‘Boy pretty’ vs. ‘girl pretty’: Gen Z debates differences between what men find attractive compared to women

Have you ever wondered if you’re ‘girly’ or ‘boyish’ – and what that actually means?

In a somewhat controversial TikTok beauty trend, people are explaining the difference between the two viral terms, with celebrities falling into each category.

Many young women, like content creator Sienna Zarate, posted about feeling this way girl beautiful and never got attention from men, while others didn’t know how to get glamour.

Croatian maker Mirta Miler showed her 18.3 million TikTok followers the difference by applying her makeup as “girl pretty” on one side and “boy pretty” on the other, defining it as the male versus female gaze.

Mirta explained the differences as ‘What is attractive to men versus what is attractive to women?’ before showing off her glam routine in two different ways.

‘Guys always say, “I like natural girls.” For them, natural girls mean a foundation with medium coverage,” Mirta explained on her own face. On the left side of her face she showed what “pretty boy” makeup was, and on the right what “pretty girls” meant

‘Guys always say, “I like natural girls.” For them, natural girls mean a foundation with medium coverage,” Mirta explained.

She said that “the male gaze looks like you have no flaws, but also looks like you’re not wearing a lot of makeup,” while creating makeup for the “female gaze is all about falling in love with the imperfections.” ‘

When applying her makeup for the male gaze, she enhanced her soft feminine features and focused on becoming the “angelic girl next door,” putting on fake freckles and creating fluffy, feathery eyebrows on the left side.

For girly beauty, she made sure to create a light, breathable foundation on the skinline, and thin, lifted brows with dewy skin.

In the second part of the videoshe put on soft and dreamy shiny eye makeup for the boy, quite aesthetically pleasing, and for the feminine look she did a smokey eye.

Content creator Axandra, who has 1.7 million followers and makes videos ‘for the girls’, explained some of the differences between what makes girls beautiful and what makes someone handsome.

Alxandra said, “Girls with bangs – only pretty girls – I feel like guys don’t care about bangs,” which would clearly put Taylor Swift in the pretty girls category.

She also believes that short hair is “pretty for girls” because men are “obsessed with long hair,” making Sydney Sweeney pretty for a boy.

Women wondered what they thought “pretty girl” meant, and whether it was important to them

Alxandra said: ‘Girls with bangs – only pretty girls – I feel like men don’t care about bangs,’ as she explained the differences in the viral trend

As part of Alxandra’s description, red lips and dramatic eye makeup, as seen on Taylor Swift, are also girly.

Sydney Sweeney is an example of pretty guys because she does full-coverage makeup and rarely opts for over-glamor or anything too dramatic.

According to Axandra, pretty girls also do fun eyeliner and generally opt for bold, bright makeup looks, while pretty boy women do the bare minimum when it comes to glamor and don’t experiment.

Commenters had a lot to say about the differences — and whether people should care what men thought about their hairstyles and makeup routines.

One woman said: ‘And do your hair the way you want… most men actually like individuality, unless you’re dating guys.’

Another explained, “A good example of pretty girl for me would be Alexa Chung.”

Someone else clarified: ‘Pretty boys can be appreciated by everyone, but pretty girls are something only women appreciate. Like coquette,” referring to the hyper-feminine, bow-heavy trend.

Megan Fox is an example of good looking guys as she has long hair and what appears to be minimal makeup despite having full coverage foundation

One TikTok commenter explained, “A good example of a beautiful girl for me would be Alexa Chung,” as she has short hair and doesn’t do her makeup for the male gaze.

Actress and creator Donnie Jackson made her own TikTok, capitalizing on the trend-expanding TikTok.

Donnie shared, “An unpopular opinion but the whole thing is absolutely stupid, are you a girl or are you a hot guy?”

‘This generation’s obsession with beauty is so terrible.’

She added in her caption, “Have y’all forgotten that people have personalities or am I crazy?”

Despite the controversy, many people are wondering who they like, a boy or a girl, and how they think they can change their glamorous looks to embrace the craze.