Unless you were the queen of the child beauty pageant, you’ve probably been embarrassed by your appearance at some point in your life. You might look back on old photos of yourself and just cringe. But some people change their appearance so much that you wouldn’t even recognise them – sometimes, all it takes is a few years for that kooky kid in the corner to become the belle of the ball!

Here are some before and after pictures of people who’ve turned from ‘ugly’ ducklings into beautiful swans. Remember, if you’re beautiful on the inside, it’ll always shine through in the end!

5 Years Later

What with all the hormones of teenage years, rapid weight gain is pretty common. But it doesn’t have to stay that way! Consider this lady, who dropped 75lbs in her 20s. She also says that she picked up a skincare routine, improved upon her makeup skills and changed her hairstyle.

In her own words, she is still working on getting some confidence that will help her achieve a glow at any age. No one will ever call her an ugly duckling anymore.

Pratt To Hemsworth

Remember the scene from Avengers: Infinity War when Thor joins the Guardians of the Galaxy? The group discusses how StarLord (Chris Pratt) looks fat compared to Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and mentions how the former has gained a lot of weight around his chin. The above pictures show a transformation where someone went from looking like Chris Pratt to looking like Chris Hemsworth.

his guy has lost quite a lot of weight both around his face and around his body, and the decision of not wearing glasses is giving him a whole new look. He went from having a curvy body to having chiseled features that might as well put him on the same pedestal as a Norse god.

Puberty Hit Her Hard

She was so heavy at 13 years old that she needed to use a walking stick – but look how things have changed! From being the butt of fat jokes at school to being a sexy librarian in those cat’s eye glasses.

It just goes to show that anyone can change their lifestyle – and that there’s a style of make-up that works for everyone. Just look at how that lipstick is working for her.

Miles To Go

You would never believe that this transformation took only 4 months. The guy literally went from sagging skin to a muscular body. His story is quite inspiring and it might just motivate you to pick up a new fitness routine of your own. He was feeling depressed, lost, and demotivated because of chronic tinnitus when he decided to change his life and take charge of some of the things in his life.

These included a new fitness regime that allowed him to undergo such a massive transformation within the short span of 4 months. While he continues to suffer from hearing impairments, he surely does not look like he did a few months ago.

Drop-out To Ph.D.

If you ask most people in higher education, they’ll say that it takes a significant toll on your physical and mental health. Long, hard hours of study and. nota great deal of job security, to boot. Not so for this guy, who had the picture on the left taken when he graduated, just before he began his PhD.

He decided that he wouldn’t fall into the stereotype and, along with his academic progress, put time into his physical and mental wellbeing. On the right, he’s sporting a brand new beard that frames his features handsomely, and a confident and winning smile. He’s dropped a few pounds too. Not bad for someone who initially dropped out of college!

Not So Drastic

Everyone has gone through an awkward, teen rock phase. Kurt Cobain was everyone’s hero, and the baggy, grungy look of the 90s would surely never go out of style! Except… it did. That’s why this guy decided to change it up and cut his long locks for a more clean-cut style.

Gone are the oversized hoodies, too. We can’t say we’re exactly fans of that nipple-heavy vest look, but our man has clearly been hitting the gym with abs like those. Good on him!

Farewell To Years Of Depression

From 19, to 22, to 24. In only five years, her look changed completely. Glasses can be a great fashion statement, but you have to consider how much real estate they’re taking up on your face – so thick frames aren’t for everyone.

It’s hard to believe that these are the same people – it just goes to show that you really figure out your style in your 20s, and it’s often a lot simpler, and with fewer gimmicks, than you’d initially think!

On the nose

In the end, Cinderella did go to the ball! This transformation is all about understanding your best features, as well as the ones that… aren’t so great. She decided to show off her shoulders and her slim figure more, and used make-up to emphasise her eyes rather than her nose.

That’s not to say her features were holding her back – there’s nothing wrong with an aquiline look. But you have to play it right!

Simply Unbelievable

Let’s be honest – do you think you’ve ever looked good in a school yearbook photo? It’s tough when you’re paraded past a janitor who doesn’t care if the pictures come out great or not.

Then again, few people can say “that’s not what I actually look like!” as much as this girl, who in 13 years transformed completely from a chubby kid to a fashion goddess. Those horizontal stripes really work for her!

