Top 10 Best Water-Based Lubes for Men in 2024

Water-based lubes are a great entry point into using any kind of lubricant during sex, as they're readily available, safe for internal use, and compatible with almost any sex toy or condom variety. Compared to silicone or oil-based lubes, water-based lubes are almost universal; usable and safe in basically any sexual situation you can dream up, and more often than not, fairly cheap to boot.

The only problem is that there are a lot of them out there, some of which are a lot better than others. This can make it tricky to find the right lube for your needs - which is exactly why we've put together this guide. Here, we've collated a list of the very best water-based lubes available on our site - and it's quite the list, if we do say so ourselves.

Read on to get a good look at some of the best water-based lubes on the market, including all their benefits and drawbacks, as well as an idea of what you need to consider to find the most suitable lube for your unique purposes.

How we put together this guide

Our recommendations are based on a range of factors, including but not limited to:

• The quality of ingredients used
• The reputability of the brand
• Any extra features the lube contains
• Customer reviews
• The results found by our own in-house testers

Best Water-Based Lube of 2024: Our Recommendations

Lynk Pleasure Water-Based Sex Lube & Anal Lubricant

If you're looking for a good all-rounder in the bedroom, the Lynk Pleasure Water-Based Sex Lube won't let you down, with a thick and slick texture that's suited to almost any sex act you want to perform.

Water-based lubes are a great choice if you want a product with many different applications, and the Lynk Pleasure Sex Lube is ideal in this regard, working with all sex toys and latex condoms and containing none of the harsh chemicals found in other lubes that can cause skin irritation in some users.

Although other types of lube, including oil based lubes and silicone based lubes, are known more for their longevity than water-based, this lube lasts a good amount of time during sex and doesn't leave any annoying tacky residue on your skin or sheets. Additionally, even if it does dry up in a long session, just a little bit of moisture from water or spit will reactivate the formula and get you back up and running again.

There are other conveniences to benefit from with this lube, too - not only does it mimic your natural lubricants to blend in during sex, but it's also non-staining and easy to clean up once you're finished.

People searching for a lube with bells and whistles like scents, flavors and unusual sensations might want to go elsewhere, but if you just want a good functional water-based lube that will keep your sex frictionless for an affordable price, this offering from Lynk Pleasure is an excellent option.

Results From Our Testers

• This product is thicker than other water-based lubes, making anal more cushioned and comfortable.
• Reapplication is needed during an especially long sex or masturbation session.
• You can reactivate the lube with some water or spit if needed.
• The lack of any flavor or numbing sensation makes this a good overall lube that will suit pretty much anybody.

Pros and Cons

Customer Reviews

Relax Desensitizing Anal Lube By Clean Stream

Anal sex shouldn't result in discomfort or pain, and the Relax Desensitizing Anal Lube provides a great solution to any unwanted feelings through its subtle numbing effect that won't totally desensitize you to all the sensations going on down there.

The trick to the desensitizing properties of this lube is that it contains 2% Lidocaine - this is a numbing agent that is commonly used as a local anesthetic. In this case, though, it's used to prevent some of the minor discomforts that are often unavoidable even when you're being very safe with anal sex.

We usually don't recommend numbing lube to anyone who lacks experience, as it can be easy to use too much cream and end up completely numb; you definitely don't want that, as it can both dampen your pleasure and obscure more serious problems like tissue damage.

However, the somewhat weaker formula of Relax is a good thing, as it's hard to go overboard with it, but it still helps to make the experience much more comfortable - you should still only use a small amount of the stuff to begin with, though.

Furthermore, the pump design of the bottle makes it easy to portion out just enough lube. This easy portion control also helps you get only the amount of lube that you need, preventing you from getting too numb down below - quite a beginner-friendly feature. Honestly though, we'd still really only suggest using this if you have experience, or at least if you're with a partner who knows what they're doing.

Additionally, unlike a lot of numbing creams, you shouldn't need to use any extra regular lube alongside it as Relax's mild formula is safer for internal use than most. It lasts a long time and is very slick and cushioned, which makes it perfect for anal - and our best numbing water-based lube for 2024.

