# Sperm count **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 20, 2001, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323 "2001-11-20T01:25:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![insider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bbe5ce/32.png) [@insider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/insider)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/1 "2001-11-20T01:25:08Z")
If every male on earth who could have an orgasm and ejaculate did so, and it was all collected, how much sperm are we looking at? ---
**Author:** ![Sofa\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Sofa\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sofa_King)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/2 "2001-11-20T01:37:37Z")
I’m sorry, Mr. Costner, we _cannot_ allow you to make a sequel to _Waterworld_. ---
**Author:** ![geepee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ebca7d/32.png) [@geepee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/geepee)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/3 "2001-11-20T01:51:08Z")
That is possibly the worst GQ i have ever seen but i think i may humor you just this once, consider populations are usually 51% male thats (6billion X .51) X 15ml-40ml work it out yourself ---
**Author:** ![DAVEW0071](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e19b73/32.png) [@DAVEW0071](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DAVEW0071)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/4 "2001-11-20T02:04:59Z")
I wanna be on **insider’s** science fair team! ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/5 "2001-11-20T03:14:12Z")
I got nothing better to do. Let’s assume there are six billion people. 51% of them are male. Let’s make a WAG and say 85% of those are capable of ejaculation (the rest either being too young, too old, or having some disease.) That means 6,000,000,000 x .51 x .85 = 2,601,000,000 ejaculators. According to [The Master](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_054), there are about 5mL of semen per ejaculation, on average. That works out to a total volume of 2,601,000,000 x 5mL = 13,005,000 litres of semen. That’s enough to fill half of an average sized swimming pool. I seem to recall from the glory days of Sex-Ed that there are about 200 million sperm per ejaculation. So that makes 13,005,000 x 200,000,000 = 2.601 x 10[sup]15[/sup] individual sperm. For the record, that’s 2,601,000,000,000,000,000, or two quintillion, 601 quadrillion sperm cells. Yippee. ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Defense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Civil\_Defense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Defense)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/6 "2001-11-20T03:20:05Z")
> [@](#): > > 13,005,000 litres of semen. That’s enough to fill half of an average sized swimming pool. An average sized swimming pool is 26,010,000 liters? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/7 "2001-11-20T05:00:34Z")
You need a big swimming pool if your average ejaculate is 40mL. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/8 "2001-11-20T06:49:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Civil Defense \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > 13,005,000 litres of semen. That’s enough to fill half of an average sized swimming pool. > > An average sized swimming pool is 26,010,000 liters? \*\* Whoops, I got my mL and L mixed up. (It’s late, leave me alone.) A good size swimming pool is 30,000 litres, not 30 million. So you have enough to fill ten swimming pools. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/9 "2001-11-20T07:26:23Z")
I am without words. Except to say I thought he meant all males, not just human ones. And I wonder when this will be encorporated into a porno movie. p.s. Why do you want to know this? ---
**Author:** ![NutMagnet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@NutMagnet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NutMagnet)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/10 "2001-11-20T13:38:46Z")
Last one in is a rotten egg! [sub](First one in is sick)[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![geepee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ebca7d/32.png) [@geepee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/geepee)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/11 "2001-11-20T13:51:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Osiris \* > \*\*I am without words. > > Except to say I thought he meant all males, not just human ones. And I wonder when this will be encorporated into a porno movie. > \*\* er…um… its called Bukkate where theres one woman 20+ men do their thing on her /make her drink it pretty gross really, i think i’ll STFU now ---
**Author:** ![GrizzRich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7ba0ec/32.png) [@GrizzRich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrizzRich)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/12 "2001-11-20T15:50:52Z")
I have only one word to say… . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ew! ---
**Author:** ![douglips](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@douglips](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/douglips)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sperm-count/94323/13 "2001-11-20T15:59:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by friedo \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Civil Defense \* > > \*\* > > > > > [@](#): > > > > > > 13,005,000 litres of semen. That’s enough to fill half of an average sized swimming pool. > > > > An average sized swimming pool is 26,010,000 liters? \*\* > > Whoops, I got my mL and L mixed up. (It’s late, leave me alone.) A good size swimming pool is 30,000 litres, not 30 million. > > So you have enough to fill ten swimming pools. 🙂 \*\* Sorry, friedo, I don’t get the smilie. Why isn’t the answer 430 swimming pools?