UTIs in men are treated with antibiotics, typically for 7 to 14 days depending on whether the infection is limited to the bladder or has spread deeper. Unlike in women, where a simple UTI might clear with just a few days of medication, male UTIs are generally treated as complicated infections. That means a longer course of antibiotics and, in most cases, a urine culture to confirm the right medication is being used.
Why Male UTIs Are Treated Differently
UTIs are far less common in men than in women, and when they do occur, there’s usually an underlying reason. The male urethra is longer, which makes it harder for bacteria to reach the bladder. So when an infection does take hold, it often signals something else going on: an enlarged prostate that prevents the bladder from emptying fully, a kidney stone, a catheter, or a structural issue in the urinary tract.
Because of this, male UTIs are almost always classified as “complicated,” even when symptoms feel mild. The classification hinges on whether the infection has stayed in the bladder or spread further, which clinicians assess based on the presence of fever, how sick you appear, and whether you have a catheter. This distinction shapes which antibiotic you’ll be prescribed and for how long.
What to Expect at the Doctor’s Office
The first step is a urine dipstick test, which can detect signs of infection within minutes. But unlike with women, a urine culture is standard for men. The culture takes one to three days to come back, but it does two important things: it confirms bacteria are actually causing your symptoms, and it identifies exactly which antibiotic will kill them. Your doctor will likely start you on an antibiotic right away based on the dipstick results, then adjust the prescription if the culture shows the bacteria are resistant to that drug.
If your symptoms don’t improve, or if you have a history of kidney stones, diabetes, or recurrent infections, imaging may be ordered. An ultrasound or CT scan can reveal blockages, abscesses, or other structural problems that need separate treatment. Routine UTIs in otherwise healthy men don’t typically require imaging.
Antibiotics and Treatment Duration
The most commonly prescribed antibiotics for male UTIs are fluoroquinolones (like ciprofloxacin) and a combination drug called TMP-SMX. Your doctor chooses based on local resistance patterns and your own risk factors for drug-resistant bacteria.
The question of whether to treat for 7 days or 14 days depends largely on whether you have a fever. A clinical trial comparing 7-day and 14-day courses of ciprofloxacin found that in men without fever, 7 days was sufficient. But in men with fever, suggesting the infection had moved beyond the bladder, 14 days proved superior. A separate trial using a different antibiotic in men with fever reached a similar conclusion. In practice, if your UTI is limited to the bladder and you have no fever, a 7-day course is reasonable. If you’re running a temperature or have signs of a more serious infection, expect two weeks of treatment.
Finish the full course even if you feel better after a few days. Stopping early increases the chance the infection comes back, potentially with bacteria that are harder to treat.
Managing Symptoms While Antibiotics Work
Antibiotics kill the bacteria, but they don’t immediately relieve the burning and urgency. An over-the-counter urinary pain reliever containing phenazopyridine can help during the first couple of days. It numbs the lining of the urinary tract and turns your urine bright orange (which is harmless). The FDA limits its recommended use to no more than two days alongside an antibiotic, because after that point the antibiotic alone provides the same level of symptom relief, and continuing the pain reliever only masks whether the infection is actually improving.
Drinking plenty of water helps flush bacteria from the urinary tract and dilutes your urine, which can reduce the sting when you urinate. NSAIDs like ibuprofen can help with pain and any low-grade fever. These measures complement antibiotic treatment but don’t replace it.
Ruling Out an STI
Some of the symptoms of a UTI overlap with urethritis, an inflammation of the urethra often caused by sexually transmitted infections like gonorrhea or chlamydia. Both conditions cause pain during urination. But urethritis is more likely to produce discharge from the tip of the penis, itchiness, pain during sex, or blood in the semen. If you’re sexually active and your symptoms include any of these, your doctor will likely order STI testing alongside the urine culture. The treatments for the two conditions are different, so getting the right diagnosis matters.
When a UTI Spreads to the Prostate
One of the more serious complications of a male UTI is acute bacterial prostatitis, which happens when bacteria travel from the urethra into the prostate gland. The symptoms are hard to miss: sudden high fever, chills, severe pain in the groin or lower back, nausea, and difficulty urinating or a complete inability to urinate. Some men also experience body aches that feel flu-like.
This is a medical emergency. Prostatitis requires a longer course of antibiotics, often four to six weeks, because the prostate is difficult for drugs to penetrate. In rare cases, an abscess can form in the prostate, which may need to be drained. If you develop fever, chills, or worsening pain after being diagnosed with a UTI, don’t wait for your antibiotic course to finish before seeking care.
The Role of an Enlarged Prostate
Benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH, is one of the most common reasons men develop UTIs in the first place. As the prostate grows, it squeezes the urethra and makes it harder to fully empty the bladder. The urine that stays behind becomes a breeding ground for bacteria. If you’re getting recurrent UTIs, your doctor will likely evaluate your prostate and check how well your bladder empties. Treating the underlying BPH, whether with medication or a procedure to reduce prostate size, can break the cycle of repeat infections.
Other risk factors for recurrent UTIs in men include kidney stones (particularly a type called struvite stones, which are associated with chronic infection), diabetes, immune suppression, and catheter use. Addressing these root causes is just as important as treating the infection itself.