Results From Our Testers

• It's a mild formula which makes it easier for beginners to use as it's hard to use too much of it
• Pump bottle makes it nice and easy to portion out just enough lube
• It's very slippery and nice and thick - this is great for anal as it provides a lot of cushioning
• Despite having a few beginner-friendly features, it's best to use this with someone who has experience with numbing creams and anal play
• Works well with large sex toys

Pros and Cons

Spunk Lube Hybrid Cum Lubricant By Realistic Jizz Lube

As its name may suggest Spunk Lube is a cum lube - it's designed to look and feel exactly like semen. It's our best cum flavored water-based lube for 2024 thanks to its realistic appearance and slick nature - which is partially due to the fact that it's actually a hybrid lube.

Hybrid lubes are lubes made from a mixture of base ingredients - in this case, that's a mixture of water and silicone. It's mostly water, with a touch of silicone added for extra slipperiness, which does help quite a bit, making it more slick than any water-based lube has a chance of being - but it's not quite as slippery as pure silicone.

The silicone also helps out with the texture; this lube is nice and thick, which adds a lot of cushioning, and also helps it look and feel a lot more like real cum. Lubes like this are often used in porn to help accentuate a cumshot - this lube makes it possible to do that in real life, either for cum fantasies with a partner or to just blow a huge load during masturbation.

Though the fact that it's mostly water-based does mean that it'll get sticky if you're going at it for ages, it'll never dry out like real cum, which adds to the longevity.

To add to this, Spunk lube is compatible with sex toys and condoms - we'd be careful with silicone toys though. This can also help you fulfill fantasies, as it pairs perfectly with realistic, anatomical toys such as Fleshlights, and you can also splash some cum around even if you're wearing a condom.

Results From Our Testers

• The small amount of silicone in the formula goes a long way; this lube lasts a very long time
• The silicone makes it feel and look a lot more like real cum
• It's a great lube for cum fantasies with a partner or solo, especially with lifelike sex toys
• It's very slippery - not quite as slippery as pure silicone lube, but much more so than pure water-based
• It does get a bit sticky if you're using it for a long time

Pros and Cons

Fleshlight Fleshlube Water-Based Lubricant For Masturbators

Fleshlight strokers are made from the company's patented SuperSkin material, which is the reason they feel so soft and lifelike. However, even this material can benefit from the addition of some high-quality lube, and as luck would have it, Fleshlight created their own, especially for use with their toys - it's called Fleshlube.

During use, it actually feels, unlike many other lubes, quite similar to natural vaginal lubrication - and reviewers seem to agree.

This is practically the best outcome, as it means the lube really does work perfectly with the SuperSkin material, particularly the ones with hyper-realistic orifices, like the Fleshlight Girls range of strokers. For a water-based lube, it's pretty cushioning, thanks to the addition of glycerin. This addition makes sense, as many of Fleshlight's masturbators are on the tighter side - a lot of the time you need that cushioning for a more comfortable experience.

The formula is, for the most part, fairly typical for water-based lube, but even so, customers comment that it never gets as tacky or as stringy as many other water-based lubes on the market, and we'd have to agree. That's not to say it's as slippery and long-lasting as silicone-based lube (you will still have to reapply or reactivate it every now and again) but it gets very close.

Furthermore, it's safe to use with all kinds of sex toys, not just Flehslight products, which is a neat bonus, as most people's collections contain toys from a variety of companies. It's also compatible with condoms as there is no silicone in the formula.

Fleshlube is super easy to clean up, and doesn't leave any stains, so you're free to really go wild with it - and the easy-squeeze bottle makes it easy to portion out a generous helping. Fleshlights are great toys, but lube helps them feel even better - and Fleshlube is our best water-based lube for use with them in 2024.

Results From Our Testers

• For a water-based lube, it's very cushioning
• Works great with Fleshlight products - this is what we expected, but it's still nice to see
• Lasts a long time before getting sticky or tacky - still needs reapplying or reactivating after a while though
• Feels very nice and moisturizing even on sensitive skin
• Doesn't get quite as stringy as some water-based lubes
• Some reviewers felt it tasted a little odd - it's a slight bit soapy-tasting but this isn't really much of an issue

Pros and Cons

Customer Reviews

Anal Ese | Flavored Anus Numbing & Desensitizing Cream

For anal sex, lube is an absolute necessity to ensure both comfort as well as safety. Anal-ese is designed specifically to be used during anal sex; created by the company NassToys, this is an over-the-counter numbing and desensitizing cream that, though high-quality and body-safe, is something that we'd mainly recommend to people who know what they're doing - or at least have experience with numbing creams.

