Best Masturbation Positions For Women - And Other Self-Pleasure Tips
Masturbation, self-pleasure...whatever you like to call it, it all comes down to the same thing: touching yourself in ways that feel amazing. If you have a vulva, there are plenty of different ways to touch yourself during masturbation. And while you may have figured out what feels good on your own, we're here to help you level up and make playtime even better. Just like with partnered sex, the position you choose can make a big difference in your solo sessions. We've compiled the best masturbation positions for women and people with vulvas to explore when they're flying solo. Your pleasure matters - here are our top masturbation tips on how to maximize it.
Benefits of masturbation
Self-pleasure was once a topic shrouded in controversy. In the past, people with vulvas were fed myths that masturbation could trigger health problems such as blindness or osteoporosis. Fortunately, due to science, education, and awareness in modern times, that's all changed, and the topic has become more mainstream. Today, many people with vulvas don't just admit that they regularly masturbate - they openly discuss the topic, including their masturbation technique. Touching yourself has a host of benefits, including:
It releases hormones. Whether you're stressed or having difficulty falling asleep, masturbation releases a cocktail of endorphins and hormones like oxytocin, prolactin, and dopamine, allowing you to experience a mood boost and relax naturally.
It can help train your pelvic floor. Masturbating is a fantastic workout for your pelvic floor muscles, those waves of pleasure are actually contractions of the muscles in your pelvic floor and strengthening this area can have all kinds of benefits, including less incontinence and more intense orgasms.
It improves your sex life. No matter your gender, masturbating regularly can have a positive impact on your intimate relationships with others. For people with penises, it can help with stamina training, while for people with vulvas, it can increase the likelihood of regularly orgasming.
It helps you get to know yourself better. Having deeper self-knowledge of your vulva and what you enjoy sexually can help you gain a better understanding of yourself and lead to better pleasure sessions with partners. There's value in knowing what you like, honing those techniques, and communicating this with confidence to your partners.
It can relieve period pain. If you have a period and experience symptoms like cramping, headaches, or back pain during your menstrual cycle, masturbating can act as a natural pain reliever. Orgasms can trigger muscle relaxation, release feel-good endorphins, and often increase blood flow, which can reduce inflammation.
The best masturbation positions for women and people with vulvas
How do women masturbate? What works for one person might not work for the best. If you're curious about how to masturbate with a vagina most effectively, you'll want to explore not just different toys, but different positions to help you hone your skills.
Lying on your back or front
Lying on your back is a classic and one of the most common positions for masturbation. However, lying on your stomach is underrated for a self-love sesh. Laying flat on your stomach allows you to put weight and pressure on your hands, create more friction against the clit and heighten sensation further.
While you can lie flat on your stomach with your hand or a vibrator over the genitals, you can add some support by placing a pillow under your stomach, which can angle the hips up and provide a new sensation. This will also reduce tension on the leg muscles.
Humping and grinding can help stimulate the crura or 'clitoral legs' of the internal clitoris, which this position can help activate.
All fours or kneeling
Going doggy-style or cowgirl solo is one of the best masturbation positions for women and anyone with a vulva, and can provide a stronger sensation in some cases. While on your hands and knees, use one hand to stimulate the clitoris, finger yourself, or stimulate the vulva however else you see fit. You can add a pillow for extra support.
Going cowgirl solo can be incredibly gratifying, especially for people who enjoy grinding. This is the perfect opportunity to go hands-free with some sex furniture, such as a sex toy mount that allows you to place a vibrator, such as a rabbit or a wand, inside, letting you straddle to your heart's desire. If you don't have a mount, straddle a pillow and place the vibrator so it aligns with your genitals. You can even squish it up to make a makeshift mount, tucking a toy like a wand inside. Be sure to lube up to reduce friction and increase comfort.
Lying on your side
Try the side spoon by lying on your side with a toy or your hands between your legs. For extra friction, you can squeeze your thighs together. Reaching an orgasm on your side is one of the best masturbation positions for women if you're feeling lazy or want something that will be easy on the joints, if something like all fours sounds too intense.
