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For those unfamiliar with the term, allow us to expand your horizons. If you’ve been on TikTok, you’ve likely already come across viral videos of femboys dressed in cat ears, maid costumes, and lacy gloves. In fact, if you’ve been online in general over the last six years, femboys have become increasingly popular and more unavoidable in online spaces, and now constitute some of the world’s most popular streamers, YouTube vloggers, and porn creators — a welcome development if you ask us.
If you want to learn more about what it means to be a femboy, the subculture, its history, and how they rose to online stardom, read on below.
But as with many identity labels such as “butch” or “femme” that were originally used to describe gender expression, the original definition of the term has since expanded to be more inclusive of a variety of identities. Femboys may be cis, but they also can be nonbinary or trans.
Usually, the femboy aesthetic can be recognized by a few key characteristics, though this isn’t an exhaustive list: animal ear headbands, makeup, and elaborately femme outfits like skirts, dresses, stockings, and blouses. What’s most important, however, is self-identification.
Sometimes, being a femboy can be a stepping stone in someone’s transition journey, and other times it can be a way to play with gender presentation in a way that does not lead to a shift in personal identification. Either way, if you are unsure how someone identifies, rather than assuming, you should ask someone about their gender if/when it becomes relevant and appropriate. This does not mean that you should take it as an opportunity to ask intrusive questions about someone’s body, identity, or lived experience.
In short: Be normal and don’t make assumptions. In our experience, femboys tend to be quite friendly!
Despite homophobic and transphobic sentiment about gender variance in the ’90s and 2000s, porn that centered femboys became increasingly popular. In 2013, PornHub even introduced the “femboy” category on its site, allowing viewers to search specifically for videos that included people who fit the archetype.
It wasn’t until 2020, however, that femboys as we know them today became part of the popular zeitgeist thanks, in part, to the advent of social video platform TikTok. In the depths of the pandemic, as people hunkered down at home, trends that involved more performance and play became popular on the video sharing app. As the e-girl aesthetic became popular — think emo style revamped for the 2020s with split-color hair dye, thick silver chains, dangly single earrings, and big black platform boots — the modern femboy was born.
Videos of femboys in maid costumes and cat ears regularly went viral in the early 2020s,with many applauding the trend for challenging traditional notions of what it means to be a boy online. Usually, femboys don makeup (think black liquid liner and intense blush-into-eyeshadow looks), razor-cut hair styles, black dresses, and, of course, cat ears. Over the years, femboys developed a distinct and easily recognized aesthetic.
But the advent of the femboy’s popularity didn’t come to an end after e-girl fashion fell out of vogue. Streamers like F1NN5TER, who often wears hyper-femme outfits and makeup, have amassed huge audiences on Twitch and YouTube. F1NN5TER, who uses all pronouns, now identifies as genderfluid but is often credited with helping to popularize the femboy aesthetic.
Femboys have now become a symbol of online savviness and counterculture that has undeniably broken into the mainstream. During the summer of 2025, hackers managed to compromise multiple systems around the globe with a “gayfemboy” malware. In December 2025, PornHub announced that femboys were one of the most searched categories of the year. After decades of fringe online recognition, femboys are finally here to stay.
The Femboy Renaissance Is Nigh
In 2026, femboys are taking it. After being declared one of PornHub’s most searched categories of last year and being namedropped in malware that has disrupted the operations of major industries, we’re calling it: Femboys are having their moment.For those unfamiliar with the term, allow us to expand your horizons. If you’ve been on TikTok, you’ve likely already come across viral videos of femboys dressed in cat ears, maid costumes, and lacy gloves. In fact, if you’ve been online in general over the last six years, femboys have become increasingly popular and more unavoidable in online spaces, and now constitute some of the world’s most popular streamers, YouTube vloggers, and porn creators — a welcome development if you ask us.
If you want to learn more about what it means to be a femboy, the subculture, its history, and how they rose to online stardom, read on below.
What is a femboy?
When the term was first popularized in the 1990s, “femboy” was usually used to describe cisgender boys who dress or behave in a feminine way. Historically, this would often be used in contrast to a term like “trans woman,” which describes people for whom womanhood is a core gender identity.But as with many identity labels such as “butch” or “femme” that were originally used to describe gender expression, the original definition of the term has since expanded to be more inclusive of a variety of identities. Femboys may be cis, but they also can be nonbinary or trans.
Usually, the femboy aesthetic can be recognized by a few key characteristics, though this isn’t an exhaustive list: animal ear headbands, makeup, and elaborately femme outfits like skirts, dresses, stockings, and blouses. What’s most important, however, is self-identification.
Are femboys trans?
This isn’t a cut-and-dry question. Put simply, it depends on the femboy. Because “femboy” traditionally refers to a gender presentation as opposed to a gender itself, femboys can come from a variety of gender experiences. Many femboys are cis men; others are trans men; and some are nonbinary people. Calling any trans woman a “femboy” can be deeply harmful and just incorrect. Trans women are women, and many would find the term to be flagrantly offensive if used to describe them.Sometimes, being a femboy can be a stepping stone in someone’s transition journey, and other times it can be a way to play with gender presentation in a way that does not lead to a shift in personal identification. Either way, if you are unsure how someone identifies, rather than assuming, you should ask someone about their gender if/when it becomes relevant and appropriate. This does not mean that you should take it as an opportunity to ask intrusive questions about someone’s body, identity, or lived experience.
In short: Be normal and don’t make assumptions. In our experience, femboys tend to be quite friendly!
Why are they so popular online?
As with any modern slang used to describe identity, it can be hard to pin down the exact origins of where “femboy” was first used. While people playing with gender presentation have always existed, the term “femboys” first emerged in the 1990s on online message boards like 4Chan and Reddit as well as porn sites. The term was used to describe — and sometimes fetishize — people with a mix of feminine and masculine traits. Though it emerged offline during the same time period as a homophobic term similar to “sissy” or “wimp,” it also flourished online in a positive way, according to Dictionary.com.Despite homophobic and transphobic sentiment about gender variance in the ’90s and 2000s, porn that centered femboys became increasingly popular. In 2013, PornHub even introduced the “femboy” category on its site, allowing viewers to search specifically for videos that included people who fit the archetype.
It wasn’t until 2020, however, that femboys as we know them today became part of the popular zeitgeist thanks, in part, to the advent of social video platform TikTok. In the depths of the pandemic, as people hunkered down at home, trends that involved more performance and play became popular on the video sharing app. As the e-girl aesthetic became popular — think emo style revamped for the 2020s with split-color hair dye, thick silver chains, dangly single earrings, and big black platform boots — the modern femboy was born.
Videos of femboys in maid costumes and cat ears regularly went viral in the early 2020s,with many applauding the trend for challenging traditional notions of what it means to be a boy online. Usually, femboys don makeup (think black liquid liner and intense blush-into-eyeshadow looks), razor-cut hair styles, black dresses, and, of course, cat ears. Over the years, femboys developed a distinct and easily recognized aesthetic.
But the advent of the femboy’s popularity didn’t come to an end after e-girl fashion fell out of vogue. Streamers like F1NN5TER, who often wears hyper-femme outfits and makeup, have amassed huge audiences on Twitch and YouTube. F1NN5TER, who uses all pronouns, now identifies as genderfluid but is often credited with helping to popularize the femboy aesthetic.
Femboys have now become a symbol of online savviness and counterculture that has undeniably broken into the mainstream. During the summer of 2025, hackers managed to compromise multiple systems around the globe with a “gayfemboy” malware. In December 2025, PornHub announced that femboys were one of the most searched categories of the year. After decades of fringe online recognition, femboys are finally here to stay.