Though it sounds a little scary, it really isn't - it's an FDA-approved ingredient that is widely considered to be absolutely safe for over-the-counter use. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't take care when you use it - start with a small amount to ensure you don't go completely numb, as you still want to be able to feel something, for pleasure and safety.

We found that a dime-sized amount (about 3/4 of an inch) is just enough to be able to cover your sphincter with lube. Make sure to not get any inside your butt-hole - you want to be able to feel the sex after all! Once it's fully rubbed in, leave it for 10 minutes to work its magic, and you'll be good to go. Well, not quite - you'll probably need to use some additional lube that isn't a numbing agent as well, one that's suitable for internal use.

This is useful as it doesn't immediately run everywhere, numbing areas that you don't want to be numbed! It's very easy to apply and thanks to its thick cushioning nature, it feels good to do so. As we mentioned, make sure to just use a small amount at first.

A lot of the time, creams such as these are marketed towards beginners as a way of easing the pain of anal. While this is indeed what this lube does - and it does it very well - the only issue is that beginners are more likely to use far too much. If you're a beginner, we'd say only try this out with a partner who has used a similar product before and can guide you through it.

Results From Our Testers

• It works quickly and it works well
• It's best if you only use a small amount to avoid numbing parts of your body other than your butt hole
• The main downside is that you'll probably need to use additional lube once it's soaked in, as this lube isn't recommended for internal use
• It's not super runny which is helpful in getting it where you want it

Pros and Cons

ID Sensation Warming Water-Based Sex Lubricant

Warming lubes are a fantastic way to mix up the sensations on offer and inject a lot of variation into your sex life by adding some heat. Sensation Warming Lube by ID is a body-safe and super slick formula making using it one of the best ways to experience this unique feeling.

Sensation is made in the USA and features an FDA-approved mixture of ingredients that make using it vegan, non-toxic, and body-safe, even for people with sensitive skin. This may depend on why exactly your skin is sensitive though - we'd recommend doing a patch test with a small amount of the stuff just to make sure everything will go smoothly if and when you apply it downstairs.

Some reviewers had varied experiences with the heat (with some saying they didn't find it hot at all, and some finding it too intense) but we reckon this comes down to how experienced you are with this kind of lube, as well as individual sensitivities. Overall, we had positive experiences.

Does it work well as a lube though? We found that yes, it does. It stays nice and slippery for quite a long time (for a water-based lube), and feels quite cushioned. It does get tacky after a while as is to be expected, but it's easy to reapply or reactivate with water. If you're already getting some good heat, we'd opt for reactivation over reapplying more lube.

Sensation is compatible with the majority of sex toys, as well as latex condoms, meaning you can use it in basically any situation you can think of. It's a great choice for sex with a partner, or even you're just looking to make your masturbation a little more exciting.

Results From Our Testers

• The warming sensation is pleasant and you don't need much lube to feel it
• Lasts for a long time before getting tacky - it's better to reactivate it with some water when this happens, as not to go too far with the heat
• We found it to be fine for sensitive skin, but some reviewers around the internet found otherwise - be cautious if you're concerned
• The feeling can be quite unusual so try it out with a small amount first - this isn't really a bad thing though, just something to consider
• It's great to see a lube like this that's so universally compatible with sex toys and condoms

Pros and Cons

Tenga Hole Lotion Wild Cooling Water-Based Lubricant

As the name suggests, cooling lube is the exact opposite of warming lube - it provides a pleasant cooling sensation as opposed to a bit of heat. In practice, the end result is the same, despite the change in sensation - it's a neat way of making your sex that much more interesting and enjoyable. Our best cooling water-based lube for 2024 is Tenga's Hole Lotion Wild.

The Tenga lube achieves its cooling properties thanks to one main special ingredient - menthol. The cooling sensation is immediately apparent as soon as you apply the lube, and it's certainly interesting - in a pleasurable way. It's not the strongest cooling in the world, but honestly, we think that's a good thing. It isn't an overwhelming sensation, which makes it easier to enjoy the actual sex/masturbation without too much distraction.

The lube itself is actually a thinner texture than most of Tenga's other lubes, as well as the other lubes on this list. This makes it feel nice and light and helps accentuate both the textured canals of your sex toys and achieve a light feeling of suction, which is a nice bonus.

As it's so thin, you may find yourself reapplying it a little more often than with some thicker lubes, but this is easy enough - you can also reactivate it with a bit of water.

