Mariko Garrett is a journalism freshman and Mustang News opinion columnist. The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Mustang Media Group.
Do you have a positive canthal tilt? A weak brow ridge? Do you consider yourself an absolute Chad? Or would you say you’re more subhuman? These are terms coined by the trending looksmaxxing community, and it is promoting harmful, extreme ideologies to social media users, with teenagers and young adults being its primary targets.
Looksmaxxing has its roots in online incel culture. “Incel” is a combination of the words “involuntarily celibate.” Members of the looksmaxxing community, which is predominantly male, believe that in order to increase success in the dating field and move away from being “involuntarily celibate,” they must follow extreme beauty standards created by the community to become more desirable.
As if this wasn’t bad enough, looksmaxxing also pulls heavy influences from eugenics, or a pseudoscientific theory based on reproducing desirable traits to “improve” the human race. The community has derogatory terms for people of different backgrounds, specifically for Jewish people, Asian people and black communities/people. Because the looksmaxxing beauty standards are based on Western beauty standards, those from non-white backgrounds are ostracized or encouraged to make themselves look “more white.”
These extreme beauty standards are also extremely harmful, especially as the looksmaxxing community makes its way to mainstream social media platforms, like TikTok and Instagram.
Lately, looksmaxxing content has flooded the feeds of countless social media users. TikToks showing figureheads, like the protagonist of American Psycho (2000), Patrick Bateman and male supermodel Jordan Barrett, dominating the screen with hyperpop playing in the background, are just some examples of looksmaxxing content. Hypermasculinity influencers share their hacks to becoming more “desirable.” This kind of looksmaxxing content directly targets insecure, and thus vulnerable, young men.
Male beauty standards in the looksmaxxing community consist of a sharp jawline, hunter eyes, and a physically fit body. Men who have all these attributes are known by the looksmaxxing community as “Chads.” Those striving to become a “Chad” go on harsh diets, undergo cosmetic operations and even infamously break their jaws to attain these features.
But women are starting to enter the looksmaxxing playing field alongside men. Looksmaxxing content for women has been rebranded to center around supermodels, such as Adriana Lima and Bella Hadid.
As if standards for women couldn’t get any more extreme, female beauty standards in the looksmaxxing community consist of a slim and toned hourglass figure, a hyperfeminine face and long hair. Those who have these features are typically referred to as “Stacies.”
Peak beauty standards are historically unattainable. But the rise in the extreme looksmaxxing culture and practices will only serve to make beauty standards even more unreachable.
This isn’t even to mention the mental implications this is already having on young adults. From TikToks with texts asking “Is it over for me?” to Instagram comments saying a user “mogged” another user, it is no secret that the spread of this ideology is negatively impacting the way we think about ourselves and interact with others, especially on the internet.
If we are constantly saying how unattainable beauty standards have always been, why are we allowing the corrupt looksmaxxing culture to define ideals in 2025?
In an age where words are taken for fact and the demographic of social media users becomes increasingly younger, the spread of this harmful and extremist ideology is immensely dangerous for those consuming this content. Looksmaxxing is not only spreading this outdated and untrue pseudoscientific information, but is also furthering the division between social media users.
Social media already feels suffocating as it is. The adoption of looksmaxxing as a belief amongst casual social media users will only make it worse. From labelling certain people as “Stacies” or “Chads,” creating unnecessary insecurities for younger users, touting harmful racist ideology, looksmaxxing is making social media apps a toxic environment to spend time in.