This versatile position gives you the option of stimulating your clitoris, inserting a finger, or using internal and external sex toys.
The multi-tasker
Why limit yourself to just one toy (and orgasm) when you can have double or triple the fun? Consider inserting a small anal plug while you use a clitoral vibrator, or use a clitoral vibrator with one hand as you thrust a dildo with the other. For this position, it's best to lay on your back with your legs in the air and knees drawn towards your chest - especially if you're using an anal toy so you can easily access it during anal stimulation.
Chairgasm
Sit on a chair without arms, such as a folding chair or dining room chair. While leaving your legs spread open, tuck your feet and ankles around the chair legs. This provides great access (and visuals, if you want to play in front of a mirror) to the genitals, and when you finally orgasm, it can feel satisfying to brace your legs against the legs of the chair.
Splash and stroke
This is one of the best masturbation positions for women and those with vulvas, especially if you're a fan of masturbating in the shower and using your showerhead as the ultimate solo session sex toy. In the shower, place a foot on the side of the tub or shower seat. If you don't have either of these things, you can lean back against a wall for added support and use a removable showerhead to stimulate yourself. Things can get slippery, so if you're concerned about safety, consider doing this in a steamy bath instead and bringing in your favorite waterproof vibrator.
Lotus-style
If you have hip flexibility, sit upright on a comfortable surface, such as your bed, and touch your feet together while spreading your legs with your knees bent. You can lie down and prop yourself up with a pillow if that feels better. This position can add healthy tension to the pelvic floor muscles and stimulate you further, enhancing orgasms. This position is inspired by the lotus position in yoga, which is a cross-legged, upright seated posture. It's also toy-friendly for suction vibrators, wands, and more.
Using lube during masturbation while experimenting with different positions
Using lube during masturbation, especially when you're experimenting with different positions, can enhance both sensation and comfort. Whether you're on your stomach, on your back, or kneeling over a pillow, lube reduces friction, allowing your hands or toys to glide more smoothly over the sensitive skin in your intimate areas. This will prevent irritation and discomfort, especially for certain positions like lying on your stomach, which creates more pressure, or positions that involve harder angles. Lube helps your body relax and stay responsive, elevating every solo session to make it even more pleasurable.
You can further enhance your playtime by incorporating tingling orgasm gels designed to intensify external sensation, such as pjur's innovative new pjur WOMAN Lust gel, which comes in two versions - regular and intense - to provide a buzzing sensation on the clitoris that boosts arousal and intensifies orgasm.
Check out pjur WOMAN Lust orgasm gel for your next solo session now.
5 Tips for Better Solo Play
We've covered the best masturbation positions for women and people with vulvas, but now we'll explore some other ways to spice up your masturbation routine.
1. Change locations
If you always stick to one location, like your bed, consider trying a new spot, such as the shower, bath, or couch (if you have the privacy to do so).
2. Use sex toys
Going for it with your hands can feel great, but adding sex toys into your routine can be even more mind-blowing, especially if you pair it with the right water-based lube to amplify sensations even more. Combining a rabbit and a G-spot vibrator with a clitoral stimulator can help you experience a blended orgasm.
3. Explore sensation play
Blindfolding yourself during masturbation allows your other senses to feel heightened. You can also try out some solo foreplay by dragging a feather tickler over your body. You can even snuggle up with a fur blanket or silk sheets to luxuriate in the feeling of different materials.
4. Stimulate other erogenous zones
The human body is covered in nerve endings that make up different erogenous zones. While the vulva may be the primary one that you have stimulated in the past, there are many other places worth exploring, including the breasts, nipples, neck, inner thigh, lower abdomen, and buttocks. Caress yourself the next time you masturbate to discover what other areas are sensitive on your body.
5. Masturbate during partnered play
If you're in a relationship or have casual partners, you can try out all of the above with them, including the best masturbation positions for women. Mutual masturbation is incredibly sexy and can help your partner learn more about what you enjoy while providing an irresistible visual aspect.
So, what are the best ways for women to masturbate? Exploring some of the positions and tips above can help you figure that out for yourself!
