*This article is for informational purposes only. It is not meant to be a substitute for or provide professional medical advice or treatment. Please consult your urologist, physician, or health care provider if you have more questions about this topic.

Taking stock of your penis size might seem straightforward, but put away that measuring tape. There's a surprising amount of nuance to this rite of passage for most men.

There comes a time in each man's life when he measures his penis to see how he stacks up against what his friends have told him they have. Perhaps you've been there, fiddling with a measuring tape, trying to justify one more inch. But did you get the right measurements? Were you disappointed with your findings, fearing you fell well below the average?

Chances are that you've incorrectly measured your penis size!

Luckily, we're here to help you understand how to measure your penis correctly and what it means for your sexual health.

Common Myths About Penis Length

With such an emotionally charged topic, it's no surprise that several myths have cropped up about ways of determining how big one's johnson is. Here are some of the most common ones and why they fall flat in front of the scientifically determined truth.

Does shoe size correlate to penis size?

Snazzy as your new Jordans might look sticking out beneath your trousers, their size has nothing at all to do with penile length according to medical researchers. And you can put away those hands, too. The size of your feet and hands don't correlate to what you're packing in your pants. In fact, a British study confirmed that the supposed link between shoe size and penis size has no scientific basis.

Flaccid length determines erect penis length

If your penis is small when flaccid, that doesn't mean your erect penis will be small as well. In fact, far from it. Many men are 'growers.' Their penises significantly increase in length and girth when they get hard.

Meanwhile, some other men are 'showers.' What you see is what you get. Their penises don't change much when they're erect or flaccid.

Most women prefer well-endowed men

Roughly 85 percent of women are quite satisfied with what their partner has to offer. But unfortunately, that doesn't stop just under half of men fretting about the size of their members.

So, with these myths left in the dust, what exactly is the average man packing?

What Is The Average Penis Size?

Before getting hard, the consensus by medical studies is an average length of 3.6 inches. When erect, just a bit over 5 inches is the average length. Surprising, isn't it?

Alfred Kinsey conducted one of the first peer-reviewed studies into average penis sizes, coming up with an average size of 6.21 inches, and it's this figure for average penis sizes that has stuck around for a while.

However, the average erect penis size has morphed throughout the years since Kinsey, thanks to further research. More standardized studies showed that the average erect penis measures 5.16 inches. However, when it came to penis girth, the average size was 4.59 inches. For the flaccid penis, the average girth clocked in at 3.67 inches.

Additionally, the same study reported that only 10 percent of men had a larger penis than average. A similar portion had a smaller than average penis. In other words, most of us fall within the normal range, with a few outliers possessing larger or significantly smaller packages.

How to measure your dick correctly?

how to measure penile size with a ruler

Here's what you need to do when measuring actual length. You're going to need a ruler, a pubic bone, and a penis.

1. Make your penis fully erect. Porn, sexual fantasies, or thinking about your partner will usually do the trick.
2. Get a stiff ruler. Measuring using this may be a lot easier than using a measuring tape. Our Penis Measuring Gauge is a great choice.
3. To correctly measure, stick one tip of the ruler against your pubic bone. You should be able to feel it through any pubic hair or belly fat.
4. Record the measurement from the very tip of your penis and stop measuring at the pubic bone. That's your actual penis length.

Note: You'll get more accurate measurements by measuring in a straight line from the top side of your penis rather than the underside extending to the testicles since there is a clear stopping point.

Also, we advise that you take several measurements and find your average dimensions. It's not unusual for some erections to be longer or shorter than others.

That said, it's not all about length.

How To Measure Penis Girth

Measuring the circumference of your penis is equally as easy as measuring the length.

Here's how to go about it:

1. As before, get your penis fully erect, not flaccid. Measuring an erection will give you a more accurate measurement of your average girth than a flaccid penis would.
2. Use a flexible tape measure, measure the circumference of your erect penis around the middle of the shaft. If such a tape measure is hard to come by, use a string around the shaft and straighten it out to measure the girth.
3. And again, you can take several penis measurements to get a representative average.

In some instances, you might want to know the thickness of the penis shaft instead of the girth. Get your calculator (or app) and simply divide the circumference by pi (3.14).

Why Go Through All This?

Measurement of erect length and girth of the penis can be key to both your sexual health and quality of life. Properly measuring your penis is a prerequisite to purchasing the correct condom size and natural enlargement products, and missized condoms can lead to a risk for you and your partner to contract sexually transmitted infections from unprotected sex.

What if I Measure and My Penis is Small?

There's a good reason they say "size doesn't matter." Most partners are more than satisfied with their man's measurement, technique, and self-confidence count for a lot. At the end of the day, the right size is your size.