Almost one in two Filipino men consider themselves sexually attractive, according to the survey, but the number drops to almost one in 10 for Hong Kong males.
However, male vanity in Asia has yet to reach the same level it has in the US where over half of men rate themselves as sexy.
Synovate compiled the results for the study after interviewing nearly 3,000 males between 15 and 64 years' old from all walks of life in China, Hong Kong, Korea, the Philippines, Singapore and Taiwan.
A sample from the US was also included for some questions.
Carole Sarthou, managing director of Synovate in the Philippines, said the marketers should take note of Asian attitudes to male grooming. "The results strongly suggest that the pretty boy mindset is pretty strong and might lead to some pretty good opportunities for marketers," she said.
The different national attitudes uncovered by the survey suggest, however, that marketers looking to tap this trend will have to do so on a country by country level.
For example Asian men tended to agree that they looked good more for themselves than for others, with the exception of men in Taiwan.
The survey also uncovered dramatic differences in product use.
Sarthou said: "Men in China aren't much into products that are traditionally used by women, with one notable exception... 55 per cent of them use some sort of whitening soap. Skin whiteners are mostly scorned by other males in Asia."
China offered considerable scope for sales of dental floss, used by only eight per cent of men compared with over half in Taiwan.
The study also showed that men don't use toner much anywhere except Korea, where it is applied by 57 per cent of respondents.
Products such as mousses and gels however are popular everywhere.
Michael McComb, director of planning for TBWA Asia Pacific, said the male grooming market would really start to develop when attitudes reached the tipping point where men paying as much attention to their appearance as women become not just accepted, but expected.
He said: "Across the board you will see a growth focusing on specific positioning and new product development, not only in response to this, but also to accelerate the changes to attitudes we see in the market."
Marketers should tread carefully in generating positive male images, McComb cautioned, lest they are seen as contributing towards self-esteem problems caused by unrealistic expectations.
Male vanity triggers new brand prospects
A study of male grooming in Asia has found that attitudes and product use varies markedly country by country. The study, conducted by market research company Synovate, found that while more than four out of five men in the Philippines said their looks were important to them, indicating a potentially fertile market for male grooming products, the number dropped to 35 per cent of Taiwanese males.