The Rawr Hand

Simply from the styles in these photos, you know exactly how old this woman is. Whether it’s the tomboy look from the late 90s, or the rawr-hand emo phase of the late 00s, or the crisp look of someone who’s come out the other side, she’s unmistakably in her late 20s.

The key thing here has been letting her hair grow out and getting glasses that show off her face. What a smile!

Puberty Was His Friend

Dressing smart doesn’t always mean you look smart, and that’s always going to be the case with teenagers wearing shirts. It’s a well-known fact that as a teen you tend to grow up rather than grow out, which makes a lot of formal shirts ill-fitting.

That’s where a bit of puberty kicks in – and this guy has gone from just smart to looking even sharper in a smart-casual look. You don’t need a tie if your hair is coiffed and you’ve got a great blazer!

Therapy & Exercise

“Therapy and exercise certainly made a change mentally and physically. Still struggling with confidence and self-love but all good things take time. Slow and steady.” The picture on the left was from when she was 19 years old. One look at the picture, and you might have also guessed that she was a middle-aged soccer mom who would soon be rushing to pick up her kids from practice.

But fast forward four years and she has become a completely new person. Now, at the age of 23, she looks like she is still a sophomore in college. We just love the twinkle in her eye that shows she’s a person more at peace with herself.

Picking The Right Lbs

He went on Reddit to say that he dropped 73 lbs of fat from his body after he picked up the 65 lbs of weights in the gym! Building a new habit can seem impossible, but it’s just a case of taking the first step.

Now, he doesn’t look back. And, clearly, the workout is paying dividends – just look at those biceps!

Hiding The Buck Teeth

This girl had buck teeth back when she was 10 years old. She had all her hair pulled back and the full attention was on her mouth.

Fast forward nearly two decades, and the picture on the right is her at 29 years old. You can see that the transformation is complete and her dental regimen has completely worked – she’s transformed into a beautiful young woman.

A Little Goes A Lot Along The Way

Can you believe she achieved all this with tips she learned from AOL Online? We’re just kidding, but it’s possible that bright, Windows XP background inspired her to bring more colour into her life.

She looks great – like a real-life Miss Honey!

Self Hate To Self Love

The picture on the top left is from when the guy was 16 years old. He had been battling with self-hate and depression for years when he decided to do something about it. Since the only thing that he could really make a change in was his appearance, he decided to join the gym the work on his body.

He went from being a skinny guy to being lean and muscular, but that’s not all – the structure and endorphins of his exercise regime have helped his mental health to no end. Get that comfort and stability within, and it’s bound to show on the outside, too!

Decade Old Transformation

The first picture that you see above was taken when this guy was 18 years old. It’s crazy how much a little bit of facial hair, and keeping that fringe out of your eyes, can transform your look.

He’s gone from being a nerd to looking like a real success story – and based on the twinkle in those eyes, he knows it!

Puberty Hit Her Like A Bus

Alright, absolutely no one is going to look good when playing a game with one of those things in their mouth. We don’t care if you’re Beyoncé or David Beckham – it makes you look like you’re in a horror movie.

But the biggest change here is understanding exactly what to do with her hair. That single loose strand is so cute – and her sense of poise is giving us life.

Dropping All The Fat

The pictures that you see above were taken when the guy was 12 years old, 19 years old, and 20 years old, respectively from left to right. He says that he was always conscious about the way that he looked but it was not until he was 19 years old that he decided to do something about it.

The hard work he put in is made even more amazing by the fact that it took him only one year to get the results that he wanted. Clearly, he has worked day and night to achieve the look.

Bad High School Pictures

This guy was pretty embarrassed about the picture that was taken during his middle school and he said that middle school sucked for him. It was probably because he looked like just another random guy that is in your class and there was nothing special about him. He had geeky looks in school and was just another run-of-the-mill kid who looked like Bill Gates, just without the money.

Now, with his stylish specs, he’s transformed from an ugly duckling into a handsome hunk.

A Proud Achievement

The picture on the left was taken when this girl was somewhere between 18 and 19 years old and the one on the right was taken when she was 21 years old. This goes on to show that you can become a swan from an ugly duckling within a small matter of a couple of years.

