Best Kegel Trainers of 2024

There are two main problems with doing Kegels on your own: They're boring, and they're more difficult than you might think.

The squeeze-and-lift contraction is the foundation of pelvic floor strengthening exercises, helping to restore bladder and bowel control, enhance sexual satisfaction and improve the mobility of connected areas like the hips and lower back. 

But like any exercise, Kegels require weeks of consistent repetition to see results. And compared with lifting a heavy dumbbell at the gym, it's not as rewarding to work muscles you can't even see.

And Kegels sound simple enough, but it's easy to squeeze the wrong muscles (like those in the glutes) or botch the technique (like by pushing down instead of lifting up). One in four women do Kegels incorrectly, according to a study in the Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery Journal.

Kegel trainers can make pelvic floor workouts more effective by guiding you through an exercise program, using technology that helps you perfect your technique—and even incorporating video games like pinball and target shooting.

The feedback and results tracking can inspire you exercise more consistently, said Darla Cathcart, a board-certified women's health physical therapist and president of APTA Pelvic Health, an academy of the American Physical Therapy Association.

"Motivation is always a challenge when it comes to any type of healthcare," she said. "It's about finding the things that keep you engaged and motivated."

Also called Kegel exercisers or pelvic floor trainers, these devices incorporate many of the same exercises recommended by healthcare providers—but at a lower cost than medical appointments, with the added bonuses of at-home comfort and convenience.

In this article, we'll explain how Kegel trainers work and describe the best Kegel trainers on the market.

What is a Kegel trainer?

A Kegel trainer is a tech-enabled device that helps you contract your pelvic floor muscles with the goal of building strength.

Kegel trainers take you through various types of pelvic floor contractions, like quick pulse squeezes (for control during the dreaded sneeze-and-pee) and longer holds (for muscle endurance on the way to the bathroom).

There are two main types of Kegel trainers: Those that use biofeedback, showing your squeezes on a screen in real time, and those that use electrical stimulation to contract your muscles automatically.

Most Kegel trainers are inserted into your vagina like a tampon, while some products offer a unique way to Kegel, whether you're sitting on top of a high-tech pillow or wearing an electrode-equipped pad.

How does a Kegel trainer work?

Kegel trainers bring biofeedback or electrical stimulation—the same technology used in medical offices—to consumer-friendly products that are easy to use at home. Most are classified as FDA-registered medical devices.

Kegel trainers with biofeedback

Healthcare providers use biofeedback to teach patients proper Kegel technique and exercise routines, connecting body sensors to a machine that displays contractions on a screen.

"It's like standing in front of the mirror while you exercise," Cathcart said. "It gives you information."

At a medical office, the visuals are typically medical in nature, like watching a heart rate monitor. With an at-home Kegel trainer, biofeedback is a lot more fun.

Gamified Kegel trainers connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth, using biofeedback to turn Kegels into video games. On your screen, your squeeze becomes a pinball in a machine or a car racing around a track as you play games that guide you through a Kegel workout.

During the workout, the app provides cues about when to breathe, squeeze and relax, helping you develop coordination and endurance. Sensors in the device measure strength, helping you see how your technique correlates with effectiveness.

Some Kegel trainers, such as Perifit and Elvie Trainer, also have sensors that differentiate between a push and a lift, alerting you to incorrect form that can only put additional pressure on the bladder.

By "bearing down" instead of lifting and squeezing, Cathcart said, "It's not going to work. It's actually going to cause more leakage."

Plus, gamified Kegel trainers track your performance, issuing scores for elements like control and endurance—and giving you motivation to play another day.

Kegel trainers with electrical stimulation

With automatic Kegel trainers, you don't even have to do a Kegel to do Kegels.

These products send a mild electrical current to your pelvic floor muscles, signaling them to contract and relax while you simply read a book or watch a show. 

"E-stim can be helpful for people who are having a hard time finding their muscles," Cathcart said. "And if it motivates you to complete the exercise, it can certainly be helpful in that way."

Physical therapists treat issues like incontinence with electrical stimulation devices, some of which are intravaginal probes and some of which are electrodes applied to the skin.

Automatic Kegel trainers offer similar options at home: Products like Yarlap emit gentle pulses while inserted into the vagina, while ELITONE works externally via a reusable pad applied to the pubic area. 