Furthermore, it contains all the right ingredients to be safe for use with sensitive skin, which is always a plus. We would recommend taking it easy if you do have sensitivities though - just try doing a patch test before you use to properly, just in case. We didn't have any issues but you're always better safe than sorry!

Results From Our Testers

• It provides a nice gentle cooling which is just enough to add a bit of extra excitement to sex and masturbation
• We found it to be totally fine for use with sensitive skin but would still recommend doing a patch test if you have sensitivities just in case
• It's quite a thin lube which makes it feel super light and breezy
• It's not the most long-lasting lube due to the thin texture
• Thanks to the menthol it smells quite nice!

Pros and Cons

Sliquid Swirl Lube Flavored Lubricant

Flavored lubes are fairly straightforward; with the use of various different ingredients, lube can be made to taste essentially like whatever their creators desire. Sliquid Swirl is our best water-based flavored lube for 2024 thanks to its wide range of sweet flavors, and vegan, sugar-free formula that makes it safe for internal use.

These lubes are great for use with oral sex and can liven up the experience for the giver. Typically though, they aren't recommended for use internally - but that's not the case with Sliquid Swirl. Thanks to the absence of sugar - which is what the yeast in yeast infections use for nutrition - the chance of getting a yeast infection specifically from this lube is reduced a great deal.

So, let's talk about the actual flavors. There are eight different flavors in total: Cherry Vanilla, Green Apple Tart, Strawberry Pomegranate, Blue Raspberry, Pina Colada, Pink Lemonade, Blackberry Fig, and Tangerine Peach.

Additionally, due to the lack of sugar in the formula, this lube isn't sticky, whereas a lot of other flavored lubes can be. This is great as a sticky lube is never a good time. It does get tacky after a while, like all water-based lubes (in fact maybe a little more than other water-based lubes) but it's easy to reapply or reactivate as and when you need. Other than that though, it stays nice and slick for a decent amount of time.

Results From Our Testers

• The flavors are all good - they're mainly quite sweet but you do get a hint of fruitiness
• It's great to see a flavored lube without the downsides of added sugar
• Stays slippery for quite a while but isn't the longest-lasting on the list
• Gets tacky after a while but is easy to reapply
• The lack of sugar means it's not sticky which is always nice

Pros and Cons

Customer Reviews

ID Glide Lube Water Based Sex Lubricant

ID Glide is a super simple lube, but it's also very effective - and it comes at an extremely low price point. For these reasons, it's our best-value water-based lube. For such a low cost of entry, it's hard to go wrong with this one.

This lube is made from 100% body-safe ingredients, meaning you're free to go crazy and use it however you see fit. Its formula contains no flavorings, fragrances, or additives - all that's included is what is absolutely necessary to make a quality water-based lubricant. Such a simple formula might sometimes indicate a lube that isn't particularly slippery, but that's not the case here.

Additionally, the formula comes out quite thick, which makes it a soft, cushioned choice for use with tighter sex toys. Some reviewers described it as syrupy in texture, and that's a pretty close description - it's not quite as thick as syrup though, and definitely not as sticky! Along with being compatible with sex toys, ID Glide is also safe to use with latex and condoms.

In all honesty, there are certainly other lubes out there that are better than this one, but it's hard to beat that price. Usually lubes that are so cheap aren't worth the time, but ID Glide is actually a great choice that our testers, as well as our customers, were very happy with.

Results From Our Testers

• It's basic but it works very well
• Pretty slipper and lasts quite a while before getting tacky
• It's actually quite a thick and cushioned lube which works great with some tighter sex toys like Fleshlights
• While it isn't the highest-quality lube out there, it's hard to argue with that price point

Pros and Cons

Customer Reviews

Fuck Sauce Cum Scented Water Based Lubricant

Luxury lube is for when you really want to splash out on either a very high-quality product or just something a little more extravagant than usual. Fuck Sauce Cum-scented is our best luxury water-based lube for 2024 as it's both of these things - it's made from the best body-safe ingredients, is very slippery, and looks, smells, and feels just like cum!

While this is technically a more expensive lube, it's still only just over $20 dollars, so it probably won't break the bank for a good chunk of people, which is great. For that price, you're getting a lube with numerous interesting talking points, so let's get into them.

