How to Clean Sex Toys (and Care for Every Material)

At a Glance

• How to clean sex toys: Wash with warm water and a toy cleaner or mild unscented soap after every use, rinse, and let it dry completely before you put it away.
• Material decides the method: Silicone, stainless steel, and glass are non-porous and easy to get fully clean. TPE, jelly, and rubber are porous, so they need gentler cleaning and more frequent replacement.
• Motors change the rules: Never boil a vibrator or prostate massager or put it in the dishwasher, even a waterproof one. Wash it by hand.
• Skip the harsh stuff: Alcohol, bleach wipes, and scented soaps can damage toy surfaces and irritate your skin.
• Storage counts towards hygiene: Keep each toy dry and in its own pouch so it stays clean until next time.

Clean every sex toy after every use with warm water and a toy cleaner or mild, unscented soap, then rinse it and let it air-dry before you store it. That covers most toys on most days. What changes from toy to toy is the material it's made of and whether it has a motor, because those decide whether you can boil it and how long it'll last.

Get this right and a good toy lasts for years. Get it wrong, and you're putting something into your body that's carrying leftover bacteria from last time. Here's how to clean each material and how to store it afterward.

How Do You Clean a Sex Toy?

The same five steps work for almost every toy. Do them right after you're done, before anything has a chance to dry on.

1. Rinse it. Run it under warm water to wash off lube and body fluids. If it has a motor and an open charging port, keep water away from the port.
2. Clean it. Use a sex toy cleaner or a mild, unscented soap. Work it into every ridge, seam, and button with your fingers or a soft cloth.
3. Rinse again. Leftover soap can irritate sensitive skin next time, so rinse until the surface doesn't feel slippery.
4. Dry it. Pat it down with a lint-free cloth, then leave it out on a clean towel until it's dry all over, including the crevices.
5. Store it. Put it somewhere covered and away from your other toys (more on that below).

Clean it before the first use too. New toys pick up dust and residue from manufacturing and packaging.

What Should You Clean Sex Toys With?

A dedicated toy cleaner or plain unscented soap with warm water. Toy cleaners like our FoamFresh are made to be gentle on toy materials and on your body, which makes them the easiest everyday option.

Keep these away from your toys:

• Alcohol and disinfecting wipes. Clorox-style wipes and rubbing alcohol can dry out and crack toy surfaces, and the residue stings on sensitive tissue.
• Bleach and household cleaners. Too harsh for most materials, and not something you want anywhere near your insides.
• Scented or antibacterial hand soaps, which leave fragrance and residue behind.
• Rough scrubbers. A scratched surface gives bacteria somewhere to hide.

How Do You Clean Each Sex Toy Material?

It comes down to one question: is the material porous? Non-porous materials like silicone, stainless steel, and glass have no tiny holes for bacteria to settle into, so they can be cleaned all the way through. Porous materials like TPE, jelly, and rubber do, which means they can never be fully sanitized.

Silicone

Silicone is the easiest material to keep clean, which is a big part of why it's the standard for good toys. All of GIDDI's prostate massagers are silicone. Warm water and a toy cleaner after each use are all it needs. A non-motorized silicone toy can also be boiled for a deeper clean.

Two things damage silicone. One is silicone lube, which can bond with the surface and leave it tacky or pitted, so stick to water-based (here's our breakdown of the best lube for anal sex). The other is storing it pressed up against other silicone or soft plastic toys, which can make both surfaces react.

Stainless Steel and Glass

Both are non-porous and about as low-maintenance as toys get. Soap and warm water clean them, and both can be boiled. With glass, put it in the pot before you heat the water so it warms up gradually instead of cracking from the sudden temperature change. Check glass for chips every time you clean it, because a chipped glass toy is done. If you're shopping by material, our guide to silicone, stainless steel, and glass compares them side by side.

TPE and TPR

TPE (thermoplastic elastomer) is the soft, skin-like material used in a lot of strokers and male masturbators. It feels great and costs less than silicone. The trade-off is that it's porous, so it holds onto moisture and bacteria and wears out sooner.

Wash TPE gently with warm water and mild soap, and get inside any sleeve or opening. Skip boiling and harsh cleaners, both of which break the material down. Drying matters more here than with any other material: leave it open to the air until it's completely dry inside. Many TPE toys come with a renewing powder for afterward, which keeps the surface from going sticky.

Jelly, PVC, and Rubber

Cheap and squishy, jelly toys are the hardest to keep clean. They're porous, and many contain phthalates, chemical softeners that keep the material squishy. Warm water is about all they can take. Put a condom over them every time and plan to replace them often. When it's time to replace one, it's a good moment to upgrade to silicone.

How Do You Clean a Vibrator or Prostate Massager?

By hand, with warm water and a toy cleaner, and never by boiling or in the dishwasher. Heat damages the motor and battery inside, even when the toy is waterproof. Tomo, Thor, and Vulcan are all waterproof, so you can wash them under a running tap.

1. Turn it off. If it has an open charging port or a removable cover, check that it's closed.
2. Wash with warm water and toy cleaner, working around buttons, seams, and the base.
3. Rinse and pat dry with a lint-free cloth.
4. Let it dry completely, especially around the charging point, before you charge it.

A non-waterproof toy can't go under the tap. Wipe it with a damp cloth and toy cleaner instead, and keep water away from the electronics.

Can You Boil Sex Toys or Put Them in the Dishwasher?

Only if the toy has no motor and is made of 100% silicone, stainless steel, or borosilicate glass. For those, boiling for about five minutes is the most thorough clean you can do at home. Let the toy cool down completely before you touch it.

The dishwasher works for the same toys on the top rack, with no detergent or an unscented one, and without anything else in the load. Never boil or put in the dishwasher anything with a motor, a battery, or a porous material.

How Do You Disinfect Sex Toys?

For non-porous toys, a thorough wash with a toy cleaner is usually enough, and boiling covers the motor-free ones. A UV sterilizer bag adds another layer: you zip the toy inside, and UV light sanitizes it in about three minutes, with no water or heat involved.

Disinfecting matters most in two situations. One is any toy that's been shared, which should be cleaned (or covered with a fresh condom) between partners. The other is a toy that's been used anally. Clean it thoroughly before it goes anywhere else, or switch condoms.

How Should You Store Sex Toys?

Completely dry and kept apart from each other. Toys tossed loose in a drawer pick up dust and lint, and soft materials can react when they're pressed against each other.

• Give each toy its own pouch or compartment, especially silicone and TPE toys.
• Keep them somewhere cool and dry, out of direct sunlight.
• Remove batteries from toys that take them if you won't use them for a while.

When Should You Replace a Sex Toy?

When it won't come clean anymore. Retire any toy that has cracks, tears, chips, a sticky or tacky surface, a smell that stays after washing, or discoloration that won't wash off. Porous toys hit that point much sooner than silicone, steel, or glass. A well-kept silicone toy can last for years.

The Bottom Line

Wash after every use, rinse well, and let it dry before you put it away.

Then adjust for the material: boil the motor-free silicone, steel, and glass when you want a deep clean, go gentle on TPE, and keep anything with a motor out of hot water. Do that, and your toys will feel better and last longer.

Keep a bottle of FoamFresh Sex Toy Cleaner next to your toys, and add the UV Sterilizer Bag for storage and travel. Shop everything in care and hygiene products.