What Google Says About Men's Thongs

You can learn a surprising amount about a category by looking at what a search engine volunteers before you've finished typing. So we searched "mens thongs" on Google UK and wrote down exactly what came back. No analytics tools, no proprietary data — you can check this yourself in ten seconds.

These are the four questions Google's own "People also ask" box offers:

Two of the four aren't shopping questions at all. They're permission questions. Nobody typing "best running shoes" is asking Google whether running shoes are allowed — but a meaningful share of the men searching for this are quietly checking whether it's alright first. That's the honest state of this category, and it's why the second half of this guide answers those two questions properly rather than burying them.

Then there's what Google suggests you search next:

Four of the five point at cheap, mass-market or novelty. "Funny" is doing a lot of work there — it's the stag-do gift, the secret santa, the thing bought as a joke rather than as underwear. Only "designer" suggests someone shopping for a garment they intend to wear more than once.

Which is roughly the shape of the market, and it explains why so few thongs are actually well made. If most of the demand is novelty and multipack, most of the supply will be too. The eight below are the other kind.

Source: google.co.uk, searched September 2026. People also ask and related searches vary by location and over time — yours may differ slightly.

Thong, Jockstrap or Brief?

All three start with the same idea — a supportive front pouch — and then disagree entirely about what happens at the back.

None is better than the others — they're built for different jobs. If you want the least fabric and the least visibility, that's a thong. If you want the same pouch with more presence, browse jockstraps. If you want coverage, briefs.

The Picks

Best first thong

Strike Pro Microfibre — £12

Our own label · Three colours · S–XL

The one we recommend to anyone who's never worn one. High-stretch premium microfibre, quick-drying and moisture-wicking, with a contoured pouch doing all the supporting so there's no excess fabric anywhere else. The waistband is soft enough that you forget it's there — which is the entire test.

At £12 it's also the cheapest possible way to find out whether the cut suits you. In Black, Dune and Terra.

Best for the gym

Modus Vivendi Dry-Tech — £22

Greek-made · Three colours · S–XL

Built for sweat. Moisture-wicking microfibre with a quick-dry finish and a contoured pouch that stays where you put it through squats, running and everything else that makes ordinary underwear misbehave. A thong is a more sensible gym choice than it sounds — there's no leg to ride up and nothing to bunch under a waistband.

In Black, Blue and Red.

Best under fitted clothing

TEAMM8 Glide Micro — £36

Recycled nylon · 1cm waistband · S–XL

The invisibility pick, and the detail that earns it is the 1cm waistband. A thick branded band is what prints through a fitted trouser — not the thong itself. Cut the band down to a centimetre of featherlight recycled nylon and there is genuinely nothing to see.

Three muted colourways: Onyx, Flint and Boysenberry.

Best sheer

PUMP! Whisper — £32.95

Whisper-soft microfibre · Two colours · S–XL

This is the going-out thong rather than the Tuesday thong. Whisper-soft microfibre, contoured pouch, minimal coverage — sheer enough to be a decision, structured enough to still be comfortable while you're making it.

In Black and White.

Best mesh

Modus Vivendi Abstract Net — £23

Printed net · Low rise · S–XL

Soft mesh with an abstract print, cut low-rise for a second-skin feel. Mesh reads as more revealing than it wears — the net holds its own shape rather than clinging — and it's comfortably the most breathable thing on this page.

In Charcoal and Brown.

Best cotton

PUMP! Washed Denim — £32

Cotton pouch · Mid rise · S–XL

For anyone who wants a thong that feels like normal underwear. A soft cotton pouch with denim-inspired detailing, cut mid-rise with contoured support — the most forgiving fit here and the easiest to wear from morning to night.

In Indigo and Bubble Blue.

Best statement

PUMP! Sail & Captain — from £32.99

Bon Voyage collection · Cotton and mesh · S–XL

PUMP!'s nautical pieces, and the least subtle things we sell. The Sail pairs black cotton and mesh with a white striped waistband; the Captain runs a striped cotton cup with marine blue binding and white mesh panels. Neither is pretending to be invisible.

Best everyday mesh

PUMP! Switch, Military & White — £31

Open mesh · Cotton-lined pouch · S–XL

PUMP!'s open-mesh body with a cotton-lined pouch — and the lining is the reason these are wearable for a full day rather than an hour. Switch Black, Military and White.

How to Choose

The pouch does the work. A thong has no leg and no side coverage, so everything rests on the pouch being contoured and correctly sized. If it's flat or too small, nothing else about the thong will feel right, and no amount of getting used to it will fix that.

The waistband decides whether it shows. Narrow bands disappear under fitted clothing. Wide branded bands are a design feature — a good one, but a visible one. Pick accordingly.

Fabric sets the use case. Microfibre for sport and everyday, cotton for comfort and long wear, mesh and sheer for occasion. Quick-dry matters more than you'd expect if you're wearing one to train.

Size as you normally would. Thongs don't run small, and going up a size doesn't help — the fit comes from the pouch and from the straps sitting flat. Our UK sizing guide has the measurements if you're between sizes.

Is It Normal for Men to Wear Thongs?

Yes — and the fact that Google puts this question first, above anything about price or brand or fit, tells you how many people are quietly wondering.

Men's thongs have moved a long way from the bodybuilding-and-beach association they carried in the nineties. They're now a standard cut, sold by specialists and the high street alike, and the reasons men choose them are unglamorous and entirely practical: no visible line under fitted trousers, nothing bunching under a gym waistband, and considerably less fabric in July.

The related question — can a straight man wear a thong? — answers itself the moment you write it down. Underwear cut has nothing to do with who you are or who you're attracted to. Plenty of our thong customers own nothing else remotely adventurous; they just got tired of visible lines. It's a cut, not a declaration.

Unless you want it to be one. In which case, see the mesh.