The main thing about this lube is that it's a cum lube, and it really does look the part. Moreover, it feels and smells pretty close to the real thing as well, so either if you are into cum, or you want to live out your fantasies and cover your partner in the stuff, you're probably in for a good time here.

We can't necessarily vouch for this as our testers don't have every skin condition, but we can report that for what it's worth, we didn't experience any irritation or anything like that - just very moisturized skin.

We're also happy to report that it works great as lube as well. A little goes quite a long way, and it's some very slippery stuff. As always, it will get tacky after a while, but the drip-nozzle makes reapplying super easy and accurate. As it's a body-safe formula, it's safe for internal use, so you'll be able to use it wherever you like.

Results From Our Testers

• It definitely looks and feels like cum to quite a high degree
• The smell isn't quite the same (it's a bit synthetic-smelling) but it gets less strong with use
• Very slippery and lasts quite a long time before needing to be reapplied
• Applying the lube is very easy and the drip nozzle makes it quick and accurate
• Works great with anatomically-designed sex toys
• We can't speak for everyone but we found it to be fine to use with sensitive skin, and CalExotics claims it is too

Pros and Cons

Become a Sex Toy Reviewer: Your Path to Free Sex Toys

Join Our Tester Program

How to Choose a Water-Based Lube

1. Keep in mind what you’ll be using it for

Though all the lubes on this list are great (they're on our best list for a reason!) they all have unique benefits that make them more strongly suited to certain situations rather than others. You want to choose a lube that's perfectly suited to what you're planning on doing with it - or at least, to your preferred usage method - to ensure that you get your money's worth.

If you're going to be having sex with a partner, you'll want to choose a lube that suits both of your preferences in terms of texture, slipperiness, and extra features such as warming or tingling. If you're going to be using it for masturbation, you might want a lube that works well with sex toys. If you're mainly going to be having anal sex, you need a lube that's sufficiently cushioned to account for the tighter orifice - this also goes for tighter sex toys such as Fleshlights. If you want some lube for use during oral sex, why not go for a flavored lube?

2. Understand the concept of osmolality

The osmolality of a lube refers to its ability to draw moisture from the body's cells and tissues. The reason you need to be aware of the osmolality of a lube is that lubes with higher osmolalities have been shown to increase the risk of infections, both vaginally and anally, by damaging tissue and mucus membranes.

Ideally, you want to choose a lube that has a similar level of osmolality to normal vaginal secretions - around 370 - 380 mOsm/Kg. However, as the World Health Organization states in the link above, it's uncommon for the osmolality of lube to be this low, so try at least to find lube with osmolalities lower than 1200 mOm/kg if you can. When in doubt, go lower instead of higher.

3. Choose body-safe ingredients

This one is fairly straightforward; you want to buy lubes that contain only body-safe ingredients, as these ingredients are safer for your body! Generally, we will state on our product pages whether or not a lube is body-safe - which happens to be, essentially, every lube we stock.

However, the reason we say "essentially" is that not every ingredient is safe for everyone. While we can say whether a given lube is body-safe, that only applies to people with no specific allergies, sensitivities, intolerances, etc. Always check labels to ensure that whatever you buy doesn't contain an ingredient that your body cannot tolerate - it always pays to be aware of what's going into the products you're consuming.

4. Decide if you're looking for extra features

Water-based lubes come in all kinds of varieties, including many with additional features. These can range from flavors and smells to have your downstairs smelling and tasting good, to unique sensations that can cause tingling or numbing effects to enhance pleasure.

However, though they can be a lot of fun, these bells and whistles aren't for everybody, especially as they may be reliant on ingredients and chemicals that can cause negative reactions in some users or simply cause unwanted sensations that don't feel good for everybody involved. That's why you need to be aware of what a lube can do before you buy - always make sure you know what you're getting into, and always check the label so you're aware of the ingredients.

Summary

Lube is super necessary for every kind of sex, and water-based lubes are so easy to start using right away, in pretty much any possible sexual scenario. Overall, every lube we've put on this list is very high-quality and works super well for their specific purposes.

Though we've narrowed it down to ten lubes for you, it should be pretty straightforward for you to work out which one would be perfect for you and/or your partner - just make sure to consider how exactly you'll be using it, think about whether or not you're interested in extra features such as warming, and always be aware of a lube's ingredients to ensure they'll be safe for your body.

Once you've done all this, deciding on the right lube should be a breeze - and we know you'll be happy with your choice!