⚡ Quick answer
Menstrual discs vs menstrual cups: a cup sits low and holds with suction: great for beginners and sport. A menstrual disc sits higher with no suction: great for a low cervix, heavy flow, and wear during sex.
📋 In this article
If you’ve been curious about reusable period care, you’ve probably come across two options: the menstrual cup and the menstrual disc, sometimes called a period disc. Both collect your flow instead of absorbing it. Both can be worn for up to 8 hours. And both help you cut waste and save money.
But they work quite differently, and the best choice really depends on your body and your lifestyle. We’ve been helping people find their perfect fit since 2011, so let’s break it down.
Menstrual Discs vs Menstrual Cups: How They Work
🌸 The Menstrual Cup
A small bell-shaped cup, usually made of medical-grade silicone. You fold it, insert it, and it opens to form a gentle seal just below the cervix. To remove it, you pinch the base to break the seal and pull it out by the stem.
👍 Why people love it
- Lasts for years
- Huge choice of sizes and firmness levels
- Secure seal for sport
- Beginner-friendly models
🤔 What can be tricky
- Folding takes practice
- Breaking the seal to remove
- Can feel long with a low cervix
💜 The Menstrual Disc
A flatter, wider bowl with a flexible rim. It tucks up into the vaginal fornix, the widest part of the vagina, just behind the pubic bone. No suction needed: it stays in place thanks to your anatomy. To remove it, you hook a finger under the rim and pull it out while keeping it level.
👍 Why people love it
- No seal to break
- Ideal for a low cervix
- Often larger capacity: the Intimina Ziggy holds far more than most cups
- Usually wearable during sex
- Many can’t feel it at all
🤔 What can be tricky
- Removal can be messy at first
- Placement takes practice
- Some are single-cycle only, so check it’s reusable
- Harder to reach with a high cervix
Inserting a Disc vs a Cup: A Pinch, Not a Fold
To insert a menstrual disc, you simply pinch it in half and slide it back toward your tailbone. Then tuck the front rim up behind your pubic bone.
A menstrual cup needs to be folded (the C-fold or punch-down fold, for example), inserted, then rotated so it fully pops open and seals. New to cups? Our step-by-step guide on how to use a menstrual cup covers folding, insertion and removal.
Watch: How to Insert and Remove a Menstrual Disc
Seeing it done makes it much easier. In this short video, Intimina shows how to use the Ziggy menstrual disc, one of the reusable discs we sell.
Menstrual Cup vs Disc at a Glance
Can You Have Sex With a Menstrual Disc?
Yes, most discs can be worn during penetrative sex. A disc sits up against the cervix, a bit like a contraceptive diaphragm. This leaves the vaginal canal free, so period sex is much less messy. A cup sits lower in the canal, so it needs to be removed first.
Important: a menstrual disc is not a contraceptive and does not protect against STIs. Use your usual contraception and protection.
Menstrual Discs or Menstrual Cups: Which Should You Choose?
Choose a cup if…
- You’re new to reusables
- You love a secure seal for sport
- You have a medium or high cervix
Choose a disc if…
- Cups felt uncomfortable
- You have a low cervix
- You have a heavy flow
- You want to wear it during intimacy
- You have a prolapse or another condition that makes cups hard to use (check with your doctor first)
💡 You don’t have to pick just one! Many people keep both a menstrual cup and a menstrual disc, and switch depending on their flow and plans.
📏 Quick tip: know your cervix height
Check during your period, when it’s often lowest. With clean hands, gently feel for your cervix (it feels like the tip of your nose). For a full guide, read your cervix and menstrual cups.
- First knuckle: low cervix → a disc or a short cup like Me Luna SHORTY
- Second knuckle: medium cervix → most cups work
- Barely reachable: high cervix → a longer cup is easiest to remove
Compare the length of every cup in our menstrual cup comparison chart.
Cleaning a Menstrual Disc vs a Cup
Good news: you clean a reusable menstrual disc exactly the same way as a menstrual cup. Rinse it with cold water first, then wash it with warm water and a gentle, unscented soap each time you empty it. Sterilize it at the end of each period. Our guide on how to clean and care for your menstrual cup walks you through every step, and you’ll find sterilizers and cleaning soaps in our menstrual cup care shop.
⚠️ A note on safety
Choose medical-grade silicone or other body-safe materials, and follow the manufacturer’s wear time and cleaning instructions. Toxic shock syndrome is rare but possible, so never exceed the recommended wear time. Using an IUD? Talk to your doctor first. If you feel pain, remove it and check with a healthcare professional.
Shop Menstrual Discs and Cups
Ready to give one a try? Here are the reusable discs and our most popular cups, all hand-picked for you.
Menstrual discs
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Formoonsa Disc
€49.90 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page -
Intimina Ziggy cup
€39.95 Add to cart -
Intimina Ziggy Cup 2
€39.95 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Popular menstrual cups for a low cervix
Short cups designed to sit comfortably when your cervix is low. See all low-cervix cups.
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Me Luna SHORTY
€15.95 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page -
Libby Cup
€23.60 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page -
Joie
€24.00 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Still not sure?
That’s completely normal: finding your perfect fit can take a cycle or two, and most people get the hang of it quickly. Our tips to choose your cup and our comparison chart will help you narrow it down. We’ve been helping people find their match since 2011.
