Your vagin* doesn’t need feminine hygiene products, it maintains a healthy pH balance all by itself. But if you want to cleanse, moisturize, or freshen up, here are some excellent options.
- Best overall vagin*-friendly soap: Dove Sensitive Skin Unscented Beauty Bar
- Best overall vulva cleansing wipes: Summer’s Eve Fragrance Free Cleansing Cloths
- Best on-the-go vulva cleansing wipes: LOLA Cleansing Wipes Packets
- Best full-body cleansing wipes: Royal Body Wipes
- Best vagin*-friendly shower wash: Vagisil Daily Intimate Wash pH Balance
- Best vagin*-friendly bubble bath: Maude wash no. 0
- Best vagin*-friendly bath bomb: The Honey Pot Company Balancing Fragrance Free Bath Bomb
- Best post (vagin*l) sex wash: Sustain Natural Body Wash
- Best vagin*-friendly treatment for dry pubic hair: Fur Oil
- Best vagin*-friendly treatment for ingrown pubic hair: Fur Ingrown Concentrate
- Best vagin*-friendly treatment for easing irritation: Momotaro Apotheca Salve
Peruse the toiletry section of any pharmacy, grocery store, or gas station and you’ll see the phrase “feminine hygiene” plastered over lotions and potions, wipes, oils, and more.
But the term is a marketing tactic used to appeal to buyers of:
- sanitary pads
- tampons
- panty liners and shields
- internal cleansers
- sprays
- disposable razors
- and more
But companies aren’t targeting any buyer here — they’re targeting cisgender women buyers.
Cisgender women and other individuals with a vagin* have long been taught that their vagin*s are smelly, dirty caverns. Companies are banking on the idea that most people with vagin*s have internalized this message and experience deep shame about their scent.
No, you don’t need genital hygiene products
Again, the category “feminine hygiene” is quite broad. But for this article, we’re talking specifically about products designed for vulva (the external part of your genitalia) and vagin*l (the internal canal) use, including:
- pube oils
- razor burn treatments
- vulva-safe soaps
- external wipes
Here’s the thing: None of these products are necessary.
The vagin* doesn’t need to be washed or wiped or treated because the vagin* is a self-maintaining organ, explains Dr. Renjie Chang, OB-GYN, co-founder of sexual health startup NeuEve.
“A healthy vagin* has an ecology of bacteria that helps it maintain the right pH,” Chang explains.
That would be a pH value of 3.5 to 4.5, which is slightly acidic. At this pH, the vagin* can prevent “bad” bacteria from thriving, Chang says.
Washing inside or douching the vagin*l canal can disrupt this natural balance, resulting in irritation, bacterial vaginosis, or other vagin*l infections.
“Douching actually increases the risk of pushing STIs upward toward the fallopian tubes and can cause pelvic inflammatory disease,” says Dr. Kimberly Langdon, OB-GYN, medical adviser at Medzino, a digital health company based in California.
The vulva, on the other hand, does need to be washed.
“Cleaning the vulva should be a part of your daily hygiene routine,” says Dr. Sherry Ross, OB-GYN and author of “She-ology” and “She-ology, the She-quel.”
OK, so what are feminine hygiene products for?
While you don’t need feminine hygiene products, if you really want to cleanse, moisturize, or freshen up your nether bits between showers, there are products you can purchase.
Anything you use on the vulva can easily enter the supersensitive vagin*l canal. So, what’s in the product matters.
“It’s important to minimize ingredients like scents which can cause dryness and alter the pH of the vagin*, leading to irritation or infection,” says Dr. Kameelah Phillips, OB-GYN, at Calla Women’s Health in New York.
We chose these products based on criteria that we think are good indicators of quality.
Each product is as mild as possible.
And in most cases, they’re also:
- dermatologist-tested
- gynecologist-recommended
- hypoallergenic
- fragrance-free
Pricing guide
- $ = under $10
- $$ = $10–$20
- $$$ = over $20
Best overall vagin*-friendly soap
Dove Sensitive Skin Unscented Beauty Bar
- Price: $$
- Bar size: 4 ounces (oz)
- Pack size: six bath bars
Yep, the best overall product is something you may already have at home!
In general, you want to use a product that’s the least toxic and least likely to contain potentially allergenic ingredients around the vulva and vagin*, says Dr. Mary Jane Minkin, OB-GYN at Yale-New Haven Hospital and clinical professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences at Yale University School of Medicine.