It’s not even about weight loss – you can just tell from the image on the right that she feels so much more comfortable in her own skin.

Oscar Wilde To James Potter

This is one of the more interesting transformations on our list. Prior to his transformation, he somewhat resembled Oscar Wilde and that is saying something considering that he was just 18 years old in the picture. However, he decided that enough was enough and made some changes in his life. He dropped a few pounds in his body weight and cut his hair short.

After a few years, around the time when he was 25 years old, he began to realize that his transformation was complete. Now, he looks more like James Potter from the Harry Potter universe. Daddy!

A Lot Has Changed

Whenever we find an old phone lying around the house, we are always amazed to see the pictures that we took with it. Now that we tend to change phones every couple of years, the difference is often not noticeable. However, when you pick up a really old phone, say from 8 or 9 years ago, you will surely find some embarrassing pictures that you would not want to be seen by anyone.

You would do everything in your power to keep them from seeing the light of the day. This guy found one such picture in an old iPhone and he put it up on Reddit proud of the fact that he had transformed his body quite a lot from when he was 12 years old to now when he is 20 years old.

Growing Up Nicely

When he was a kid, there was something about his teeth that made everyone believe that he was not going to grow up to be a handsome man. However, they were wrong as nature began to take action to improve the life of the young kid. He went from being a dorky kid to being one of the guys who got regular dates on the weekends.

This transformation happened within a matter of eight years and it was quite a wonderful one. We are sure that the girls in his school are now regretting not going out with him back then. Well, bad luck for them!

Unbelievable Changes

This girl went on record to say that she could not believe the changes that her body had gone through in a matter of a few years. She says that if she had not seen the change with her own two eyes, she would never have believed it to be true.

The picture on the left was taken when she was 17 years old. She decided to make changes to her lifestyle and brought upon a strict regime where and when the freckles around her eyes settled down a bit and the acne disappeared from her face, she became one of the hottest girls that you will ever see. It’s hard to imagine the transformation that she had in just three years.

Ever So Cool

Now, this girl was cool even back then. The picture on the left was taken when she was 12 years old and you can see that she loved boating. She has her hand on the motor and she is going to steer her life into a successful and future. The picture on the right shows her transformation to be complete and you can see that she has lost that innocent little girl features.

The latter was taken when the girl was 26 years old – she looks like Angelina Jolie!

A Week’s Change

This just might be the shortest span in which we are witnessing a transformation on our list. The guy took two pictures a week apart and you can clearly see that he does not look the same today as he did a week ago. That is because he decided to shave up his patchy beard.

Clearly, it was a wise choice since the beard made him look shabby and homeless. Now that he has shaved it all off, he looks quite smart and someone who is going to be a hit at the bars. Kudos to the choice and we hope that more guys are sensible enough to clean up their lazy beards.

A Wild Ride

It takes quite some time for changes to become permanent. Some take a couple of years while others a bit longer. This girl was a part of the latter and she took more than 11 years to finally reach her goals. The picture on the left was taken when the little girl was merely 12 years old. She surely looks friendly but we are not sure if she had many friends when she was in school.

Perhaps, this is because we are judging her by her looks and that is not quite fair. Take one look at the picture on the right, which was taken when she turned 23 years old.

Rocking The Bow

This girl went on to reminisce all the times when she thought that she was really rocking the bow on her hair. However, as you can see, she needed a lot of fashion advice before dressing up. Perhaps there was no one around her to tell her that her style was not suiting her. Fortunately, she did get some friends who told her all about the malfunctioning bow.

The first picture was taken when she was 14 years old while the second one, the one on the right, was taken when she was 22 years old. She admitted on Reddit that she can’t believe she ever thought that enormous, cartoonish bow was working for her.

Just Blossomed

This is a real-life Princess Diaries story. She was living the slightly frazzled, nerdy look epitomised by Anne Hathaway at the start of the iconic movie, but that was all about to change.

Then again, based on how she looks now, we should probably make reference to another Hathaway movie – doesn’t she look like fashionista Emily Blunt from The Devil Wears Prada?

From 400 To 179

This guy went from weighing 400 lbs to just a little over 179 lbs. This 221 lbs weight loss did wonders for him as you can see in the picture above. He looks happy in both the pictures but we can easily say that he looks way happier in the second picture after he has lost that weight.

