We compare the SEDs and derived physical properties for simulated and observed galaxies. We have used a radiative transfer code to calculate UV-submm mock SEDs for ~8000 z=0 galaxies extracted from the EAGLE suite of cosmological simulations, and compare these to ~800 observed UV-submm SEDs from the DustPedia sample of nearby galaxies. To derive global properties, we have applied the SED fitting code CIGALE consistently to both data sets. Results from this comparison show overall agreement between simulations and observations, both in the observable SEDs and in the derived physical properties. We do find a number of discrepancies, which we attribute to a combination of galaxy population differences and limitations in the subgrid treatment of star-forming regions. Our findings show the importance of detailed radiative transfer calculations for the derivation of physical properties from mock galaxies, and offer vital information on the possibilities for improving our numerical models.