Squirting fluid is mostly urine, but it’s not purely urine. Chemical analyses show the large volume of clear fluid released during squirting contains urea, creatinine, and uric acid, the same waste products found in pee, confirming it’s produced by the kidneys and collected in the bladder. However, the fluid also contains small amounts of secretions from the Skene’s glands, two tiny glands that sit on either side of the urethra and produce proteins similar to those in male semen.
The answer gets more nuanced when you separate squirting from a related but distinct phenomenon called female ejaculation. Researchers now treat these as two different things, and understanding the difference clears up most of the confusion.
Squirting and Female Ejaculation Are Different
The terms “squirting” and “female ejaculation” are often used interchangeably, but scientists have identified them as separate processes that can happen independently or at the same time.
Squirting is the release of a large volume of clear, watery fluid from the urethra, typically tens to hundreds of milliliters. This is the dramatic gush often depicted in pornography. Its chemical makeup closely matches dilute urine, with the key markers (urea, creatinine, uric acid) confirming it originates from the bladder.
Female ejaculation is the secretion of about 1 milliliter of thick, milky white fluid from the Skene’s glands. This fluid contains high concentrations of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), fructose, and glucose, giving it a composition similar to male seminal fluid (minus the sperm). The Skene’s glands are sometimes called the “female prostate” for this reason.
In practice, many women who squirt release a mixture of both fluids at once. That’s why squirting fluid isn’t identical to a regular urine sample, even though the bladder is the primary source of the volume.
What Ultrasound Studies Reveal
The strongest evidence about squirting’s origin comes from a study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine that used pelvic ultrasounds on seven women who regularly experienced it. Researchers scanned each woman’s bladder at three points: after she emptied her bladder completely, during sexual arousal just before squirting, and immediately after squirting.
The results were clear. After urinating, every woman’s bladder was confirmed empty. During arousal, each woman’s bladder noticeably refilled. After squirting, the bladder was empty again. The bladder filled rapidly during stimulation and then emptied at the moment of squirting, leaving little room for doubt about where the fluid comes from.
Chemical analysis of the expelled fluid from the same study reinforced this. In two of the women, there was no detectable chemical difference between their squirting fluid and their urine. The remaining women’s samples were chemically similar to urine but also contained PSA, the marker produced by the Skene’s glands, confirming that squirting is essentially bladder fluid mixed with a small contribution from those glands.
Why It Doesn’t Look or Smell Like Pee
If squirting fluid is mostly urine, you might wonder why many women (and their partners) say it doesn’t seem like pee. There are a few reasons. The bladder fills very quickly during arousal, meaning the fluid hasn’t sat in the bladder long enough for waste products to concentrate the way they normally would. The result is a more dilute fluid that can be lighter in color and less pungent than typical urine. The Skene’s gland secretions mixed in also alter the overall composition slightly.
None of this changes the fundamental chemistry. The fluid still tests positive for the same markers found in urine. But the sensory experience of squirting can genuinely differ from urination, which is part of why the “is it pee?” question persists.
How Common Squirting Is
Surveys suggest fewer than 50% of women experience ejaculation or squirting during sexual stimulation. The Skene’s glands vary significantly in size from person to person, and some women have very small or undetectable glands. This anatomical variation likely explains why some women squirt regularly, others do it occasionally, and many never do.
The International Society for Sexual Medicine notes that scientific understanding of squirting is still evolving, which contributes to confusion and unrealistic expectations. Pornography in particular has amplified the idea that squirting is a universal sign of intense pleasure, when the reality is more varied and individual.
The Role of the Skene’s Glands
The Skene’s glands are two small structures located at the lower end of the urethra. Outside of sexual activity, they secrete fluid that lubricates the urethral opening during urination and helps prevent urinary tract infections by limiting bacterial spread. During arousal, these glands become more active and produce additional lubrication. In some women, they generate the thick, milky substance that constitutes true female ejaculate.
Because the Skene’s glands empty into the urethra, their secretions mix with whatever fluid passes through, which is why squirting fluid (originating from the bladder) can contain PSA and other glandular proteins. The glands themselves don’t produce enough volume to account for the large quantities of fluid seen in squirting. That volume comes from the bladder.
The Bottom Line on Composition
Squirting fluid is primarily dilute urine that the bladder produces rapidly during sexual arousal, mixed with small amounts of prostatic secretions from the Skene’s glands. It exits through the urethra, the same opening urine passes through. Calling it “just pee” oversimplifies it slightly, since the Skene’s gland contribution is real and measurable. But calling it “not pee at all” contradicts the chemical and ultrasound evidence. The most accurate description is that it’s a bladder-derived fluid with a minor glandular component, produced under specific conditions of sexual arousal.