How Often Should You Buy New Underwear? Find Out Here
Let’s face it, when you have a drawer full of perfectly good underwear, it seems pointless to buy more. The truth is, just because your underwear isn’t falling apart doesn’t mean that it’s not time to replace them.
It can be a bit challenging to determine when you should rotate pairs out for new ones since they do still fit and seem to be clean.
However, in this article, we’ll explain how often you should be purchasing new underwear, how to take care of what you have, and how to know when you need to toss out the old and bring in the new.
How Often Should You Purchase New Underwear?
Your underwear might have bacteria on it. This is because they sit right next to our groin, which is a hotbed for bacteria due to the warm, moist environment south of the border. Therefore, it ends up on your underwear. Luckily, as long as you are properly caring for the underwear and your groin, the bacteria is not going to hurt you. This also highlights the importance of buying high quality underwear with breathable, antimicrobial fabrics.
So, how often should you be buying underwear? Before we answer that, let’s take a look at how often people typically buy new underwear.
Men Vs. Women: How Often Are Underwear Replaced?
According to one study, women typically replace their underwear every 3 to 6 months, and some even go as far as replacing theirs every month.
On the other hand, men usually wear their underwear until they are falling apart. Some of them do replace theirs every 3 to 6 months, and only a few actually buy new underwear once a month.
Ideal Replacement Recommendations
Stylists and fashion experts actually recommend that you should be replacing your underwear every 6 to 12 months. However, when buying new underwear, you should think about what styles and fabrics you wear so that you can be sure to maintain the comfort you’re used to. This can be quite tricky.
When it comes to bras, you should have three: one that you wear, one in the wash, and a spare one. This is not counting lingerie items, strapless bras, or sports bras.
For underwear, it takes more thought because you need to know what fabric they are made out of. You can find this out by checking the label. If you are wearing synthetic fabrics, such as polyester or satin, you’ll need to replace them more often than natural fabrics such as wool, cotton or bamboo.
This is because the synthetic fabrics don’t breathe/air out naturally. They can trap moisture, which means that you have an increased chance of developing bacterial.
However, underwear made of cotton, bamboo or a breathable technical fabric allows your groin area to air out and release moisture. Since you have a decreased risk of infections, you don’t have to change out natural fiber underwear as often.
The only other factor besides the fabric that will determine how often you should be replacing your underwear will depend on how many pairs you actually have.
Those that have a wide variety of underwear can get away with not replacing it as often because they are not wearing the same ones as often as those with a smaller supply.
How Do You Know When to Replace?
The answer to this should be fairly obvious, but we’ll look at it anyway.
If your underwear has tears/holes, it’s time to toss them and get new pairs. However, there’s much more to it than that.
If your underwear has stretched out to where it doesn’t fit right anymore, and it’s slipping/sliding around under your clothes, toss them out and get new ones. Of course, this can be difficult for some because these tend to be the most comfortable, but you’ll feel much better when you have a pair on that fits properly.
Top Reasons Men & Women Buy New Underwear
Let’s look at the top reasons that men and women buy new underwear.
Reasons Women Buy New Underwear
The primary reason that women buy new underwear is that their old ones don’t fit anymore. This can be due to fluctuations in weight.
Another reason that women buy new underwear is that they found them on sale. This makes sense because you know you’ll need new underwear at some point. Why would you not buy it when it’s on sale versus waiting to pay full price later on?
The third reason women tend to buy new underwear is that they want to try a new style or fabric.
Reasons Men Buy New Underwear
The main reason that men buy new underwear is that their old ones no longer fit properly. Another reason they will buy new ones is that the old ones are not wearable anymore- they’re stretched out, threadbare, and falling apart.
Of course, if you want to get more life out of the underwear you have and not have to buy new ones as often, you should do whatever you can to take care of what you have.
Tips to Take Care of Your Underwear
If you’d like to make your underwear last much longer, you should be washing them in a lingerie bag on delicate. You might feel like this is a bit much for your everyday underwear, but it is the best way to prolong their life.
On the other hand, if you have more delicate style panties, you should be washing them by hand with room temperature water and a soft detergent. You don’t have to do a lot - just allow them to soak for about 45 minutes.
After that time, gently wring the water out of them and allow them to air dry. Ideally, they should be laid out on a towel instead of hung up so that they retain their shape and feel and are more likely to last.
How Often are You Buying New Underwear?
Think about it: how often are you buying new underwear? You can change yours out as often (or as little) as you like.
This is a personal decision, which means you must determine what is ideal for you. Regardless of how often you buy new, you should be at least putting on a fresh pair every day. Go for a fresh pair of underwear when you change your socks. Even if you skip the shower one day, you should still put on clean underwear.
Bottom Line
Underwear is something that should be replaced on a fairly regular basis. According to style and fashion experts, it’s best to replace them at least every 6 to 12 months. Of course, you can replace them more often if you like.
Ideally, you should not wait until they are falling apart to get new ones.