Hong Kong residents perceive the ideal woman's body as being 165cm tall and 50kg, dimensions which fall just under the 'normal' weight category used by doctors.
An ACNielsen telephone survey found men and women tended to specify similar dimensions when asked to describe the ideal female size, but younger people favoured an even leaner look.
They said a bust of 87cm, waist of 63cm and hips of 88cm were ideal for women.
The average perceived ideal for men was 175cm and 65kg, the study found, although older women preferred men to be slightly larger and heavier.
The bad news - except for those marketing slimming products - is that the average person does not fit the ideal measurements.
Both men and women were shorter on average than they thought ideal, with men averaging 172cm and women 160cm. The average male weight was 64kg, while the average female weighed 52kg.