Do Kegel trainers work?

Most Kegel trainer manufacturers have customer surveys or app performance statistics that show pelvic floor improvement from device users. 

Some go the extra mile with clinical studies conducted by researchers at universities or healthcare clinics.

Among them is Emy, a biofeedback trainer tested at University Hospitals in Strasbourg, France. After three months of use, 91 percent of users showed improvement in incontinence symptoms, according to the study published in the Journal of Gynecology, Obstetrics and Human Reproduction.

ELITONE, which makes automatic Kegel pads for both stress and mixed incontinence and urge incontinence, was tested in a study published in the Journal of Women's Health Physical Therapy. After six weeks of use, 95 percent of users reported fewer daily incontinence episodes, with 75 percent reporting a decrease of 50 percent or more.

Are Kegel trainers worth it? 

A Kegel trainer can help you execute at-home exercises recommended by your healthcare professional—or eliminate the need for office visits entirely.

The price of a Kegel exerciser starts around $150, with e-stimulation devices priced over $300.

On either end of that range, you might spend as much on a Kegel trainer as you would on a single medical appointment—and most providers recommend several visits over the course of about 12 weeks to see results.

Oftentimes, physical therapy is not covered by insurance (and many pelvic floor therapy clinics are cash-pay and don't accept it, anyway).

Plus, you may be more likely to stick with an at-home exercise program rather than spend the time and money to visit a clinic, especially if you're a busy mom with postpartum issues.

Less than half of women referred to pelvic floor physical therapy actually attended a single appointment, and only 15 percent completed PT in a study published in the Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstruction Surgery Journal.

What's the best Kegel trainer?

All Kegel trainers help you build pelvic floor strength, but each product takes a different approach to solving issues like incontinence and sexual dysfunction.

A gamified Kegel trainer can give you the motivation you need during a multi-week squeeze-a-thon, thanks to apps that help you visualize your contractions and track your performance in Kegel-themed video games.

Choose an automatic Kegel trainer if you'd rather have a device do the work for you—and if you're comfortable with the idea of electric pulses stimulating your pelvic floor muscles.

So what's the best pelvic floor trainer on the market? Only you can decide which product is right for you, but here are our top picks. Vagercise is an authorized retailer of pelvic floor products that accepts HSA/FSA payments and offers free shipping on orders over $99.

ELITONE and ELITONE URGE

ELITONE Price

$399

What Is ELITONE?

An automatic Kegel trainer that uses a wearable pad to stimulate your pelvic floor muscles

How ELITONE Works

Want to do 100 Kegels a day but don't have the time or energy? In the 20 minutes you spend scrolling on your phone, ELITONE can do it for you.

ELITONE's adhesive pad, applied to the skin around your pubic area, uses electrical stimulation to contract and relax your muscles. Many women incorrectly engage their glutes or abdominals when doing a Kegel, but ELITONE focuses the workout where it counts: the muscles around your urethra.

The original ELITONE is designed for women who have predominantly stress incontinence, or leaks caused by high-impact events like sneezing or jumping. Choose ELITONE URGE if your primary symptom is urinary urgency, or an uncontrollable feeling of needing to pee.

Does ELITONE Work?

ELITONE and ELITONE URGE are both medical devices cleared by the FDA.

After using ELITONE daily for 6 weeks, 95 percent of users reported a decrease in incontinence episodes per day, with 75 percent reporting a clinically significant decrease by half or more, according to a study published in the Journal of Women's Health Physical Therapy.

Elvie Trainer

Price

$199

What is the Elvie Trainer?

A compact and comfortable biofeedback Kegel trainer with games

How the Elvie Trainer Works

If you're a new mom, you probably know Elvie for its line of high-tech breast pumps. And Elvie knows what else postpartum women need: a device that makes pelvic floor exercise fast and fun.

In the Elvie Trainer's five-minute workouts, you'll use your Kegels to hit targets in on-screen games while working on strength, speed, control and endurance. The Elvie Trainer hones in on your form for maximum effectiveness, helping you visualize a correct lift and alerting you when its sensors detect an incorrect push.

Does the Elvie Trainer Work?