It is an incredible transformation but it is rather sad that he shared it with the internet because he says that he does not have friends to share the news with. Don’t worry buddy, we are here to share the joy with you and we are incredibly proud of you and your achievement.

The Effect Of The Beard

We all know that a proper beard can do wonders for a guy. While the girls put on their makeup, guys have it a bit easier when all they need to do is grow a beard. However, not all guys get the proper beards that they’d like. This guy was lucky but only after a certain age. You see, when he was 17 years old, pictured left, he did not have a beard, which made him quite the ugly and immature duckling in his social group.

However, he did not give up hope since it is natural for some guys to get their beards a little late into puberty. He surprised everyone when he got that macho beard, and everyone must have been shocked to see his transformation 10 years later.

The Borrowed Jawline

Genetics is a very interesting subject. When you study the genetics of a person, you will come to know of the various features and which side of the family did they inherit it from. But sometimes, it requires common sense and there are some features of the body that you can just tell by simply looking at the person and his parents.

This guy is sure that his mother had an affair with a man other than his father because he says that there is no way that he got the jawline from his father. In reality, it was just plain old exercise that allowed the fat on his face to shed and gave him a chiseled jaw that he believes is borrowed from another man.

A Testimony To Dedication

This is one of the most unbelievable transformations that we have seen so far. The guy simply went from being a blob of fat who sits around all day to someone who could compete with the gods of strength. The picture on the left was taken when he was 22 years old while the one on the right was taken when he was 27 years old. There are some people who would say that these are two pictures of two different men but they would be completely wrong. It looks like he is of Asian descent in the picture but that is simply because of the flash photography, and the guy is actually a Pacific Islander.

He got a good tan and the second picture was taken without any flash. Also, camera quality has drastically improved over the years and they are better able to capture colors now.

DIY Haircuts

There are a lot of people who avoid spending money and try to do as much as they can right at home. These DIYs can often have beautiful results but only when you know what you are doing. This girl was 13 years old when she started cutting her own hair at home.

However, she was very persistent and continued to cut her own hair, even after disastrous results. Fast forward to when she was 26 years old, and she says that she still cuts her hair on her own but the good news is that she has gotten a lot better at it than when she was 13.

From Old To Young

They say that time only moves in one direction and that you cannot change the flow of time. However, there are some people who age differently than others and this can lead to others believing that these people have access to a time machine. Just take a look at this girl, for instance. On the left, there is a picture that was taken when she was 13 years old, and on the right, there is a picture that was taken when she was 26 years old.

You can’t believe it either? For some reason, she looks older at the age of 13 than she does at the age of 26. Puberty was probably her best friend that helped her out in a big way when she was growing up.

Sleazy Facial Expressions

There are some things about your personality that you can never change in your life. You may try hard but when it comes to these things, the effort is simply futile. For this guy, it was his sleazy smile. Right from his childhood, he had a smile that could creep out any girl at whom he was smiling. And even though he may have gone through a lot of changes in his life, he could not change the way that he smiled.

Puberty hit him like a train but could not help him with the way that his eyes are just a little closed when he stretches the corners of his mouth. Apart from that, kudos brother, for turning into a beautiful, yet sleazy, swan from an outright ugly duckling.

The Piercing Blue Eyes

This guy went from being a cutie-patootie to hottie-hunky! The picture on the left is evidence of the way that he looked when he was 12 years old. All in all, he was quite a cute child. Some people say that he looked like a bully but we believe that he was just a big softie. On the right, you can see that the small kid from all those years ago is fully grown up now and has turned into quite the handsome hunk.

We want to believe that he still retains his innocence and that the outer persona is just a big barrier to keep some people out. We are also sure that his dreamy eyes are all that he needs to get a date with whomever he wants.

Medi-Free

This guy was struggling with bipolar disorder II for the better part of his life and the medications that the doctor had prescribed for him were the reason that he was gaining a lot of weight. However, there are many people who are able to kick the medications and not be affected by the disorder after a long time of staying on the meds.

This guy was one of them and he stopped taking the medicines in February of the year previous to the one when he took the picture on the right. As you can see, he has lost all that weight that he gained while he was on medication and he also has his disorder in control.