“I encourage my patients to use unscented soap like Dove bar soap, and to use the least amount of soap possible,” she says.
Best overall vulva cleansing wipes
Summer’s Eve Fragrance Free Cleansing Cloths
- Price: $
- Pack size: 32 cloths
“I am all for feminine hygiene wipes, and some companies do this better than others,” Ross says. “I’m a big fan of Summer’s Eve as they tend to be formulated specifically not to disrupt the pH balance of the vagin*.”
The wipes are also free from dyes and parabens, and gynecologist-tested.
When should you use these? According to Ross, when changing pads or tampons.
“Wearing sanitary pads each day can bring unwanted bacteria to this very sensitive and delicate area,” Ross says. “These wipes can be used to clean the blood from the vulva whether you’re home or out on the go.”
You might also use them after a workout to wipe away groin sweat.
Best on-the-go vulva cleansing wipes
LOLA Cleansing Wipes Packets
- Price: $$
- Pack size: 12 individually packaged wipes
Looking for wipes packaged for single use to throw in your overnight or gym bag? Look no further.
“These wipes look promising,” Phillips says. “The ingredients are mild and don’t include common vagin*l irritants.”
They’re made out of 100% bamboo and soaked in a simple, purified water solution. The product is alcohol-free and there are no parabens, sulfates, synthetic preservatives, dyes, or fragrances.
Best full-body cleansing wipes
Royal Body Wipes
- Price: $$
- Pack size: 40 wipes
As their name suggests, these wipes are designed for your entire body. Basically, they’re like a shower on the go!
And (surprise!) your vulva is part of your entire body.
These wipes are a gentle way to remove oil and dirt from all of your external parts, while also hydrating them, since they’re:
- fragrance-free
- vitamin-infused
- pH-balanced
- alcohol-free
Keep them in your gym bag for after spin class, or put them in your toiletries case for after exercise.
Best vagin*-friendly shower wash
Vagisil Daily Intimate Wash pH Balance
- Price: $
- Bottle size: 12 fluid (fl) oz
“Vagisil has a line of intimate washes specifically for the labia that are formulated with no ingredients to disrupt the normal pH balance of the vagin*,” says Ross, who emphasizes that these should only be used on the external genitalia.
This intimate wash is pH-balanced, hypoallergenic, and gynecologist-tested.
Just keep in mind that this product includes a fragrance, which may irritate folks who are especially sensitive or prone to yeast infections.
Best vagin*-friendly bubble bath
Maude wash no. 0
- Price: $$$
- Bottle size: 12 fl oz
Maude, a company known for their high quality sexual health products, has a line bath-lovers should know about. The brand’s initial offering, wash no. 0, is a gentle, fragrance-free formula that can be used as a body wash or bubble bath.
This wash was formulated to preserve that natural pH of the vagin*, making it a good option for people who have found bath bombs irritating to their skin.
Best vagin*-friendly bath bomb
the Honey Pot Company Balancing Fragrance Free Bath Bomb
- Price: $$
- Pack size: 3 bath bombs
Most bath bombs are littered with glitter, fragrances, and chemicals — none of which do your vagin* any favors.
This bath bomb, however, will leave your bits exactly how it found them.
Made from all-natural ingredients and with a pH-balancing formula, this unscented, fragrance-free option gives your bath all the jazz, without giving you any weird ji*zz (aka discharge or other unwanted symptoms).
Best post (vagin*l) sex wash
Sustain Natural Body Wash
- Price: $$
- Bottle size: 12 fl oz
Looking for a way to zhuzh up your post-sex routine? Look no further. This citrus-scented body wash is designed to help you (and your boos!) clean up after getting down and dirty.
Although you shouldn’t use it to rinse inside your vagin* (or anus), you can confidently use this organic cleanser to rinse off any bodily fluids, lubes, or massage oils elsewhere on the body.
Best vagin*-friendly treatment for dry pubic hair
Fur Oil
- Price: $$$
- Bottle size: 2.5 fl oz
How you choose to groom your pubic hair is your choice. But if you decide to keep some or all of your pubic hair, Fur offers a great moisturizing oil.
Does your pubic hair need pube oil? No. “Your pubes aren’t exposed to the elements like hair on your head,” Langdon says. “This means that it gets plenty of moisture and sebum to keep it healthy.”
Still, you may be interested in keeping the area feeling hydrated. “Fur Oil has been both dermatologist and gynecologist tested, which helps a buyer know it’s a safe purchase,” Ross says.
