What lubes should i use with my sex toy?
Different Types of Lube
Lube comes in all sorts of different materials, each with their own pros and cons.
The most common three are the following:
- Water-based lube
- Silicone-based lube
- Oil-based lube
Here is a quick rundown of all three of these common lubes.
Water-Based Lube
No matter sexual activity you partake in, water-based lube will be effective.
In terms of sex toys, this means that water-based lube is compatible with any and all sex toy materials.
And even safe to use with all types of condoms.
Another great benefit is that they wash out fairly easily, making cleaning after you finish getting yourself off a breeze!
This is the most versatile lube on the market, and should be your go-to choice in most cases.
(Keep reading to see how the other types of lube may be better for you personally though).
Silicone-Based Lube
This is the ideal lube to use if you have highly-sensitive skin.
The reason being is that silicone is hypoallergenic.
Meaning you won’t experience any sort of reaction with the lube on your skin.
Silicone-based lube also typically lasts longer than water-based lube, which means you won’t have to reapply lube quite as often.
However, there is one major downside with using this lube…
… They are incompatible with silicone toys.
If your silicone toys come into contact with silicone-based lube, the surface of the toy may deteriorate over time.
Not only does this mean your toy is no longer as smooth and beautiful as it once was, but it also means it is less sanitary.
Any irregularity in the surface of your sex toy allows bacteria to more easily form there.
So even though silicone toys are the safest and best toys out there, if you use silicone-lube with them, all bets are off.
And you very likely will end up with not only a damaged toy, but an unsanitary one as well.
This is the only thing that needs to be considered with silicone-based lube however.
You can definitely use it with any other sex toys or in general, as it is still a very high-quality lube.
Just keep a water-based lube as well for your silicone toys and you should be golden.
Oil-Based Lube
If you want to reapply lube even less often than with silicone-based lube, then oil-based lube is your answer.
They last much longer than any other lube out there.
In most cases, just a single application of oil-based lube will last your entire sex or masturbation session.
And they are perfectly safe with most sex toys.
However, these lubes are often associated with higher rates of infections.
And they are not fun to clean whatsoever.
They take a long time to fully wash off of your skin and sex toys.
And oil-based lubes also are very likely to stain your bed sheets and any clothing as well, only making things messier in the end.
Note that the above list is just the main lubrications out there.
There are lubes like hybrid lubes that combine elements of multiple lubes.
As well as “natural” lubes that use natural ingredients.
In any case, of the above three lubes listed, we only recommend using water-based and silicone-based lubes.
Oil-based lubes may be useful for the actual application, but in practice, they end up causing more risk and headache than they are worth.
So stick to using water-based or silicone-based lube for your sex toy adventures.
In fact, you should own both to cover a wide range of applications.