Female Ejaculation: What The Science Actually Says

Maybe you've come across that widely-shared piece claiming female ejaculate is just pee. Or maybe you skipped that entirely and landed here after discovering a brand-new sexual superpower of your own. Either way, here's everything worth knowing about female ejaculation.

What Triggers Female Ejaculation?

For most women, ejaculation follows vaginal stimulation, though some can squirt purely from clitoral touch.

Getting there usually takes fairly intense, sustained thrusting. Fingers tend to tire out, and a penis might not be firm or precise enough. A rigid toy, glass or metal, tends to work better, and couples can incorporate these together too (find tips for men trying to help their partner squirt). If you're shopping for a toy aimed at this, look for a curved shaft and/or a bulbous tip to zero in on the right spot.

Despite plenty of research, orgasm remains one of the least understood sexual responses, and efforts to settle on one universal definition of "orgasm" haven't gotten very far [1]. Some women ejaculate right at orgasm, while others can squirt without climaxing at all. If you're someone who ejaculates, you probably recognize that telltale urge that feels like needing to pee. The fluid does exit through the urethra, but that sensation can also stem from swelling in the surrounding tissue.

Letting Go Matters For Ejaculation

The elusive "G-spot" has earned comparisons to a scientific UFO, and academic debate over whether it truly exists rages on. Sexologists Beverly Whipple and John Perry argue that it does. They coined the term after digging up earlier research from scientist Ernst Gräfenberg, who in the 1950s documented a sensitive internal area that released fluid when stimulated. A study surveying 400 women searching for this sensitive zone found that every one of them had a responsive area between roughly 11 and 1 o'clock near the top of the vaginal canal that swells with arousal.

Many women worry about the possibility of peeing during sex, so they clench their pelvic floor muscles to hold ejaculation back (though some can't help releasing during an especially strong orgasm). Some women specifically look for tips on how to stop squirting during sex.

Side note: We actually asked women directly, "What does squirting feel like?" A lot of their answers circled back to that same "need to pee" sensation.

Holding it in causes no harm. What happens instead is retrograde ejaculation, where fluid flows backward into the bladder and gets reabsorbed.

But releasing that tension in your pelvic muscles might let you squirt freely. Bearing down slightly can add extra intensity, which some women find pleasurable. That said, ejaculating itself doesn't necessarily enhance the experience, particularly without an accompanying orgasm.

Certain positions make squirting easier — sitting or squatting often works better than lying flat. Technique matters too, with some women responding better to vibration and others to thrusting or a milking-style motion.

If a toy or penis is inside you, pulling out or backing off can help, since penetration can otherwise press against and block the urethra, making ejaculation harder.

Sometimes the cleanup just isn't worth it. If you're short on time for a quickie, solo or with a partner, you might choose to skip ejaculating altogether.

Related: Why Quickies Are So Amazing

So What Actually Is It?

Science still hasn't fully settled the question. Plenty of women can ejaculate, but whether it counts as involuntary urination during arousal remains contested among researchers.

At least one study has concluded it's mostly urine [2]. But keep in mind researchers only recently accepted the G-spot's existence at all [3] [4] [5] [6]. As recently as 2014, researchers were still openly skeptical of the G-spot [7], and a particular 2001 study became something of a rallying point for skeptics [8]. Solid evidence around women's sexuality just seems to take forever to accumulate!

That recent study claiming ejaculation is basically involuntary urination examined only a handful of women who squirt. Researchers ran ultrasounds on these women before ejaculation, during arousal, and afterward, finding fluid accumulating in the bladder much like urine does. Notably, all participants had urinated before stimulation started.

Scientists also screened for specific genetic markers found in urine, and yes, those markers turned up in the ejaculate too. But most of the ejaculate samples also contained prostate-related genetic material (PSA and PAP), the same markers found in male ejaculate. These come from the Skene's glands, which produce a small amount of milky fluid you might barely notice after intense sex.