Life Is Weird

You would never believe that the two guys in the picture above are the same guy, just a few years apart from each other in age. The one on the left was taken when the guy was 13 years old and the one on the right was taken when the same guy was 25 years old.

12 years of aging, going through puberty and exercising well ensured that he got a better deal, and surprised everyone with the way that he looked now. Also, the beard that he has grown now is helping his cause.

Filling Out

When you are young and skinny, people often try to call you names, like a stickman. However, if you eat right and go to the gym at the right time, you will be able to lose the skinny part of the job. Regular exercise can help your muscles buff out enough to fill out your clothes and also make you look like a formidable person. This guy did that too. He was 16 years old when the picture was first taken.

This is the one on the left. On the other side of the picture is another guy, who is all buffed out and ready to take on the world with his hero pose when he was coming out of the water on the beach. This picture was taken when he was 22 years old.

The Same Smirk

This girl went from being the ignored child in the class to be the hottest girl in the class. It took her a while but she managed to drop all the extra weight and also make a few other changes in her life that made her look all beautiful. She was 15 years old when the picture on the left was taken. It took her 15 years of exercise to reach her ideal weight and she took the picture on the right when she was 30 years old.

It is amazing because she does not look 30 in the picture but more like 18. She also got better eyebrows and colored her hair. Even with all these changes, there is one thing that has remained the same even after 15 years, and that is her smirk.

From Audience To Cheerleader

This girl has a truly beautiful smile and it goes a long way into showing how friendly she is. The first picture gives us a glimpse of her smile when she was 14 years old and in the audience of a football match. She looks like a tomboy and her skin is severely suffering from acne. We are sure that she would have many friends because of her friendly nature but not too many love interests because of her looks.

However, she was not always going to remain a tomboy and must have started working on her looks around the time she was in high school because fast forward 7 years and you will be absolutely stunned looking at her transformation. She is drop-dead gorgeous and has changed quite a lot over the years. One thing that has remained constant is her smile and the friendliness that comes along with it.

Double Trouble

Here are two friends who went through their transformations together. Both of them had shabby hairstyles when they were younger and goofy smiles that were not going to make them popular among girls anytime soon. Being a teen in those days must have been difficult for them, especially when they looked like that. That must have been when they decided to go through some changes together and make a name for themselves.

We are proud of their transformations and also for the fact that they stuck together through all those years of friendship. There are many people who were best friends in school but became strangers as they grew up.

From Cute To Hot

There are many girls who make the journey from cute to hot when they hit puberty. This girl made that leap quite well when she lost all the chubbiness she had when she was 15 years old, pictured left. You can see that she has all the makings of a cute girl who will have many friends but will have a hard time dating boys. However, she was not always going to remain the same cute innocent girl that she was in school.

She turned into a beautiful, young woman who is quite hot for her age. Her recent picture was taken when she was 22 years old and she is smoking hot. All her chubby features have turned into sharp, chiseled looks and we are very proud of her.

Hidden Facial Features

This guy was completely unaware of the fact that he had decent facial features hidden under all the fat. At the age of 19, when the picture on the left was taken, he realized that he needed to lose some weight since it was getting in the way of getting decent dates. He decided to start working out and within a matter of 6 years, he lost 85 kgs (187 lbs).

When he took the picture on the right, at the age of 25, he captioned it, “Who knew I had some decent facial features underneath the fat I used to carry. I am glad I worked on myself and my appearance.”

Bowl Cut

This guy was too sad because of his body structure and even when he tried to enjoy his life, things did not go perfectly. It was then that he decided to make changes in his lifestyle and cut down on the carbohydrate intake.

The pictures on the left were taken when he was 12 years old while the ones on the right were taken when he was 19 years old. It took him 7 years but he was finally happy with the way. that he looked and it is evident from the pictures of him today.

Removing The Makeup

This girl was 15 years old when she wore a lot of makeup but that was not working for her. Back in 2012, she believed that makeup would solve all her problems but clearly that was not the case. In her own words, she says that it was time and hygiene that did all the wonders.

She stopped putting on makeup and that led to her skin clearing up. The second picture is from 2021 when she turned 24 years old and you can see how well her avoidance of makeup has given her a second chance at life.