How to Actually Sanitize a Toy (and When You Don't Need To)
Cleaning and sanitizing are two different things, and conflating them is how people end up boiling a $98 motorized toy and ruining it. Cleaning removes visible residue and dramatically reduces microorganisms. Sanitizing reduces them to a level considered safe by public health standards. For most situations, cleaning is the right answer, and for a specific few, sanitizing is worth knowing how to do properly.
This covers the difference, the situations that warrant each, and the methods that work without destroying the toy — plus the methods that people reach for first and should not.
The Short Answer
For routine use, wash with unscented dish soap and warm water, rinse thoroughly, and air-dry completely. That is cleaning, and it is sufficient in almost every case. Sanitize only when the toy is non-porous, has no motor, and has been exposed to something that warrants it — and then use either a 70% isopropyl alcohol wipe-down followed by a full rinse, or a three-minute soak in a 1:10 bleach solution followed by very thorough rinsing.
The critical word in both methods is rinsing. Bleach or alcohol left on a toy is worse for you than whatever you were sanitizing against.
Cleaning vs. Sanitizing vs. Sterilizing
- Cleaning — soap and water, mechanical removal. Removes the overwhelming majority of what is on the surface. Appropriate every time.
- Sanitizing — chemical reduction to a low, defined level. Appropriate after illness, after sharing between partners, or after a toy has been dropped somewhere unpleasant.
- Sterilizing — complete elimination of all microbial life. Requires autoclave, or prolonged boiling of a non-motorized item. Almost never necessary at home, and not compatible with anything containing a battery.
Anyone who tells you to microwave a toy is describing a method that will melt it and possibly start a fire.
Method One: Alcohol, for Non-Porous Toys
Use 70% isopropyl alcohol — not 91%, not hand gel, not vodka. Wipe the entire surface and let it sit for about thirty seconds, then rinse thoroughly with water and wash with dish soap to remove any residue.
Alcohol is effective and fast, and it is also drying to silicone over repeated exposure. Occasional use is fine; weekly use will shorten the life of the material. Never use alcohol on a porous material — it does not sanitize the interior anyway, and the residue is a problem.
Method Two: Diluted Bleach, for the Cases That Warrant It
One part household bleach to ten parts cool water. Submerge only if the toy is rated submersible; otherwise, apply with a cloth and keep it away from any charging port or seam. Contact time of about three minutes. Then rinse — and rinse again — then wash with dish soap and rinse once more.
Do not use bleach on anything with a motor or battery unless you are certain the shell is fully sealed and the port cover is seated. Do not use it on colored silicone repeatedly; it will fade the finish. And never mix bleach with anything else, particularly not vinegar or ammonia.
When You Genuinely Should Sanitize
- Between partners. Clean at minimum; sanitize if either partner has any known infection.
- After a yeast infection or bacterial vaginosis. Clean thoroughly and sanitize before the next use. If the toy is porous, replace it — porous materials cannot be reliably sanitized.
- After a stomach bug or similar illness. Standard household advice applies to objects as much as hands.
- After it hits the floor in a public bathroom. Rare, but the answer is bleach dilution, not hope.
Detailed guidance on the sharing case is in sharing toys safely.
What Not To Do
- Do not boil a motorized toy. Heat destroys adhesives and seals and the battery. Boiling is only appropriate for a solid, non-motorized item like a steel or glass toy, and even then three to five minutes is plenty.
- Do not put it in the dishwasher. Detergent chemistry, high heat, and a heated dry cycle.
- Do not use antibacterial hand gel. It is not formulated as a surface disinfectant at that concentration and it leaves a film.
- Do not use a UV "sanitizer box" as your only method. UV only reaches the surfaces the light hits directly, and any shadowed area is left untouched.
The Material Question Comes First
All of the above assumes a non-porous material: platinum silicone, borosilicate glass, stainless steel, or ABS plastic with an intact surface. On a porous material — most elastomers, some blends, anything that feels slightly soft and grippy — none of these methods fully work, because microorganisms get inside the material where no wipe reaches. Clean a porous toy, accept the limit, and replace it on a shorter schedule. The distinction is explained properly in toy materials compared and what body-safe means.
Then dry it completely. Every sanitizing method ends with moisture, and moisture left in a pouch is the next problem. Storage and common cleaning mistakes both cover what happens next.
Where to Start
Sanitizing only works properly on non-porous materials, which is the main reason we sell only platinum-cured silicone, glass-safe finishes and sealed ABS. DOREMI at $79 is the one to start with: a single-piece seamless body with no texture traps, so a wipe-down actually reaches every surface. If you want something you can fully submerge to rinse, POPPING at $79 is IPX7-rated. Pair with Velvet Touch Lubricant at $21.
- DOREMI — $79 — seamless platinum silicone, the easiest surface to sanitize
- POPPING — $79 — submersible, so thorough rinsing is simple
- Velvet Touch Lubricant — $21 — water-based, rinses without film
Related: how often to clean and silicone-specific cleaning. Browse the full Customer Favorites collection. Prices are list prices in USD.
Sources
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — disinfection guidance, bleach dilution ratios and contact time
- Planned Parenthood — sex toy cleaning, materials and sharing guidance
- Cleveland Clinic — information on yeast infections, bacterial vaginosis and reinfection
- Mayo Clinic — guidance on skin irritation from disinfectant residue
Written by the GETAUVE Editorial Team. This article is general education and not medical advice. Prices are list prices in USD and may change.