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In this guide:
Material is the only spec that actually matters before price or shape, and most buying guides bury that fact three paragraphs in. Get the material right and everything else (size, vibration, brand) is preference. Get it wrong and none of the rest matters.
What to Check Before You Buy Anything
Body-safe silicone or borosilicate glass, full stop. Both are non-porous, fully cleanable, and won’t degrade with proper care. Jelly, rubber, and vague “skin-safe” TPE are porous, can’t be fully sterilized, and sometimes carry phthalates worth avoiding. A flared base is equally non-negotiable on anything anal: the rectum has no natural stopping point, and a wide base is what keeps a toy from traveling further than intended. Every pick below meets both standards. Nothing here is jelly, and nothing here skips the flared base.
The Picks
Best Beginner Plug: EasyToys Silicone Beginner Plug
Small, tapered, flared base, body-safe silicone. Nothing flashy, which is exactly the point for a first purchase. It’s the right place to start before sizing up or branching into shapes built for a specific sensation.
Best for first-timers who want a low-stakes entry point. Lower price.
Available through: EasyToys
Best Prostate Massager: LELO Hugo
The most consistently recommended toy in this entire category, named across general prostate-massager roundups and gay-specific buying guides alike. Dual motors target the prostate and perineum at once, it’s fully waterproof, and the remote means a partner can take over if that’s the goal.
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Best for anyone ready to move past a basic plug into something built specifically for prostate sensation. Higher price.
Available through: LELO
Best Dilator or Training Set: Future Method Silicone Dilator Set
A graduated set of sizes, platinum-cured silicone, designed for building comfort gradually rather than jumping straight to a final size. Worth disclosing directly: this set was developed by Dr. Evan Goldstein, a board-certified anal surgeon who also founded the brand, so the clinical credibility is real but it’s also his own commercial product, not a neutral third-party pick.
Best for anyone working up to a size or routine gradually rather than guessing. Mid to higher price.
Available through: Future Method
Best Vibrating Option: b-Vibe Rimming Plug
Rotating beads paired with vibration, built specifically around the rimming sensation rather than vibration alone, which is a different feeling than a standard vibrating plug. Check shipping to your country before ordering. b-Vibe’s availability outside North America wasn’t something we could confirm directly at checkout, so verify before relying on it.
Best for anyone who already knows they like the sensation and wants a toy built around it specifically. Higher price.
Available through: b-Vibe
Best Budget and Easiest to Find: Lovehoney Beginner Plug
Lovehoney’s own-brand beginner plug covers the same basics (silicone, flared base, tapered tip) through a retailer most people already have an account with. Nothing wrong with picking the convenient option.
Best for anyone who’d rather order from one familiar site than research five brands. Lower price.
Available through: Lovehoney
Cleaning and Caring for Your Toys
Warm water and a mild soap (or a dedicated toy cleaner) after every use, dried fully before storage. Keep different materials separate in storage, since silicone can react with other silicone or with jelly-type materials over time and degrade the surface. And the detail most guides skip entirely: silicone lube degrades silicone toys with repeated use, so reach for a water-based lube on toy nights specifically. The lube guide covers that compatibility question in more depth if you want the full picture. For general anal health context around toy use and recovery, Bespoke Surgical’s education library and Planned Parenthood’s safer sex resources are both worth a look.
Toys are one part of a bigger routine. If lube and prep are still question marks, the douching guide and the full bottoming guide cover the rest of it.
FAQ
What material is safest for anal toys?
Body-safe silicone or borosilicate glass, and not much else. Both are non-porous, which means they can be fully cleaned between uses and won’t harbor bacteria the way porous materials do. Jelly, rubber, and unlabeled “skin-safe” TPE are the ones to skip: these materials are porous at a microscopic level, can’t be fully sterilized even with proper cleaning, and sometimes carry phthalates, plasticizing chemicals that have been flagged for health concerns with repeated exposure. This isn’t a minor preference, it’s the single most consistent safety point across sexual health educators and retailer guidance alike, with essentially zero disagreement. If a product description is vague about material or just says “skin-safe” without naming what it’s actually made of, treat that as a reason to look elsewhere rather than a reassurance. Read the actual material spec before anything else, including price or shape.
Do I need a flared base on a butt plug?
Yes, without exception, and this is one of the few genuinely non-negotiable rules in this entire category. The rectum has no natural stopping point the way other parts of the body do, so anything without a wide base that can’t pass through the opening risks getting lodged further than intended, which typically means an uncomfortable trip to urgent care. A proper flared base sits flat against the body and physically can’t follow the toy inward. This applies to every plug, dilator, and anal-specific toy regardless of size, material, or price point, from the cheapest beginner option to premium brands. If a product doesn’t clearly show a flared base in its photos or description, that alone is enough reason to rule it out before considering anything else about it. This rule doesn’t loosen with experience either, it applies the same way to a first plug and a tenth one.
What’s the difference between a butt plug and a prostate massager?
Shape and purpose, not just size. A butt plug is generally a simple tapered shape designed to stay in place and create a feeling of fullness, with no specific internal target. A prostate massager has a deliberate curve or angle built to press against the prostate gland specifically, which sits a few inches inside, toward the front of the body. That targeted pressure is what produces the distinct sensation people associate with prostate play, and it’s a different experience from general fullness, not just a more intense version of it. Beginners sometimes assume any anal toy delivers that sensation by default. It doesn’t. If prostate stimulation specifically is the goal, a toy designed and angled for that purpose performs meaningfully differently than a generic plug ever will, regardless of how it’s marketed or priced.
Can beginners use a vibrating toy?
Yes, with one caveat that matters more than the vibration itself: size. Vibration is a sensation feature, not a difficulty setting, so a vibrating toy isn’t inherently more advanced than a still one. What actually determines whether something is beginner-friendly is its width and length relative to your own experience level, the same as any other anal toy. A smaller vibrating plug is a perfectly reasonable first purchase. A larger one marketed as a beginner option because it vibrates is not. Start small regardless of features, get comfortable, and size up later if you want to. Vibration adds a layer of sensation on top of whatever base experience the shape and size already create, it doesn’t replace the need to size appropriately. Plenty of people skip vibration entirely on a first toy just to isolate how the shape and size feel before adding another variable.
How do I clean anal toys safely?
Warm water and a mild, unscented soap, or a dedicated toy cleaner, every single time after use. Body-safe silicone and glass can both handle this without degrading, which is one of the reasons those materials are recommended in the first place. Let the toy dry fully before storing it, and keep it separate from other toys, especially if materials differ, since some silicone-on-silicone or silicone-on-jelly combinations can react and degrade the surface over time. If a toy is shared between partners or used in more than one body area, a fresh condom over it between uses adds another layer of protection. None of this is complicated once it’s a habit. The friction point is usually skipping it when tired, not understanding the steps, so building it into the routine matters more than the specific products used.