Researchers concluded these women genuinely were squirting (nobody disputes the prostate-fluid component), but that most of the total fluid volume was diluted with additional liquid. That's how some women can release large quantities, sometimes soaking objects several feet away. Bottom line, per this research: involuntary urination [2].

Learn: Can every woman squirt?

Not Everyone Buys It

Labeling ejaculate as pee, even heavily diluted pee, doesn't sit well with plenty of women who experience it, for several reasons.

1. The sample size in that study was tiny. Any credible survey needs to be far larger.
2. Taste, smell, and texture differ noticeably from regular urine.
3. Some women can still squirt even after emptying their bladder right before sex.
4. Certain medications that alter urine's color, smell, or other traits reportedly don't affect ejaculate the same way.
5. It's entirely plausible that fluid stored anywhere near the bladder could share similar genetic markers, without actually being the same substance.
6. Male ejaculate also contains trace urine, since small residual amounts linger in the urethra and get pushed out along with semen. Nobody calls that "mostly urine," though.

One common reaction to the "it's just urine" claim is frustration and pushback. After all, women who actually experience ejaculation understand it far better than researchers, many of them men, who never have.

Plenty of articles have circulated suggesting female ejaculation might be involuntary urination, but ultimately it doesn't change much. If it feels good, keep doing it. A towel on the bed solves the practical concern easily enough.

The Case Against Dismissing Female Ejaculation

Still, women whose experience of ejaculation doesn't feel like urination at all have another concern: treating it as urination has become the legal basis for banning depictions of it in porn and sex ed. In the UK, for instance, certain acts are excluded from legal porn content, and female ejaculation makes that list. There's something almost absurd about banning such a popular genre outright.

There's also a distinct fetish built around urine play during sex (this rundown of fetishes covers plenty of kinks), but golden showers are a completely separate thing from female ejaculation.

Regardless, ejaculation is a completely normal experience for plenty of women. Framing it as obscene feels like these laws and researchers are shaming female sexuality outright, especially given that many women genuinely can't control it.

Some women who can't ejaculate end up faking it, which shows up especially often in porn, where female ejaculation content is legal in some places and treated as its own fetish genre. You'll see huge amounts of fluid pouring out on screen. Look closely, though, and the fakery becomes obvious:

• The liquid appears to come from the vagina rather than the urethra.
• You can visibly see her pushing to force the liquid out.
• The volume of liquid is unrealistically large.

Performers and producers staging fake female ejaculation may end up doing real harm to the credibility of women who genuinely experience it.

If You Can Ejaculate, Read This

If you're someone who squirts, or who feels like you're right on the edge of it, all this conflicting research might make it harder to just enjoy your body's natural response. Our advice: relax and let it happen.

Learn how to squirt like a pro.

The more research digs into female sexuality, the more we'll understand. It's entirely possible future studies will clarify the real distinction between urine and ejaculate once and for all.

Relaxing is essential for experiencing ejaculation, and often orgasm too, so don't let anxiety get in the way. Lay down a towel or a specially-made sex blanket beforehand to handle cleanup easily.

Practicing solo the first few times can help you get comfortable, but plenty of partners genuinely enjoy it too. They might love stimulating your G-spot with fingers or a toy, and some even enjoy being sprayed or tasting it.

Related: How to Stimulate Your G-spot

A Few Practical Notes

Not every woman finds ejaculate ideal as a natural lubricant, so keep a bottle nearby to reapply afterward if needed. You may not need it, but it's smart to have on hand regardless.

Find the lube that's right for you in this guide to lube.

It can help to give new partners a heads-up that you squirt, just so it doesn't catch them off guard. You might also run into someone convinced it's always urine, giving you the chance to set the record straight. He may simply have never been with a partner who ejaculates before, and that's completely fine. Not every woman experiences this, and some who could choose not to pursue it anyway!

If you're someone who enjoys ejaculating, embrace it fully. There's absolutely no reason to feel any shame about it. Hopefully science catches up eventually and gives us a definitive answer.

February 9, 2021