Best deodorant for swimming
In this article, we’re looking at the best deodorant for swimming.
Swiping on deodorant is a part of our pre-workout routine. When you’re a swimmer, getting the right deodorant is a little more complicated than, say, for a runner. Your body still perspires even though it’s slightly cooler than that of a running athlete, or someone working out in a gym. So going without a deodorant isn’t an option.
But the temperature of your skin fluctuates post-workout, and there’s more damp, so you need something that lasts.
We put a list of sweat-fighting products through their paces to bring you a list of the best, and healthiest deodorants for swimmers.
Our choice for the best overall product was the Secret Antiperspirant Clinical Strength Deodorant for Women.
It’s the nuclear option for sweat protection and works for up to 48 hours.
But keep reading to see how we ran our tests, and what the results show.
Best Overall
Secret Antiperspirant Clinical Strength Deodorant for Women
Pros
- Twice the protection of normal deodorants
- Protects up to 48 hours
- Controls both odor and dampness
- Invigorating citrus aroma
- Up to four times the stress-sweat protection
Cons
- Can irritate sensitive skins
Best Roll On
Degree Clinical Protection Summer Strength
Pros
- Superior dampness protection
- Up to 48-hour protection
- MotionSense technology releases fragrance when you need it most
- Smooth glide
- Great smell
- Mostly recyclable materials
Cons
- Sensitive skin types may experience mild irritation
Best natural scent
Schmidt's Natural Deodorant Rose and Vanilla
Pros
- First Ecocert
- Certified Natural
- Deodorant in the US
- 24-hour odor protection
- Certified 100%
- Natural Origin
- Fragrance
Over 13,000 5-Star reviews
1-2 swipes are all you need for all-day protection - Plant-Based Ingredients
- Certified 100% natural
- No aluminum salts
- No artificial
Cons
- Could cause markings on clothing
Secret Antiperspirant Clinical Strength Deodorant for Women
Best Overall
When you start talking clinical strength in deodorants and antiperspirants, you mean business!
Here’s how these super-strong products work. You should apply them at bedtime. They start settling into your pores and go to work to prevent and block sweat for 24 hours or longer.
Aluminum is the active ingredient in these long-lasting deodorants and antiperspirants, and the longer they last, the higher the concentration. That’s the rule of thumb.
The Secret Antiperspirant Clinical Strength Deodorant for Women is undoubtedly the longest-lasting bar we had in this test.
One of our team members is out on the road seeing clients all day. She is also a swimmer and heads to the pool every day after work. She found she didn’t need to reapply this deo, even after a swimming session.
“It’s not a magic anti-sweat bullet, but it sees me through the day, my swim, and into the evening without a second application,” she said.
And the scent was clean, fresh, and discreet enough not to be overpowering.
Pros
- Twice the protection of normal deodorants
- Protects up to 48 hours
- Controls both odor and dampness
- Invigorating citrus aroma
- Up to four times the stress-sweat protection
Cons
- Can irritate sensitive skins
Degree Clinical Protection Summer Strength
Best Roll on
This roll-on stick also provides protection for 24 hours or more. There’s a caveat, though. Our swimmer started using the product over a weekend when she takes a break from her swimming routine. And it actually worked for slightly longer than the stated 24 hours.
But, as soon as Monday came and she started swimming again, the 24-hours dropped to 12 to keep the same level of protection against odors.
There is a sensitive skin warning for some users, but everyone we asked to test the Degree Clinical Protection Summer Strength for us, gave it the all-clear. No exceptions.
The scent is great, possibly one of the nicest in our entire test lineup. It’s fruity and fresh, and somehow really reminiscent of summer.
If you’re too quick or eager when you apply the deodorant, it may leave marks on your clothes, though. This was the one downside that a few of our testers experienced.
However, this didn’t affect our swimmer. She got into the habit of applying the Degree Clinical Protection after her swimming workout in the late afternoon, and then simply did a smaller reapplication the next day, which kept her comfortable and odor-free all the time.
Pros
- Superior dampness protection
- Up to 48-hour protection
- MotionSense technology releases fragrance when you need it most
- Smooth glide
- Great smell
- Mostly recyclable materials
Cons
- Can irritate sensitive skin
Schmidt's Natural Deodorant Rose and Vanilla
Best natural scent
Natural deodorants often take punishment for not being as long-lasting, or strong as their non-natural counterparts. Athletes of all types find it difficult to get a deodorant or antiperspirant that balances the healthy aspects of a natural product with the strength of something non-natural.
