Relationships

So, It Turns Out That Most Men Don't Actually Care About Dating Taller Women

by Elana Rubin

Whether you admit it or not, everyone has their own dating preferences. For instance, some people prefer to date non-smokers to go along with their own smoke-free lifestyle. Some want a dog-loving partner so that one day, they can adopt a little pup together. And some have preferences for height. I looked around on the internet (AKA Reddit) to see do men care about height? I understand that some straight women prefer to date a guy who's taller than them. But how do men feel about height when it comes to dating, sex, and relationships?

As I expected going into my deep-dive search, the answers were pretty varied: Height doesn't always play a factor, though, of course, it does sometimes. There's an unfortunate stigma out there that straight women "should" date men who are bigger and taller than they are. And that stigma can be surprisingly tough to shake off.

Maybe you've worn flats on a date when you really wanted to wear your new heeled boots. Or maybe you've shied away from flirting with a great guy because you're worried that he'll care that you're taller than he is. Here are some thoughts directly from men who have dated women taller than them — they're pretty comforting, no matter your height.

This guy is married to a woman a couple of inches taller than him.

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"My wife is 5'6" and I'm 5'4,"" A Reddit user said. "It's not all that much different than dating someone slightly shorter than you. She's never made me feel like I'm less of a man. I have no problem with her wearing heels (I actually encourage it, she looks fantastic in heels). The only 'hassle' is standing sex. I have to be on my tip toes."

Another person doesn't think it's so different than dating someone shorter than him.

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"I've dated a couple girls that were taller than me," another person on Reddit said. "Once in high school with a girl two inches taller; we only dated for about a month because she felt really self-conscious about it, particularly because she was getting constantly teased by other people in our grade about the height difference. And I had a casual thing going last year with a taller girl; it honestly wasn't that different than dating someone shorter."

This Reddit user dated a woman almost a foot taller than him.

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He's 5'5" and she was 6'2".

"Honestly, some things are a bit harder in bed, but also makes some things easier," he explained on Reddit. "We would often get stares because not only was she taller, [but it also] was an interracial relationship [...]. Whenever we went out for dinner, she’d dress up and put 3 inch heels making her 1 foot taller than me which apparently bothered everyone but us."

According to the poster, people would make comments to the couple out in public, suggesting the woman he was dating find a "real man."

"We liked one another and made things work," he said. "All in all, it was just other people thinking it was weird and uncomfortable and we didn’t pay any mind to them because we were happy and comfortable with ourselves and in the relationship."

Apparently, the wedding photographer cared more than the couple did.

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He's 5'5" and his ex-wife is 5'8".

"We never cared one bit, but it gave the wedding photographer fits and she kept trying to get me to stand on steps/random things," he said. "We had to repeatedly tell her neither of us cared."

Her taller height led to some insecurities.

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"I'm 6'3" and recently dated a girl who's 6'4", she was a great person overall and very attractive," another Reddit user said. "Given that I prefer tall women in general, I had absolutely no issues with it, and she didn't seem to have a problem with my height either."

But unfortunately, the woman he dated was insecure about her height. According to the poster, her previous ex didn't like going out with her "because she was apparently too tall."

He added, "Many people liked to randomly comment on her height or ask her about it."

She was a few inches taller than him.

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"I'm a pretty small dude, clocking in around 5'9'' and she was 6 feet tall," he explained on a Reddit thread. "Honestly, it wasn't an issue. I didn't care about the height difference. She told me once that there were a lot of shorter guys that she was into through her life, but most of them were uncomfortable with her being taller. We ended with a really ugly breakup, but height wasn't the issue."

There you have it: It's understandable if you have hangups around height, but ultimately, it shouldn't make a difference if you really like someone.

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