Sex toy use among a demographically representative sample of women 60 and older in the United States

Objectives: While there has been increasing interest in older adults’ sexuality, the literature to date has largely ignored sex toy use. This study investigated sex toy use in partnered sex and masturbation among older adult women. Methods: A survey was fielded in October 2023 among a national demographically representative sample (N = 3,001). Participants had to be at least 60 years old, identify as a woman, and be living in the United States. Results: Most of the survey participants were 60-69 years old (67.1%). Participants reported much greater use of sex toys during masturbation than during sex with a partner. Of the women who reported masturbating at least once in the last year, 46.4% used toys almost always or always during masturbation, compared with 5.1% who used sex toys almost always or always during partnered sex. Those who reported almost always or always using sex toys during masturbation were significantly more likely to report always or almost always having an orgasm compared with the lower frequency sex toy users. Of those who had partnered sex, 38.7% reported using sex toys during partnered sex at least rarely. Those who reported almost always or always using sex toys during partnered sex were more likely to report always or almost always having an orgasm compared with the lower frequency sex toy users. Conclusions: Given the prevalence of masturbation and sex toy use as well as their relationships to orgasm, older women could benefit from information from health care professionals on these topics.