Squirting fluid comes primarily from the bladder and is mostly diluted urine, but it’s not exactly the same as regular pee. The fluid also contains small amounts of secretions from glands near the urethra that produce substances not found in urine. So the honest answer is: it’s largely urine that has been diluted and mixed with other secretions, released involuntarily during sexual arousal or orgasm.
This is one of the most common questions about female sexual health, and the science has only recently started catching up. Here’s what researchers have found.
What Ultrasound Studies Actually Show
The most direct evidence comes from a 2015 study that used pelvic ultrasound scans to watch what happens inside the body before, during, and after squirting. Participants emptied their bladders completely, confirmed by ultrasound. Then, during sexual stimulation, their bladders visibly refilled. After squirting, the bladders were empty again.
That’s a straightforward finding: the fluid comes from the bladder and exits through the urethra, the same tube urine passes through. However, when researchers analyzed the chemical makeup of the fluid, they found it wasn’t identical to the urine samples collected earlier. In most participants, the squirting fluid contained small amounts of a protein produced by glands unique to sexual function. The researchers concluded that squirting is essentially an involuntary release of urine during sexual activity, with a “marginal contribution” of other secretions mixed in.
Squirting and Female Ejaculation Are Different Things
One reason this topic is so confusing is that squirting and female ejaculation are often treated as the same thing. They’re not. Current research treats them as two distinct phenomena that can happen separately or at the same time.
Female ejaculation is a small amount of thick, whitish fluid, typically just a few milliliters. It comes from the Skene’s glands, two tiny structures about the size of a small blueberry that sit on either side of the urethral opening. These glands are sometimes called the “female prostate” because they produce proteins similar to those made by the male prostate. This fluid is not urine.
Squirting, by contrast, involves 10 milliliters or more of clear, watery fluid. It comes from the bladder and passes through the urethra. It can happen before, during, or after orgasm. In many cases, the squirting fluid picks up some secretion from the Skene’s glands on its way out, which is why chemical analysis often finds a mix of both bladder fluid and glandular secretions.
Why It Doesn’t Look or Smell Like Pee
If the fluid is mostly from the bladder, you’d expect it to look and smell like urine. But most people who experience squirting report that it doesn’t. Surveys describe the fluid as usually clear, like water. It typically has little to no odor, and some research suggests it can taste slightly sweet rather than salty or acidic like urine.
The likely explanation is that the bladder fills rapidly during arousal, meaning the fluid is much more diluted than typical urine. It hasn’t sat in the bladder long enough to concentrate the waste products that give urine its yellow color and strong smell. Think of it as very watered-down bladder fluid rather than the concentrated urine your body produces overnight. The addition of Skene’s gland secretions further changes its composition.
It’s Not a Sign of a Bladder Problem
Researchers draw a clear line between squirting and coital incontinence, which is involuntary urine leakage during sex caused by a bladder or urethral disorder. Coital incontinence typically happens in two forms: leaking during penetration or leaking at orgasm. It’s associated with conditions like pelvic floor weakness and usually involves fluid that looks, smells, and feels like regular urine.
Squirting, on the other hand, is classified as a normal physiological response during sexual activity. It doesn’t indicate a medical problem and doesn’t require treatment. A 2023 systematic review emphasized that female ejaculation and squirting are both normal components of female sexuality, distinct from incontinence.
How Common Squirting Actually Is
Squirting is often described as rare, but survey data tells a different story. A large Swedish study found that 58% of women surveyed had experienced ejaculation or squirting at some point, with higher rates among non-heterosexual women. A separate U.S. study found a prevalence of about 41%. These numbers suggest it’s a fairly common experience, though frequency varies widely from person to person. Some people experience it regularly, others only occasionally, and many never do. All of these are normal.
The amount of fluid also varies considerably. Some people produce a barely noticeable amount, while others release enough to soak through sheets. Neither extreme signals anything unusual about your health or anatomy. The size of the Skene’s glands differs from person to person, which may partly explain why the experience varies so much.
The Bottom Line on What the Fluid Is
Squirting fluid is primarily diluted urine from the bladder, released involuntarily through the urethra during sexual arousal or orgasm. It usually contains a small amount of secretion from the Skene’s glands, making it chemically distinct from a regular trip to the bathroom. It’s clear, mostly odorless, and a normal part of sexual function for many people. Female ejaculation, the smaller volume of thick whitish fluid, is a separate phenomenon produced by the Skene’s glands and is not urine at all. The two often get lumped together, but understanding the difference clears up most of the confusion around this topic.