].
1. Small-sample academic finding: girth beats length in a college sample
A 50‑person survey of sexually active undergraduate women reported that none rated length and width as equally satisfying and that 45 of 50 (90%) said girth (width) mattered more than length for sexual satisfaction; the authors conclude the data “seem to contradict” Masters and Johnson’s physiological claim that size has no true effect [1]. The study is repeatedly cited in summaries and PDFs of the original research [3] [4].
2. Masters and Johnson baseline: a long‑standing physiological claim
Masters and Johnson concluded from their physiological studies that penile size cannot have a true physiological effect on female sexual satisfaction because the vagina adapts to the partner’s penis size; the academic survey explicitly frames its findings as contradictory to that conclusion [3] [1].
3. Broader surveys and summaries emphasize context over inches
Multiple more recent consumer‑facing summaries and surveys present a different, more nuanced picture: some report that a minority of women consider length crucial (one write‑up cites a study finding 21% ranked length important and 32% ranked girth important) and emphasize factors such as emotional connection, foreplay, technique, hygiene, and communication as stronger drivers of satisfaction [2] [5] [6].
4. Heterogeneity and sampling issues limit generalization
The strongest academic result cited here comes from a tiny, non‑representative sample—50 college women selected by two male students—which limits external validity; large, population‑level evidence is not supplied in the sources provided [1] [4]. Consumer surveys referenced (ZipHealth, other online polls) often use self‑selected online samples and different questions about “ideal size” versus “importance for satisfaction,” making direct comparison impossible [7] [2].
5. Conflicting narratives: science vs. commercial or popular claims
Academic authors framed their small study as challenging Masters and Johnson [1]. Popular outlets and commercial sites, meanwhile, produce headline numbers (e.g., “ideal size” or “91% say size matters”) that reflect marketing or convenience samples and often conflate relationship satisfaction with anatomical preference [8] [7]. Some sex‑education and therapist‑oriented pieces push the opposite message: that size has “very little correlation” with female satisfaction and psychological, relational factors dominate [9] [6].
6. What the available reporting does and does not prove
Available sources show that at least one small academic study found women prioritized girth over length [1]. They do not provide a robust, representative epidemiological estimate that “women report higher sexual satisfaction with partners above‑average penis size” in the general population—large-scale, population‑representative studies or meta‑analyses on that exact comparative claim are not present among the supplied materials (not found in current reporting). Popular surveys provide suggestive but methodologically mixed evidence about preferences and “ideal” dimensions [2] [7].
7. Practical takeaways for readers and hidden agendas to watch for
Clinically and journalistically, the consistent message across sources is that sexual satisfaction is multi‑factorial: anatomy is one component among technique, communication, emotional connection and health [5] [6]. Watch for agendas: commercial sites selling enhancement products or attention‑driven polls often inflate the importance of size [8] [9], while classic researchers emphasize physiological adaptation [3]. The small academic study that highlights girth preference is real but limited by size and sampling [1] [4].
8. Bottom line
Evidence in the provided sources does not establish that women in general report higher sexual satisfaction specifically with partners who have “above‑average” penis size. There is a small, cited academic study showing a strong preference for girth over length among 50 college women [1], and several consumer pieces and reviews that downplay length and highlight relational and technical factors [2] [5] [6]. Larger, representative research on satisfaction versus measured partner penile size is not included in the documents you supplied (not found in current reporting).