The Best Personal Lubricants for Better Sex
Choosing a Lubricant
Choosing the best lubricant is one thing you shouldn't need to think about too much - it's essential. We wouldn’t consider being without a good-quality personal lube, because it adds so much pleasure to sex. Besides, there are many different lubes that work best for different sexy uses. (At Matilda’s, we're lucky because we can choose any of the best lube on the market and we'd love to share our insights with you so that you can also get the best lube for your sex-life!)
You might be feeling puzzled at this point, and thinking “I picked up some popular branded lube at the supermarket the other day. It seems fine... Do I need to buy a better lubricant?”
Do you need to buy a good lubricant?
The ‘fancy’ lubes feel so much better. Also, buying the right personal lubricant for your sex life won't cost you more. (We discuss this in more detail just below.) Buying the right lube will make you feel sooooo much more, and it feels far better than those generic lubes that you can pick up at the shops
(Disappointingly, even well-known brands out there produce absolutely useless and sticky lubricant. It gets sticky really quick, doesn't last, and you end up needing to use even more lube. If you've ever had that tacky lube experience, you'll know exactly what we mean! Once you try a quality lube, you’ll never go back.
Quality lubes cheaper over time. Here's why.
You use much less when you use a good lube. Yep. It's that simple. When you use a cheap, sticky lube, you can go through a tube of lube in a few sessions, but a high-quality lube will last for ages, and feel so much better. So while it may cost a bit more, it'll outperform that sticky stuff, which only seems cheap - but isn't.
How to choose
the Best Personal Lubricant For Your Sex Life
So how do you figure out which lube is best for the occasion? It's easy: Let's help you with that.
Using a Water-Based Lube
Water-Based lube is the best lubricant for good every-day sex
Water-based lubricant makes for a fantastic every-day lube and is the best choice for a great all-'rounder. It's easy to use, cheaper and it still feels fabulous! (Provided it's a good quality...!)
Water-based lube is easily washed off and safe if you're using it with sex toys and can use it if you have sensitive skin. It's the body-friendly lube for anal sex too.
Because this lube is water-based, it won't last quite as long as silicone-based lube would. It’s usually less than silicone lubricant, and it doesn’t have to be washed off when you’re done. It will disperse in water, so it’s not ideal for the sex in the shower, for example. Water-based lube is also perfectly safe for use with sex toys. Check the ingredients of your lube to avoid glycerine if you’re prone to yeast infections.
Water-Based lube is the best lubricant for good every-day sex
Water-based lubricant is great for:
- Any type of sexual adventure
- perfect if you're using any types of sex toys
- safe to use if you have sensitive skin
- can be used safely with silicone toys
- safe to use with condoms
- Don’t use water-based lubes for: Sex in water. (Silicone-based lube is better for this purpose!)
You can see more of our Water-Based Lubricants over here!
Using a Silicone Based Lube
Silicone-Based lubes are perfect to use in the shower...
Silicone-based lubricants are smooth and long-lasting. They're also water-resistant. That’s fantastic news because it means you can use it happily in the bath, shower or any other watery pursuits where hot sex is happening...! Silicone lube will leave a softness to your skin. It won't feel sticky, though you may want to wash the lube off properly when you’re done. Silicone-based lubes are best for sex where you're expecting a long playtime.
We should point out that silicone lube doesn't play well with silicone toys. Using an aqua-based lube is better if you're planning to play with toys.
A silicone-based lubricant is a great lube for:
- Sex in watery settings
- Long and/or rough sex play
- Anal sex
- Can be used for non-silicone toys (Metal, Glass, etc.)
- Don’t use silicone-based lubricant for Sex if you can’t clean off afterwards.
- Don’t use silicone-based lubes for: Sex/playtime with silicone toys.
You can see our Silicone Based Personal Lubricants over here!
Other Types of Lubricants for Sex
Hybrid lubricants combine the qualities of silicone and water-based lubes. They’re silky smooth, not sticky, easily cleaned and long-lasting. They’re also toy-friendly and water-friendly. You may wonder why we don’t just say ‘get a hybrid lube and be done with it’. While hybrids are our go-to for all sorts of sexy fun, there’s still a place for super-long-lasting silicone or the true toy-friendliness of water-based lube.
Oil-based lubes are not on our list. While oil-based lube can be a long-lasting and slippery lube, they’re no good for the delicate pH balance in the vagina and not suitable for use with latex condoms. This makes oil-based lubricants an unpopular choice. It's certainly not a good lube for sex, so we'd choose one of the other fabulous options.
Lubricants for Sensitive Skin are available here. Women are often affected by the lube's pH balance or by the formula, or specific ingredients. If you've had any irritation while using lube in the past, we suggest trying one of the lubricants that are specially designed for sensitive skin. They will also be safe to use with condoms and toys.
Warming, Tingling & Enhancing Lubes
Lubricants that offer warming and tingling effects are often created using a water-based formula. We cover these in more details over here!
Flavoured Lubricants
Flavoured lubes are created using a water-based formula, and great for adding a new dimension to your sex-life. You can read more about the fun of flavoured lubricants over here...!
Coconut oil: Is it a natural alternative to lubricant?
It's often used as a type of natural lubricant, which sounds really good in theory. While you can use coconut oil as a lube, studies have shown it's not ideal, as there are some down-sides to it. The main concern is that coconut oil doesn't have a balanced pH, which can unbalance the natural pH of the vagina, which could lead to infections.
What's the best lube for you?
When we look for the best lube, we consider what kind of sex we're having. How long we expect our sexy play to go on, what kind of activities might be on the agenda, and our personal preference. A slightly thicker lube, like Aquaglide, is definitely better for anal play. Ceramic, steel and glass toys seem to take better to our smooth silicone-based lubes. The important thing is to use a quality lubricant, with the right properties for your needs.
The Best Lubes & Staff Favourites
If you're looking for product suggestions, take a look at our Lubricant Buyer's Guide, where we highlight our favourite water-based and silicone-based lubes. These are our absolute favourites that never disappoint.
If you already know which direction you'd like to go, then head over to our Best Selling Lubricants and pick one. We're excited for you to try them!
