Where to Buy Sex Toys in DC

The question "where do I buy sex toys in DC" has more answers than people realize. Here is the honest local version: every route that actually works, and when each one is the right call.

There are roughly four ways to buy in this city.

In person, at a DC shop

The city has a small, good, brick-and-mortar scene. Bite the Fruit and What's Your Pleasure DC sit across the street from each other on the stretch between Dupont Circle and Adams Morgan, and together they make for an easy walking trip. Night Dreams is the Adams Morgan option and the one that stays open latest, until 3am on Friday and Saturday. All three are staffed by real people who know their inventory, and all three are a better experience than any website for a first-time buyer who wants to hold the product, compare weights, and ask questions out loud. A longer guide to each of them is here.

Going in person is the right call when you have time, when you want the outing, when you are shopping with a partner and half the point is the trip, or when you want a human's opinion.

In a pinch, at a chain

CVS, Walgreens and 7-Eleven are the answer for condoms late at night when you do not want to wait for a delivery. The selection is narrow, the fluorescent lighting is what it is, and the back wall of a CVS is not a shopping experience anyone has ever looked forward to. Most CVS and Walgreens even carry lubes and a smattering of toys, if you're okay pressing a button and waiting for someone to unlock it for you. If it's on your route home, and is still open, these can work in a pinch.

Online, from a big retailer

Amazon sells most of what you can imagine in this category. The problem is not selection. The problem is that a big brown box with a shipping label shows up at your front door or in your building's lobby with your name and the delivery date on it, and the product-level privacy on what is inside has historically been inconsistent. For people who live alone in a house, this is fine. For people with roommates, or who live in a building with a shared mail area, or who just do not want this to be a visible part of their order history, it is not the right tool.

Supply inconsistencies are also a real problem with Amazon. You rarely know who you are buying from when you use the "buy button" on Amazon — stories of dangerous counterfeit products are out there.

Direct-from-brand websites are usually better on packaging discretion than Amazon is, and the products are often newer and better, but shipping takes three to five days, which defeats the purpose when tonight is the relevant timeframe. They also mostly sell their own catalog, so if you have not already settled on a brand, this is not the path to start on.

Online works when you are planning ahead, when you are willing to wait, and when you know exactly what you want. It stops working when any of those three things are not true.

Same-night, via Deluvery

Deluvery is the fourth option. It is a DC-based delivery service that brings sex toys, lubes, condoms, and personal care to your door the same evening you order, in discreet packaging, up to the late-night hours. Nearly all orders inside our core service area arrive in under half an hour.

Same-night delivery is the right answer when you are already home, when the moment is now, and when neither a trip across town nor waiting until Wednesday is how you want to solve the problem. For a Saturday at midnight when the decision has already been made and the logistics are the last thing standing between you and the rest of the night, same-night delivery is what exists.

If tonight is already underway in a specific neighborhood, we have written up Adams Morgan, Dupont Circle, and U Street in more detail.

So, where should you actually buy

It depends on the night. If you are planning a weekend date and want to make an afternoon of it, go to one of the three shops above and take your time. If you need condoms at 11pm and you're fine making a pit stop, any convenience store will do. If you are comfortable planning five days out and know what you want, order from the brand directly. If tonight is already underway and the rest of the evening depends on something showing up at your door in under half an hour, that is what Deluvery is for.

If that last one is you, place an order during the hours above. Love, delivered in minutes.