Schmidt’s Natural Deodorant Rose and Vanilla is that balance – well, as close as we could come to it in this test.
The smell is simply gorgeous. The two scents (rose and vanilla) work in concert to give off an air of something hip, and modern, with even a whiff of freshly baked cookies!
It certainly doesn’t have the staying power of nuclear-powered antiperspirants, but that’s not what it was designed for. When we asked our swimmer to test it, she found that she had to apply it once directly after swimming, and depending on how hard she’d worked out during her swim, and how much she was still perspiring while recovering from her workout, again about 90 minutes later.
That was around the time when her body started settling post-workout.
This deo is available as a stick, and it also comes in a small tub. It’s a little sticky to the touch at first, but it absorbs fast and doesn’t leave marks on your clothing.
An interesting fact about this one – at the end of our test, we handed the products to our testers to keep. This specific deodorant was our swimmer’s choice. Not as strong as some of the others, perhaps, but she said the fragrance made her fall in love.
And she used to be a natural deodorant skeptic!
Pros
- First Ecocert Certified Natural Deodorant in the US
24-hour odor protection - Certified 100%
- Natural Origin
- Fragrance
- Over 13,000 5-Star reviews
1-2 swipes are all you need for all-day protection - Plant-Based Ingredients
Certified 100% natural - No aluminum salts
Cons
- Could cause markings on clothing
Dove 0% Aluminum Deodorant Stick
Best Aluminum Free
Aluminum is really the only effective antiperspirant ingredient for slowing down the sweating process. It does so by forming tiny plugs in the pores. That said, aluminum is also the most controversial agent in deodorants and antiperspirants.
Studies have been limited up to now, but results are trickling in that seem to indicate that aluminum carries an increased breast cancer risk. It’s also been linked to diseases like Alzheimer’s.
Swimmers and other athletes who are concerned about aluminum now have more natural options. Dove 0%, for instance, contains no alcohol or aluminum.
The scent on this stick is a combination of Green tea and cucumber – and it’s both clean and refreshing.
One of our testing crew actually uses this specific Dove product – and has been doing so for almost a year.
“I was already using a natural deodorant because of health safety reasons before I tried Dove 0% for the first time about a year ago,” she said in the post-test interview. “When I started using it back in 2021, I almost immediately noticed a difference. And the fact that it doesn’t leave stains on my shirts and blouses is a real plus. A big factor that got me to switch permanently, was the price. It’s way cheaper than other natural deodorants.”
Pros
- Really kind to sensitive skin
- Alcohol-free
- No baking soda
- Great scents
- Lasts more than 24 hours
25% moisturizer
Glides on
Cons
- Doesn’t last as long as products containing aluminum
Dr. Sweat Clinical Strength Antiperspirant Pads
Most powerful
This is da bomb! These clinical-strength deo wipes don’t just keep you dryish for a day – they make a significant difference all week long!
We were all so skeptical of this claim that we scurried to disprove it. But we couldn’t.
One of our team members went as far as to rope her husband in (she says he’s the stinkiest guy she knows) to help out on the test. The ladies in the group simply couldn’t produce the kind of perspiration these wipes were designed to obliterate!
Make no mistake – they’re expensive. However, if the product performs like the manufacturer promises (and our tests show it does) a container of these wipes should last you more than two months.
The application process for the Dr. Sweat wipes is simple. Rub the wipe in your armpits. That’s it. There’s no fragrance or irritation at all.
The results? We were actually blown away. The wipes eliminate sweat in your pits for days on end. And not just swimming, running, or workout sweat – also that nervous sweat in daytime, the night sweats, and the 24-hour general body sweat that comes from living in hot climates.
If you’re a swimmer or athlete, or whether you get your health kicks in the gym – if you need to get dry and stay dry after your workout, this product should be on your list to try.
We’re still shaking our heads about its efficacy.
Pros
- Clinical strength (and then some …)
- Works for up to seven days
- Highest level of sweat control without prescription
10 premium pads in a box – 70 days of protection - Alcohol-free
- Fragrance-free
Unisex
Cons
- Causes rashes with overly sensitive skin
