Queer people are open about masturbation with their partners

A survey from LGBTQ dating app HER revealed that the queer community loves self-love, and being open about it too.
By Anna Iovine  on 
The legs of a lesbian couple both wearing socks with the Pride flag colours, their legs are entwined in an embrace.
Credit: Getty Images / Elizaveta Starkova

May is National Masturbation Month, and we're celebrating with Feeling Yourself, a series exploring the finer points of self-pleasure.


Masturbation isn't cheating, but that doesn't mean it's necessarily comfortable to speak about with your partner. Thanks to a new survey of over 4,000 users of LGBTQ dating app HER, however, we know that many queer people are open about their self-love habits: 71 percent of respondents have discussed masturbation with their partner — while 65 percent engage in mutual masturbation. HER users are FLINTA, an acronym meaning female, lesbian, intersex, nonbinary, trans, and asexual/aromantic.

The Pride and Pleasure report, as HER calls it, also reveals that a staggering 97 percent of respondents masturbate, with 77 percent doing so weekly and 14 percent daily. They use a variety of methods to get off — 82 percent watch porn occasionally, with Gen Z more so than Gen X and Millennials. Meanwhile, more people (around 56 percent) think about someone they know than their partner (around 30 percent). About 35 percent masturbate to someone imaginary, while 18 percent are thinking about their sex.

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Seventy percent use sex toys while masturbating, with vibrators taking the lead, followed by dildos. Suction toys, anal toys, and shower heads are in the mix, as well. Someone's bed or shower is the most popular destination for getting it on with oneself.

"The queer community's commitment to self-pleasure not only showcases their passion for exploration and intimacy but also highlights the importance of self-love and acceptance," HER's press release reads. "By boldly embracing their desires, queers are challenging societal norms and paving the way for a more inclusive and liberated future."

Topics LGBTQ

anna iovine, a white woman with curly chin-length brown hair, smiles at the camera
Anna Iovine
Associate Editor, Features

Anna Iovine is associate editor of features at Mashable. Previously, as the sex and relationships reporter, she covered topics ranging from dating apps to pelvic pain. Before Mashable, Anna was a social editor at VICE and freelanced for publications such as Slate and the Columbia Journalism Review. Follow her on X @annaroseiovine.


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