Key points
- MedlinePlus says to choose a product by how much leakage you have and when it happens.
- Protection level names follow no official standard, the National Association For Continence notes, so compare figures rather than names.
- Our figures run from 170 mL for the lightest Ultra Thin pad to 4,257 mL for the EnduraDry Max brief with tabs.
- Change regularly even when you feel dry: MedlinePlus suggests setting aside time 2 to 4 times a day.
Start with how much you leak, and when
Before you buy anything, MedlinePlus, the health library of the National Library of Medicine, says to talk with your health care provider about the cause of the leakage and your treatment options. Leaks can often be treated, so a product is where you start living as usual, not where you stop looking for answers. Once you know what you are dealing with, the same source says the choice depends on two things: how much leakage you have, and when it happens.
Think through a typical day. Does a leak come with a sneeze in the grocery line, with a sudden urge on the drive home, or at night while you sleep deeply? A few drops call for a thin pad in your own underwear. Leaks that wet through clothes call for a pull-up. Nights, long trips and days spent in bed or a chair usually ask for the most, and that is where briefs with tabs, boosters and inserts earn their place.
What the numbers on our packs mean
Every LivDry product we rate carries a figure for the most it can hold, in milliliters and in ounces. Most of these figures come from laboratory testing to ISO 11948-1, an international method for measuring how much an incontinence product absorbs. The method is the same for each product it covers. That makes the numbers useful above all for one thing: comparing our products with each other on equal terms.
A number is not a promise of hours. How long a product lasts depends on you: how much you leak at a time, how often, how you sit and sleep, and how well it fits. The National Association For Continence makes a related point about labels. There is no official standard for the names brands give their protection levels, so maximum on one pack and maximum on another can mean very different amounts. Read the label, and compare the figures rather than the words.
| Product | How you wear it | Holds up to |
|---|---|---|
| Ultra Thin pads, Moderate to Ultimate | In your own underwear | 170 to 300 mL (5.7 to 10 oz) |
| Booster pads, regular or long | Inside a pull-up or brief, passes overflow on | 473 or 680 mL (16 or 23 oz) |
| Insert Pad 500, long or compact | In your underwear or inside a pull-up | 709 mL long, 811 mL compact (24 or 27 oz) |
| ContourDry booster | Inside a pull-up or brief, passes overflow on | 946 mL (32 oz) |
| Extra Absorbency pull-up | Pulled up like underwear, for the day | 1,492 mL (50.5 oz) |
| Overnight pull-up | Pulled up like underwear, for bed | 2,078 mL (70.3 oz) |
| Men's Ultimate pull-up | Pulled up like underwear, cut for men | 2,352 mL (79.5 oz) |
| Ultimate pull-up | Pulled up like underwear, day or night | 2,422 mL (81.9 oz) |
| Hyper inserts, 1200 to 2800 | Inside a pull-up, brief or mesh pants, waterproof back | 2,180 to 4,034 mL (74 to 136 oz) |
| EnduraDry Max brief | Opened flat and fastened with tabs | 4,257 mL (143.9 oz) |
Light leaks: a thin pad in your own underwear
If you lose a few drops when you cough, laugh or lift, a pad made for bladder leaks may be all you need. Our Ultra Thin pads for women stay thin under a dress or yoga pants and come in four levels. Moderate holds up to 170 mL, Maximum up to 230 mL, and Ultimate, the longest of them, up to 300 mL. Each one has raised side guards and an inner sheet balanced to the pH of skin.
Reach for a bladder pad rather than a period pad. The National Association For Continence advises choosing products designed for urinary incontinence instead of feminine hygiene pads. It also names the quality to look for: a product that wicks moisture away from the body. A pad built for bladder leaks is made for exactly that job. Once even the Ultimate level soaks through before you change it, the time has come to move up to a pull-up.
Moderate to heavy leaks: pull-ups
A pull-up goes on like the underwear in your drawer, which makes it the natural next step after a pad. Our three everyday pull-ups climb in capacity. Extra Absorbency holds up to 1,492 mL and suits a working day or a round of errands. Overnight is rated to 2,078 mL, with gathered leg cuffs for the hours you spend lying on your side. Ultimate tops our pull-ups at 2,422 mL, for heavy leaks by day or by night.
Men have a pull-up of their own. The Men's Ultimate is black and cut for a man's body, and it holds up to 2,352 mL, close to our Ultimate. Every LivDry pull-up has sides that tear open, so it comes off without being pulled down over your shoes. When a pull-up is close to full by the time you change it, move one step up the ladder rather than changing more often than you would like.
| Product | What it is | From | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Extra Absorbency Underwear | A pull-up for daytime wear with moderate leaks | $29.99 |  |
| Overnight Comfort Underwear | A pull-up with a deeper core for the night | $34.99 | |
| Ultimate Underwear | Our highest-capacity pull-up, for heavy leaks day or night | $35.00 | |
| Men's Ultimate Underwear | A black pull-up cut for men, with a high-capacity core | $36.99 | |
Boosters and inserts: more capacity inside what you wear
A booster pad sits inside a pull-up or brief and adds its own capacity. It has no waterproof back, so whatever it cannot hold passes through to the garment underneath, and the two work as one. When the pad is full, you change the pad and keep the underwear on. Our booster pads come regular, holding up to 473 mL, or long at up to 680 mL. The wider ContourDry booster takes up to 946 mL and follows the curve of the body.
Inserts work the other way round. A Hyper insert has a waterproof back, so nothing passes through and the outer garment can often stay dry. Five capacities run from 2,180 mL for Hyper 1200 to 4,034 mL for Hyper 2800, which suits people who sit or lie for most of the day. One rule holds for both kinds: wear one pad at a time. Stacking two pads does not double the protection, and it adds bulk where you least want it.
The heaviest leaks: a brief with tabs
When leaks are heavy and standing up to dress is hard, a brief with tabs is the strongest choice we offer. Our EnduraDry Max brief is rated to 4,257 mL in lab testing to ISO 11948-1, more than any other LivDry product. It opens flat, so it can go on while someone lies in bed. Its tabs open and close again, which lets the fit be adjusted after the brief is on.
Briefs suit the weeks after surgery, a parent cared for at home, and nights when even an Ultimate pull-up is not enough. A booster inside the brief and a bed pad on the sheet add two more layers. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases lists large disposable pads for chairs and beds among the products that help people cope with leaks, alongside briefs and absorbent underwear. Our bed pads and wipes share one shelf.
How often to change, and when to move up
Change your pad or underwear regularly, even if you feel dry, MedlinePlus advises. Set aside time to change 2 to 4 times a day, at the same times every day. A fixed routine means a product comes off before it is full, and the skin under it gets washed and dried before the next one goes on. Change sooner whenever a product feels wet or heavy. Fit counts as much as capacity, and our size chart shows how to measure for it.
Your needs can shift over the months, especially as treatment starts to work. If a product is nearly dry at every change, step down a level and spend less. When it is often full, step up. Insurance may pay for pads and other supplies when your provider writes a prescription, MedlinePlus notes, so ask at your next visit. It is worth getting right: the National Association For Continence says it has been estimated that as many as 80 percent of adults with incontinence use the wrong products.
- The product is often heavy or full when you take it off: move up one level, or add a booster.
- Your clothes or sheets get damp before a change: look at the fit first, then the capacity.
- The product is close to dry at every change: try one level lighter.
Every product named here is part of the LivDry collection.
