15 Things You Didn't Know About Condoms

You know a lot about the food you eat and the pills you take—shouldn’t you know about everything that goes inside your body? Here are 15 things you didn’t know about condoms.

Who made the first rubber?

The first manufacturer of a rubber condom was the tire company Goodyear, in 1855. The first rubber ones replaced animal skin condoms and were reusable.

Custom made condoms

In the 1800s condoms had to be custom ordered; doctors would measure a man’s penis and order a custom-sized set.

A magnum vs a regular

A Trojan regular is about 7.8 inches long, while a Trojan magnum is 8.12 inches long, making them .32 inches apart. The Magnum XL is also 8.12 inches long, but it is wider. The longest condom is the Durex XXL, which is 9.5 inches long.

The tiniest condom

The smallest condom is 6.7 inches long and 1.92 inches wide. Caution Wear Iron Grip Snugger Fit Condoms is the name. It’s a mouthful, but it’s not—see what we did there?

The true cost

It costs barely one cent to produce a condom, but the average cost for a box of 12 is $10.99.

Who is buying them?

Most condom users are between the ages of 18 and 24 (so we get less responsible as we get older?) and 70% of purchasers are men. Meanwhile, 68% of females use condoms the first time they have sex and 82% of men do.

Teens at risk

One out of four sexually active teenagers contract a sexually transmitted disease each year. This could be because under half of high school students are actually taught in school how to use a condom.

There’s an app for that

iCondom is an app that helps you locate condom dispensers near you, via your GPS system.

The thinnest condom

In 2013 Guinness Records recorded the thinnest condom at .36mm thick (the average one is .70mm). The condom is made by the Chinese company Guangzhou.

Bill Gates is behind condoms

Bill and Melinda Gates held the Build a Better Condom search through which they gave out $100,000 in grants to inventors to create the most skin-like-feeling condom.

What they’re capable of

Condoms can hold up to a gallon of water, fit over a basketball, fit over an elephant’s penis and fit over a human’s head.

The first commercial

San Francisco’s KNTV was the first station in the United States to broadcast a condom commercial—it was for Trojan. It would take almost 16 more years until anybody broadcasted a national commercial for condoms in the US, and that would be Fox.

Vegan friendly condoms exist

They’re made by Sir Richard’s and they’re free of glycerin, parabens and spermicide.

Funny branding

Crown Jewels Condoms of Distinction released condoms to celebrate Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding in 2011, and the rock band KISS released a “tongue lubricated” condom in 2002.