“The oil includes clary sage and tea tree oil, which both [have] astringent properties,” Phillips says. “So if there’s broken skin or a shaving nick it can lead to burning and irritation.”
One way to test how your skin may react is to put a drop on your inner elbow, cover it with a bandage, and keep it there overnight to ensure there’s no reaction before using it.
Best vagin*-friendly treatment for ingrown pubic hair
Fur Ingrown Concentrate
- Price: $$$
- Bottle size: 0.5 fl oz
Maybe you’re rocking a landing strip. Maybe your bits are as bare as can be. Whatever you do, if you remove some of your pubes you might consider this ingrown pube oil.
Another luxury item from Fur, this oil is designed to gently banish bumps and soothe irritation.
You can apply it directly to an ingrown hair bump or, if you’re prone to bumps, apply it everywhere after hair removal as a preventive measure.
Just be sure to let the oil absorb into your skin before putting on your underwear. The product contains oil, which can stain your skivvies.
Best vagin*-friendly treatment for easing irritation
Momotaro Apotheca Salve
- Price: $$$
- Jar size: 1 oz
Especially popular among Instagram sex-fluencers and educators, Momotaro Apotheca Salve is a thick moisturizer designed to replenish moisture and protect your body from sex-, exercise-, or clothing-induced irritation.
Simply massage a dollop into your vulva skin after a bath or shower.
If your vagin* hasn’t previously had a reaction to coconut oil lubes or products, you might even try putting some inside the vagin*l canal. Some reviewers claim the product helps naturally clear up yeast and bacterial infections when used at the first sign of funk.
Some reviewers who are herpes-positive note that the slave has been helpful for soothing breakouts too.
It needs to be said one more time: None of these products are must-buys!
“In most cases, water is sufficient for washing and caretaking the vulva,” says Dr. Felice Gersh, author of “PCOS SOS: A Gynecologist’s Lifeline To Naturally Restore Your Rhythms, Hormones and Happiness.”
Gersh adds that “you never want to use more than a (clean) finger and warm water inside the vagin* for cleaning purposes.”
Sometimes simpler really is better!
So-called “feminine” washes aren’t necessary. But they are one way of removing dirt and sweat from the external genitals.
Some of these washes can be used elsewhere on the body too!
Glad you asked.
The term “feminine” implies that feminine hygiene products are for people assigned female at birth or have a femme gender identity or presentation. But that’s not true.
These products are designed for vulvas and vagin*s, regardless of a person’s:
- sex
- gender identity
- gender presentation
A more accurate marketing and categorization term would be to call these “vulvavagin*l products.”
“If you can avoid using them daily, you should,” Gersh says. “Research has found a link between how often someone uses certain feminine hygiene products and bacterial vaginosis,” she says.
But if you feel like you have to use one? Make sure it’s one with the fewest ingredients.
First things first: Your vagin* isn’t supposed to smell like hydrangeas or pineapple. It’s supposed to smell, well, like a vagin*!
According to Gersh, the smell of a healthy vagin* is musky or musty.
“If the vagin* smells like dead fish, rotten eggs, or spoiled meat, then that’s a clear sign of infection,” she says. “No spa or feminine hygiene treatment will clear up an infection.”
There may be. Some of these products contain fragrances and irritating chemicals your genitalia would be better off without.
Before using the product on your vulva or vagin*, do a patch test on your arm to ensure you don’t have an allergy or reaction to any ingredients.
Stop use immediately if you do start to experience:
- irritation
- redness
- excessive dryness on the vulva or vagin* after using a product
If you can, talk with a healthcare professional if you have any concerns.
At the end of the day, feminine hygiene is just a marketing slogan designed to get vagin* owners to buy products they don’t need.
But if you’re looking for a way to bring your bits into your self-care practice, the aforementioned products can help.
Just make sure you’re buying them because you want to and not because you feel like you need to.
Gabrielle Kassel (she/her) is a queer sex educator and wellness journalist who is committed to helping people feel the best they can in their bodies. In addition to Healthline, her work has appeared in publications such as Shape, Cosmopolitan, Well+Good, Health, Self, Women’s Health, Greatist, and more! In her free time, Gabrielle can be found coaching CrossFit, reviewing pleasure products, hiking with her border collie, or recording episodes of the podcast she co-hosts called Bad In Bed. Follow her on Instagram @Gabriellekassel.
