Do men look sexier in suits? We discover the truth…

On this blog, we often encourage our readers to dress better and take more care in their appearance. We’ve seen the positive impact a well-fitting suit can have on our customers, so we speak from experience. But is there any scientific evidence to prove that a suit actually makes a difference?

We looked into this and found a study by Professor Adam D. Galinsky of the Northwestern University in the US. It revealed that wearing certain clothes ‘alters cognitive performance and perception’. Fascinating stuff, but does any of this matter in the real world? We decided to conduct a survey of our own to get to the heart of the matter. Is a man more attractive in a suit than in casual clothes?

Of course, the best place to conduct this kind of survey is on a dating site! People make life changing judgement calls every second based on a single photograph. They say a picture tells a thousand words. Never has this old adage been more applicable than in the harsh world of online dating…

The Experiment - Do Men look Sexier in Suits?

Our experiment had two main goals – impartiality and accuracy.

1. We chose 20 men from a diverse age range (23-38). They encompassed a broad variety of body shapes and sizes, as well as classes and ethnicities.

2. We photographed the men using the same lighting and the same background. We also asked them to maintain the same facial expression and body language for each photo.

The only thing we changed was their clothing.

We took 6 photos of each man – 3 in suits and 3 in casual clothes. All the photos were rated by hundreds of women aged between 18 and 38 to ensure our results were accurate.

The Results

The results were a landslide. 80% of the women surveyed found the man in the suit more attractive. Moreover, they found the man, on average, 6% more attractive in his suit than in his casual clothes.

But the results didn’t stop there.

We analysed the data further to identify which women found the men in suits most attractive. The results were interesting…

It became clear that the younger women were particularly interested in dating the man in the suit. They found the same man as high as 12% more attractive in his suit.

Conclusions

We believe that four factors have come together to produce such conclusive results:

Suits are more flattering to the body shape, making the wearer seem taller and slimmer.

Suits are fashionable at the moment, popular with young and old alike.

A man in a suit projects himself as someone who is successful and reliable. This suggests that he is good boyfriend material.

Wearing a suit for a profile photo shows that the man takes care and pride in his appearance. Thus, he must take pride in other aspects of his life, including his relationships!

Do you want to improve your appearance with a suit?

You’ve seen the facts. A well-fitting suit is proven to make you look better (and we promise that you’ll feel better too.) If you’re interested in ordering a bespoke suit from us, book in for a free initial consultation now!