The simple fact is that whips and floggers don't have strict guidelines around what makes a certain item a whip or a flogger. However, this is not really something we need to become confused about, because whips and floggers can achieve similar sensations. Therefore, sometimes the definitions the sex toy industry put on products contradict themselves. However, there are some differences that anyone can identify, and doing so is the most important thing when wanting to meet specific BDSM desires.
Whips are potentially the broadest items in BDSM play. To some whips are other names for crops or spankers. Whilst others agree that whips should align with the image we have with a classic cowboy and what they would use to control livestock.
In an effort to stop any more blurring between the two terms here are a few differences that the majority of the BDSM world seems to agree with.
Stinging is thought of as a sharper sensation, that is more commonly associated with whips. Whilst thudding describes more of a dull push created by using a flogger. Of course, there are whips that can thud and floggers that can sting, but if you're looking for a specific sensation knowing the difference will put you on the right path.
It's generally believed that the tails of a whip are greater in length compared to floggers. The longer the whip, the more momentum it can gather resulting in a more severe sting. Whips with greater length generally require better technique and therefore more pillow practice. Floggers usually will have shorter tails, and this aligns with their use to give a thudding sensation to a greater area.
Most whips will have less tails than floggers. A famous example of a flogger being the Cat-o-nine Tailed flogger. It is said that whips can have anywhere between 1-5 tails, whilst a flogger can range anywhere between 5 and 20, sometimes even more!
This is perhaps the most interchangeable definition as many BDSM toys with a lot of tails are still called whips. What's essential to understand is that more tails are going to sting a greater area but is likely to not be as sharp as one long and singular tailed whip. More tails are more effective at thudding, simply because there's more mass to create the pushing sensation.
The final difference is the end of the whip. The crack of a whip is actually created by the material creating a loop and travelling down the length of the tail(s). Changing the end of a whip means that when the whip reaches it's crescendo, all that momentum transfers into the end, changing the end can therefore emphasise the sting or thud of a whip or flogger.
Therefore, whips generally have whips that will emphasise a stinging sensation such as this Quad Silicone Whip's tails are bulbed and weighted to make the sting sharp and precise. On the other hand, this Punish Me Silicone Flogger is typical of most flogger ends. Which don't require variation on their tails as a flogger focuses more on a mass thudding sensation.
For more information about whips, floggers and more BDSM in general. See our guides for spanking and whip or flogger spanking
See Adulttoymegastore's full range of whips and floggers here!