How Common Is Vibrator Use
Previous to 2009 most statistics suggested between 20-27% of people had used a vibrator at some point in their lives. Some examples of survey research include:
- In Shere Hite’s famous survey (1976), only 1% of respondents said they had ever used a vibrator
- In a 2006 Elle/MSNBC.com survey 40% of respondents said they had used a vibrator.
- In a 1996 survey of Swedish women aged 18 to 74, 19% of respondents said they had used a sex toy by themselves, and 15% said they had used a sex toy with a partner. Younger repondents were more likely to have used a sex toy, with 30% of women 25 to 34 reporting having used a sex toy.
Age of First Vibrator Use
Two surveys that have asked this got very similar results:
- 15 to 17% were under 20 years old when they first tried a vibrator
- 50% were in their 20s
- 22 to 27% were in their 30s
- 8 to 10% were 40 and older
Vibrator Use by Gender
In the two surveys that compared vibrator use between men and women, women were more likely to use vibrators:
- One study found that 33% of female respondents versus 20% of male respondents used vibrators
- Another study found that the numbers were 24% for women and 21% for men.
What else about people who use vibrators?
Here are some random statistics from the surveys listed below:
- Most studies found that vibrator users were overwhelmingly white.
- Most studies found that vibrator users were predominantly in their thirties.
- According to Xandria Collection’s Toys in the Sheets survey, the most common vibrator user was a white Christian married woman, in her thirties, who votes Republican.
- According to the Durex global sex survey Australia has the highest vibrator use reported (46%) and India has the lowest (3%). The US is up there at 45%.
- Women in relationships are more likely to use a vibrator than women who are single.
Sources:
