These Deodorants Will Keep Your Pits Fresh No Matter What (2024)

While deodorant isn't the most glamorous product in your beauty arsenal, imagine a world without it. What your sweatiest spin class be like? Or a day the beach? Or a tense office presentation? Scary, right?

When shopping for one, keep in mind there's a big difference between deodorant and antiperspirant. Antiperspirants work by plugging your pores with an aluminum-based compound, meaning they nix sweating and fight odor at the same time, says New York City dermatologist Joshua Zeichner, M.D. Deodorants can’t do this; they simply work to mask odor.

Meet Our Experts: Joshua Zeichner, M.D., a dermatologist in New York City, Corey L. Hartman, M.D. founder of Skin Wellness Dermatology, Perry Romanowski, a cosmetic chemist in Chicago, Dendy Engelman, M.D., a dermatologist in New York City

If you’re on the hunt for a quality deodorant to banish body odor and keep your armpits fresh, behold, the best deodorants for women.

A Women's Health Beauty Award winner for best deodorant, this heavy-duty deo leaves you with fresher-smelling pits from the second you swipe and up to 48 hours later.

When it's hot out, or you just finished up a workout, applying a thick antiperspirant can feel, well, a little gross. Enter this new Dove serum formula. It feels like a fancy skincare product going on and dries down quickly.

If you're looking to switch to natural deodorant, you may find that your skin is suddenly irritated. A likely culprit: baking soda. This gentle formula foregoes the common ingredient and uses arrow root powder to absorb sweat and coconut oil to keep pits smooth.

Got sensitive pits? You may want to try a fragrance-free deodorant like Schmidt's. It's also free of baking soda, aluminum, propylene glycol, parabens, and phthalates. But it's packed with soothing and hydrating coconut oil and shea butter.

If you sweat a lot, or suffer from hyperhidrosis, these pads may be your best bet. They're clinically proven to reduce sweat for seven days—yes, a whole week! Simply swipe the alcohol-free pad onto clean pits and let them dry to allow the 15% aluminum chloride antiperspirant to do its magic.

48 hours of odor protection from a natural deodorant? It's now possible thanks to this stick formulated with no artificial fragrances but packed with goodies like zinc oxide to freshen and beeswax to condition skin.

For those summer scorchers, reach for this clinical strength formula to ensure you stay dry. It's made with Degree's proprietary MotionSense technology that responds to your body movement, releasing extra freshness when you move.

Love the ease of a roll-on formula? Then you'll love this clear, 24-hour protection antiperspirant from Ban.

If you want a weightless feel, switch to a dry spray antiperspirant. “They create a flexible film of active ingredients on your skin and remain dry,” says Romanowski. Dove’s has finely milled aluminum for invisible protection, plus a special masking oil to prevent any marks from getting on clothes.

Sensitive-skinned gals should avoid irritants like aluminum, baking soda, and fragrance—all three can cause redness, burning, and peeling of the skin, says Zeichner. This gentle stick uses chamomile to soothe skin, hops to ward off the bacteria that makes sweat smelly, and kaolin clay to absorb moisture.

“This is my favorite aluminum-free deodorant on the market,” says Engelman. “It is free of toxins, like paraben and sulfates, yet works effectively and keeps you smelling great all day long.”

People are obsessed with this aluminum and paraben-free stick. It even had a waiting list when it first launched that's what a cult product it is. It's made with a blend of natural ingredients, including sage and green tea, to prevent odor-causing bacteria from forming on the skin and smells like a fine rose fragrance.

This creamy formula comes in a dreamy, spa-like eucalyptus scent and has a cool modern design that dispenses deodorant through 25 tiny holes for a mess-free application. It won't bleed all over clothes, either, since it's formulated with zinc and kaolin clay to keep your underarms dry.

We scrub our faces and our bodies, so why wouldn't we scrub our pits, one of the sweatiest, greasiest spots on our bodies? Use this detoxifying underarm scrub to help remove deodorant and bacteria buildup.

Though slightly unconventional—you have to apply it to wet underarms—this natural deodorant is wildly popular. The formula, made from just mineral salts, works to create a shield that purifies sweat to keep it from smelling.

Many natural deodorants harness the power of baking soda to combat sweat and stench, but it can be irritating to those with particularly sensitive skin. This stick is different—instead, it uses tapioca starch and cornstarch to soak up sweat and eradicate odors.

These natural deodorant wipes are here to make your life a heck of a lot easier (and better-smelling!). Stash them in your gym bag for those times you don't have a chance to shower, or leave them at your desk for a mid-day refresh.