How to sterilise every anal toy material

Sterilising an anal toy means killing every organism on it — bacteria, viruses, fungi, the lot. Whether you can do that depends entirely on what the toy is made of. Silicone, glass, and steel can be boiled or bleached. PVC, TPE, TPR, and anything else described as "skin-safe" or "realistic" cannot, because the material itself is porous — microbes get into it, and no amount of scrubbing gets them out.

This matters most when a toy is shared between people, or when it moves between orifices. If you are the only person using it and it stays where it started, thorough washing with soap and hot water is usually enough. But if you want to be certain nothing survives — and there are good reasons to want that — you need to know what the thing is made of and what that material can take.

The material determines everything. Silicone, borosilicate glass, stainless steel, and aluminium are non-porous, which means their surfaces are smooth all the way down to the molecular level. Wash them properly and nothing is left behind. Boil them for three minutes, or soak them in a 10% bleach solution for ten, and you have genuinely sterilised them.

PVC, TPE, TPR, jelly rubber, and anything marketed as "lifelike" or "skin-feel" are porous. Their surfaces are full of microscopic gaps that trap fluid and bacteria. You cannot boil them — the heat warps them. You cannot bleach them — the chemical breaks them down. You can wash them carefully, dry them completely, and store them properly, but you cannot sterilise them. If they are going to be shared, or if they are moving from one part of the body to another, put a fresh condom on them every time.

Some materials sit in between. Hard plastic is usually non-porous, but not all of it can take boiling water — check the manufacturer's instructions. Coated or plated toys can only be cleaned as gently as their coating allows, even if the core material could take more. If the packaging does not state the material, or if it uses a term like "premium blend" without naming what is in it, assume it is porous and treat it accordingly.

Of the 110 best-reviewed anal toys we score, 48 are made from a non-porous material — silicone, glass, or steel. Clean them properly and they last for years. Another 29 are porous: PVC, TPE, TPR, or jelly. They cannot be sterilised, and they need more careful handling. The remaining 33 do not state a material in the supplier spec, so we do not know.

That split matters because the porous 29 are not cheap novelties. Some of them are among the most-reviewed products in the category, and several sit at price points where you would reasonably expect a material that lasts. The review counts are high because people buy them — not because they are better than the silicone alternative at the same price.

If you already own something and you are not sure what it is made of, the supplier's product page is the only reliable source. Reviewers routinely call TPE and TPR "silicone" — they mean it feels smooth, not that it is actually silicone. If the page does not state a material, email and ask. If they will not tell you, assume it is porous.

For the non-porous ones — silicone, glass, steel — boil them for three minutes in a dedicated pot, or soak them in a 10% bleach solution (one part household bleach to nine parts water) for ten minutes, then rinse thoroughly. Do not boil anything with a motor, and do not put anything in the dishwasher unless the manufacturer explicitly says you can.

For the porous ones — PVC, TPE, TPR, jelly — wash with warm water and a dedicated toy cleaner or plain soap, rinse thoroughly, dry completely, and store in a clean, dry place. If the toy is being shared or moving between orifices, put a fresh condom on it every time. That is not overcautious; it is the only way to be sure.

If you are buying new and you want something you can actually sterilise, the cleaning guide below walks through what to look for and what each material can take.

Can you sterilise a toy with a motor? No. You can clean it thoroughly with soap and water, and you can wipe the non-motorised parts with a 10% bleach solution if the material allows it, but you cannot submerge it and you cannot boil it. If it needs to be shared, use a condom.

Does washing with soap actually work? Yes, if you do it properly. Soap breaks down oils and lifts away bacteria. Warm water, a dedicated toy cleaner or plain unscented soap, a thorough rinse, and complete drying will clean a non-porous toy well enough for solo use. It will not sterilise it, but it will remove everything that matters for day-to-day hygiene.

Can you sterilise a porous toy by freezing it? No. Freezing slows bacterial growth; it does not kill bacteria. The same goes for UV sterilisers marketed for sex toys — they may reduce surface bacteria, but they do not reach into the pores of a TPE or PVC toy. If the material is porous, assume you cannot sterilise it, because you cannot.

How do you know if a toy is actually silicone? The supplier spec is the only reliable source. The "flame test" and the "pinch test" that appear in forum advice are not definitive — some TPE blends pass them, and some silicone blends fail them. If the packaging does not state "100% silicone" or "platinum-cured silicone", and the product page does not either, do not assume it is.

Material porosity and sterilisation methods: Journal of Hospital Infection, vol. 56 supplement 2 (2004), "Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization in Healthcare Facilities". Boiling and bleach protocols: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Cleaning and Disinfecting Your Home" (2023). Silicone and TPE material properties: Polymer Science and Technology, 3rd ed., edited by J. C. Salamone (CRC Press, 1999).

The Snug Report is written and maintained by the team behind Coy, a New Zealand retailer. We spend our days handling this stock, processing the returns and reading what buyers actually say about it. We are not doctors, nurses or sexual-health clinicians, and nothing here is medical advice.

The Snug Report is published by the team behind Coy, a New Zealand retailer that stocks many of the products reviewed here. We say so on every page. Our scores come from aggregated public reviews, not from us — the method is on the methodology page and the evidence count is on every review.