The Elvie Trainer is an FDA-registered medical device that has not been tested in published clinical studies. 

Elvie says that most users report improvement in symptoms within four weeks.

Emy

Price

$179

What is Emy?

The biofeedback Kegel trainer offering the most games—and the only clinically-proven results

How the Emy Works

Row your boat down the river, go apple picking on a farm or ride on a Ferris wheel while exercising with the Emy Kegel Trainer, the French-made biofeedback device with more than 30 games.

In addition to choosing a game environment, Emy allows you to select workouts specific to goals like restoring bladder control or improving sexual pleasure. AI technology tailors the exercises to your strength level, challenging you to progress over time.

Does Emy Work?

An FDA-registered medical device, Emy is the only gamified Kegel trainer with results verified in a clinical study.

After three months of use in the study at University Hospitals of Strasbourg, France, 98 percent of participants reported a significantly improved quality of life, while 91 percent showed improvement in incontinence symptoms. The study was published in the Journal of Gynecology, Obstetrics and Human Reproduction.

Perifit

Price

$149

What is Perifit?

A biofeedback Kegel trainer with a wide variety of games

How Perifit Works

Perifit challenges you to advance from basic Kegels to complex muscle movements over the course of 10 levels designed for issues like stress or urge incontinence. Along the way, your Kegels become a whale gobbling fish or a car racing around a track in one of 12 games.

Dual sensors in the French-designed device can differentiate between a correct Kegel lift and an incorrect push, measuring both the strength of your contraction and another important factor in pelvic floor fitness: your intra-abdominal pressure.

Does Perifit Work?

Perifit is an FDA-registered medical device. A clinical study involving the device is in progress but has not yet been published.

kGoal Boost

Price

$149

What is kGoal Boost?

The only Kegel trainer, featuring biofeedback and games, that can be used by both women and men

How kGoal Boost Works

Most Kegel trainers can only be used in the privacy of your bed. But with kGoal Boost, your clothes stay on—and even your husband can use it, too.

kGoal Boost is the only device that goes under you, not inside you. When you sit on top of the device's soft pillow, it detects your Kegels as you play games like pinball and tracks your strength and performance over time.

Does kGoal Boost Work?

kGoal Boost is considered a general wellness product that is not regulated by the FDA and has not been tested in published clinical studies. In a company survey, 90 percent of users said the gamified workouts helped them exercise more frequently.

kGoal Classic

Price

$149

What is kGoal Classic?

A gamified Kegel trainer with biofeedback and an adjustable squeeze pillow for comfort

How kGoal Classic Works

One of the first Kegel trainers on the market is also one of the most customizable: Unlike other one-size-fits-all devices, kGoal Classic features a squeeze pillow with inflation that can be adjusted to your comfort level.

The device also has 360-degree sensors, allowing you to use it while doing exercises like squats instead of simply sitting. In the app's five-minute games, you'll do exercises like fast pulses and long holds to build pelvic floor strength, control and endurance. 

Does kGoal Classic Work? 

kGoal Classic is considered a general wellness product that is not regulated by the FDA and has not been tested in published clinical studies.

In studying the app workout scores of 400 users, kGoal found women made significant improvements in pelvic floor strength, endurance and control after using the device three times a week for six weeks.

Yarlap

Price

$319.95

What is Yarlap?

An automatic Kegel device that uses an intravaginal probe with electrical stimulation

How Yarlap Works

No work is required to get a pelvic floor workout with Yarlap, an automatic Kegel trainer that uses electrical stimulation to contract and relax your pelvic floor muscles.

Inserted like a tampon, the device offers 20-minute workouts with preset programs for stress, mixed or urge incontinence.

Does Yarlap Work?

Yarlap is a FDA-cleared medical device and has not been tested in published clinical studies. The company says most users see results within two to 12 weeks.

Conclusion

Kegel trainers are like a personal trainer for your pelvic floor—guiding you through a workout, counting your reps and giving you encouragement as you work toward strengthening your muscles.

Vagercise is an independent, woman-owned retailer of FDA-registered Kegel trainers and other pelvic floor products. We accept HSA/FSA payments and offer free shipping on orders over $99.

Want more help deciding which Kegel trainer is best for you? Contact us at info@vagercise.com.