The fluid released when women squirt is primarily dilute urine mixed with small amounts of secretions from the Skene’s glands, two tiny structures located on either side of the urethra. This has been a topic of genuine scientific debate, but imaging studies and biochemical analyses have clarified the picture considerably in recent years.
Squirting and Female Ejaculation Are Different Things
Researchers now distinguish between two separate phenomena that often get lumped together. Squirting involves a larger gush of fluid, typically 10 milliliters or more, that is mostly clear and watery. Female ejaculation, by contrast, is a much smaller release of thick, whitish fluid, just a few milliliters, produced by the Skene’s glands.
The Skene’s glands develop from the same embryonic tissue that becomes the prostate in males, which is why they’re sometimes called the “female prostate.” They swell during arousal and can secrete a mucus-like substance during orgasm. This secretion is chemically distinct from urine and contains a protein called PSA, the same marker associated with prostate function in men.
Both phenomena can happen at the same time, which is part of why they’ve been so confusing to study. When a woman squirts, the larger volume of fluid often contains traces of these Skene’s gland secretions mixed in.
What Imaging Studies Reveal
A key 2015 study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine used ultrasound imaging to track what happens inside the body before, during, and after squirting. Seven women who regularly experienced large-volume fluid release during sex were monitored in real time. Each woman emptied her bladder before the study began, confirmed by ultrasound.
As sexual arousal progressed, the ultrasound showed the bladder noticeably refilling. Just after squirting occurred, the bladder was empty again. This rapid fill-and-release cycle confirmed the bladder as the source of the high-volume fluid. Biochemical testing backed this up: the squirted fluid contained urea, creatinine, and uric acid at concentrations similar to urine. However, five of the seven women also had PSA present in their squirting fluid, even though it wasn’t detected in the urine sample collected before arousal. That PSA comes from the Skene’s glands.
The researchers concluded that squirting is essentially an involuntary release of urine during sexual activity, with a marginal contribution of Skene’s gland secretions in most women.
Why It Doesn’t Look or Smell Like Urine
One reason squirting fluid seems different from regular urine is that it’s produced rapidly. The kidneys filter fluid into the bladder at an accelerated rate during arousal, resulting in a very dilute solution. It’s often lighter in color, less concentrated, and less odorous than typical urine. The addition of Skene’s gland secretions further changes its character. So while the fluid is chemically similar to urine, the experience of it doesn’t match what most people associate with urination.
How Common Squirting Is
Squirting is more common than many people assume. A 2023 U.S. probability survey of women ages 18 to 93 found that 40% of adult women reported having squirted at least once in their lifetime. Among those who had experienced it, the median frequency was three to five times total. So while it’s not rare, for most women it’s also not a regular occurrence.
There’s significant variation in volume and frequency from person to person, and even from one experience to the next. Some women squirt consistently with certain types of stimulation, while others experience it unexpectedly and may not be able to reproduce it. The Skene’s glands themselves vary in size between individuals, which likely influences whether someone produces more of the thicker ejaculatory fluid alongside the larger squirting volume.
What Triggers It
Squirting typically happens during intense sexual arousal, often involving stimulation of the front vaginal wall (the area sometimes called the G-spot). This region sits close to both the Skene’s glands and the urethra, which helps explain why pressure there can trigger fluid release. Clitoral stimulation, vaginal penetration, or a combination can all be involved.
The release is involuntary. Women who experience it often describe a building sensation of pressure followed by a sudden release that coincides with or closely follows orgasm, though squirting can also occur without orgasm. The feeling is distinct from the sensation of needing to urinate, even though the bladder is involved.
Is Squirting Harmful?
Squirting is a normal physiological response and poses no health risks. It doesn’t indicate a bladder problem or pelvic floor dysfunction. Some women who experience it worry they’re losing bladder control, but the mechanism is different from stress incontinence. The rapid bladder filling during arousal and its release during the muscular contractions of orgasm is a specific response to sexual stimulation, not a sign of weakness in the pelvic floor.
The Skene’s glands can occasionally develop cysts or infections unrelated to squirting, but squirting itself doesn’t cause or worsen these conditions. Whether you experience squirting or not has no bearing on sexual health or function.