Katy Perry and Justin Bieber
Trolls mocked Katy Perry's new hairstyle and made comparisons with Justin Bieber Instagram

US popstar Katy Perry sparked controversy earlier this month when she revealed a new cropped hairstyle, but has now been been mocked by trolls comparing the star to Justin Bieber in her latest Instagram post.

The cruel remarks spiralled out of control when the 32-year-old uploaded a partially obscured image of her face and hair to the social media site on Saturday (15 April).

Looking into the distance while standing next to a swimming pool at an exotic sun-kissed location, the page filled with apparent comparisons between Perry and Bieber.

"You look like Justin Bieber now," said one commenter, who was clearly not impressed with the new, bold style.

A number of other fans also noted the similarity in a less than positive light.

"I thought was Justin Bieber," said one follower, while another simply asked "Justin?"

Earlier in the day, Perry uploaded a video of herself sporting the hairstyle while working out in the gym to Stormzy's Big For Your Boots.

The clip led Foxior to state: "First Miley Cirus, now Justin Bieber. Don't like new you," in reference to Perry's other recent cut that mirrored Cyrus' Wrecking Ball era style.

Thank Goddess ✨💫🌙 📸@janellshirtcliff

A post shared by KATY PERRY (@katyperry) on

Another bluntly stated: "What is that hair cut @katyperry it was better when you kissed girls and liked it "

However, some fans were more forgiving – praising the Firework hitmaker for her body confidence.

"LOVE THE HAIR F*CK THESE PPL DO YOU BOO ," said tefyuzumaki, before Katy Brazil added "Love You".

Perry previously spoke out about body confidence in 2016, claiming she "represented" a lot of "curvy" women who are not "sample size".

🏺sculpting🏺cc: @elliegoulding

A post shared by KATY PERRY (@katyperry) on

In the interview with Mashable she said: ""I know for me, I'm curvy, I'm not sample size, but I represent a lot of people out there," she says. "I want to be relateable. That's really important to me, while not losing my mind in this weird f*****g human experiment I'm going through.

"I think owning the terms is on an individual basis," she added. "It's about what you want to call yourself. We don't see ourselves in the same way."