How to Sell Sex Toys: A Beginner-Friendly Step-By-Step Guide

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A woman holding sex toys

If you are reading here, you’ve probably bought at least a few sex toys in your life (we have too, so no judgment!). But have you ever wondered what it’s like on the other side of the metaphorical cash register? We’re going to talk a little about what it’s really like to sell sex toys.

Understanding the Market

This industry took off during COVID lockdowns and hasn’t slowed down since. The global sex toy market was valued at $18.4B in 2025 and $19.8B in 2026, and is projected to reach $35.8B by 2034. This is a CAGR of 7.68%; for perspective, the global semiconductor market is expected to grow at 7.54% and aerospace and defense at 6%.

Not all sex toys or sex toy consumers are the same, of course. People who identify as women are expected to purchase more sex toys overall, but the growth rate will be higher for people who identify as men. Gen Z and millennial men are leading this growth. Vibrators are the best-selling segment and dildos are second.

 

Choosing Your Niche

We’ve established that the sex toy market is big and getting bigger. In many ways, this is a good thing for those in the industry (or those who want to be in the industry). However, it also means that it isn’t really practical to start out as a general store with a little bit of everything. You’ll end up wide and shallow, like a puddle in a parking lot.

Some examples of retailers who have done this well include:

 

Sourcing the Products

If you are just getting started in the sex toy business, your choices are managing your own inventory (buying wholesale, warehousing, payment processing, and shipping) or working with a drop-shipper. Managing your own inventory requires a much larger investment of both time and capital, but you have total control of the products you stock and you own the relationships with your customers. If you contract with a drop-shipper, you can probably get started in a couple of hours and at the cost of a dinner out, but you give up a lot of control.

Either way, if you’re going to be selling products under your trade name or even white-labeling them as your own brand, you want to make sure that they are ones that you can be proud of. Unless you are very familiar with all the products that you plan to sell, we recommend buying and testing samples, or better yet, assembling a focus group of trusted volunteers.

 

Product Compliance and Safety Standards

It goes without saying that anything you sell should meet or exceed all relevant safety standards, both for legal compliance and liability reasons. These standards vary by region, and it is your responsibility to learn them and abide by them. The same goes for age-related and other restrictions. (It is technically against the law to own more than six dildos or other sex toys in Texas, although the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has made this largely unenforceable.)

We reviewed some of the larger sex toy wholesaler sites, and we saw a mix of well-known brand names and others that are likely intended to be white-labeled and/or rebranded. Don’t sell anything that you can’t stand behind; if you are unfamiliar with the product, do your research — including product testing if necessary — before offering it up for sale. This might cost money, but not as much as defending a lawsuit (or worse yet, losing one).

 

Pricing Your Products

You obviously need to turn a profit, but you also don’t want to turn off customers. As you very likely know, it’s extremely easy to comparison-shop across multiple websites with just a few clicks.

For some products, you may not have a lot of leeway; brands may not allow their products to be sold below (sometimes above) a certain price point. For others, though, especially ones that you commission or white-label, you have to dance the dance of finding a price that’s attractive to both you and your customers.

People love bargains. It’s usually a better idea to set a price that’s maybe on the high end of reasonable and then run a sale, promotion, bundle, or other discount offer. Famously, JCPenney announced in 2012 that they were moving to “Fair and Square” pricing where they would post the lowest price and eliminate sales, coupons, and other gimmicks. Sales immediately dropped by 20% and the company ended up losing over $4,000,000,000 that year. Don’t do that.

 

Building an Online Presence

While in-home parties are one of the fastest-growing segments in the sex toy industry, the clear majority of sales happen online. Even if you are launching a home party network or a brick-and-mortar store, you will still need a website.

We wrote above that you’ll probably need to find your niche, and your website should reflect that. If you’re selling ultra-premium sex toys, look to designer cosmetic and accessory brands as inspiration. But if you’re focusing on BDSM or fantasy themes, you can go darker and naughtier.

No matter how it’s wrapped, your website should include all the information consumers need to make an informed decision. This obviously includes photos and detailed descriptions of the toys themselves, but it should also include information on payment processing, shipping, and returns and warranties.

 

Shipping and Discreet Packaging

Some of your customers will care more about discretion than others will, but probably no one wants their packages to arrive screaming “GIANT DILDO INSIDE!”. Your return address should be nondescript (Our say Commerce Frog LLC) and packaging should be a plain brown box or envelope.

Customers generally appreciate it when packages are shipped with tracking. Not only is it reassuring to see their purchase moving through the mail stream, but it also allows them to grab their package before a nosy roommate or family member does.

Another thing to note is that in most jurisdictions, you as the seller and shipper are responsible for the package until it is delivered. You can choose to self-insure (by reshipping any lost packages) or buy insurance through the carrier, but this is a cost that you should consider when setting prices and fees.

 

Marketing Your Products

Getting the word out about your sex toy business is trickier than you might think. Most ad networks don’t work with adult content, and even social media has restrictions. You will need to be creative and consider methods such as influencer partnerships, podcasts, and blog content.

The goal is not only to attract click-throughs but to make people comfortable enough to look around your site long enough to want to make a purchase. When our team was at the STIMULATE convention in Nashville earlier this year, one of the presentations focused on “performance gets clicks, relationship gets conversion.” People will be intrigued by products that promise to feel good, but they have to be mentally/emotionally comfortable and confident to hit that buy button.

 

Customer Service

Customer service is a big part of making potential clients feel comfortable and confident. Sex toys are very personal purchases, and they want to know that they are buying from real people. They also want to know that you’re not going to sell their contact information or put them on the GIANT DILDO mailing list.

Make your privacy policies very clear, and also give your customers a way to contact you. These days, chatbots can handle most routine customer service inquiries; they are certainly efficient and most companies do use them, but be respectful to your customers by letting them know when they are conversing with a bot and offering a way to reach a human when they need to.

 

Return Policies and Customer Satisfaction

This is tricky. You want your customers to be satisfied, but you probably don’t want to accept returns of used sex toys. You can explain that intimate items are not returnable and urge your customers to reach out with any questions or concerns before they make the purchase.

Defective products are a different story, of course. If they are damaged in shipping, you should take it up with the shipper (we talked about shipping insurance above). If the product itself is defective, you may have recourse with the manufacturer or wholesaler; in this case, you are the customer exercising your rights. Either way, as the retailer, you should make it right with your customer immediately and then pursue any remedy.

 

Staying Ahead of the Curve: Looking Ahead

Keeping your website and your inventory fresh is the best way to get repeat customers, which is the key to a financially sustainable business. If your customers know that you stay on top of the trends and stock new releases as soon as they become available (or even accept pre-orders), they’ll keep coming back to see what you have.

However, just because a product is new doesn’t mean that it fits your niche or your audience. Stay current, but also stay true to your brand identity. This can be a fine line to walk sometimes — but it gives you a great excuse to buy and try new products that are hitting the market!

Happy vibing!

Maggie

Maggie Hart
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