Gross dude only showers once every 3-4 days, can't understand why his roommate says he stinks: 'This was news to me because literally nobody has ever said anything before'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Writer and Editor
Oct 13, 2025 11:00 AM EDT

I do not know how people can go days without showering. Unless you are a newborn baby or in a perilous survival situation where there is no running water, there is no excuse for not hopping in the shower for 10 minutes a day and rubbing some soap all over your body. You do not need 10 million different gels and conditioners to be clean, contrary to some cleanly consumers. As long as you shower, wash your sheets, and wear deodorant, you really can't go wrong. It's not rocket science. 

There are some unsubstantiated rumors going around that you don't need to shower every day if you are generally clean in every other area of your life, and that's just not true. You definitely do not need to wash your hair with shampoo and conditioner every day to be clean, but if the largest organ on your body goes mostly unwashed for days at a time, you shouldn't be surprised that you stink. Just because you don't smell it doesn't mean that everyone else can't, and you should be considerate of other people's nostrils.  

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  • Cheezburger Image 10563689984
    via Joshua katt

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • The dude in this story can't believe that his roommate thinks he stinks. He only showers every 2-4 days, but insists that he's hygienic in all the other ways. He took to the internet to share his woes, and the public agrees that if his roommate told him he stinks, he really probably does stink.

  • Is it actually gross that I only shower every two to three days, or is my roommate being dramatic?

    So I shower every 2-3 days usually. Sometimes I'll go 4 if I've just been at home not doing much. I work from home, don't exercise a ton, and I just don't really get that sweaty or smelly? I change my clothes daily, use deodorant, wash my face, brush my teeth twice a day.
    via u/Latere-Lickstein
  • Cheezburger Image 10563690752
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • My roommate recently made a comment about how he "can tell" when I haven't showered and that it's "kind of gross" that I don't shower daily. This was news to me because literally nobody has ever said anything before. Not previous roommates, not partners, not friends.
    via u/Latere-Lickstein
  • I asked him to elaborate and he said I smell "musty" and that daily showering is "basic hygiene." But I've read that showering too often can actually be bad for your skin and hair? And that not everyone needs to shower every single day?
    via u/Latere-Lickstein
  • Aesop Aesop
    via Samuel Regan-Asante

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • For context: I'm not overweight, don't have any medical conditions that would cause odor, wear clean clothes, etc. I genuinely thought I was being hygienic enough.
    via u/Latere-Lickstein
  • CaptainHope93 If someone has said that they can tell when you haven't showered, and that you smell musty, that's the opinion to take seriously. No-one on reddit can smell you through the internet. Someone in real life has let you know that they can, so you should shower more frequently. What other people do is irrelevant.
    via u/CaptainHope93
  • whiskeyinthewoods Yeah. And it's not surprising that no one has said anything - saying something is incredibly awkward and most people try to avoid it if they can. There are whole threads on here dedicated to discussing if and how people can let someone they live, work, date, or attend class with that they smell, and half the time the people end up just saying nothing out of fear of hurt feelings or some kind of retaliation.
    via u/whiskeyinthewoods
  • I would put zero stock on never having heard it before, nor would I weigh your own opinion of your smell - humans go nose blind very quickly, and you are probably unable to smell yourself because of this. ETA: Also make sure you're washing your sheets and towels and getting some fresh air in your room. If not, those will reactivate the musty smell every time you sleep on or dry off with them. That might give you a little more leeway towards skipping the occasional day, but four days is just gros
    via u/whiskeyinthewoods
  • deereverie I know the exact smell OP's roommate is talking about. I had a roommate that only showered every other day. I couldn't smell BO, but when he opened his bedroom door, I could smell the mustiness through half the apartment. It's definitely something a roommate notices, but the outside world may not.
    via u/deereverie
  • PostmodernPurist If someone is brave enough to tell you something like that you probably stink.
    via u/PostmodernPurist
  • KorraNHaru And you can become immune to your own scent. On day 2 1 smell horrid! On day 3 I smell absolutely nothing. It's like your brain blocks out noxious odors for its own peace of mind. Most people feel uncomfortable telling someone they smell bad. And people can have a heavy musty unwashed smell. Like taking a blanket out the linen closet that has been in there for months. It's doesn't stink per se, but I definitely doesn't smell fresh.
    via u/KorraNHaru
  • maeerin789 We are socially conditioned to avoid topics like this out of politeness. I'm sorry, but if somebody is going out of their way to tell you that you stink, you really stink.
    via u/maeerin789
  • DrScarecrow Roomie's probably been waiting for the right time to say something for a while.
    via u/DrScarecrow
  • leftclicksq2 B.O. is B.O. I work with the public and good Lord is it obvious when someone isn't bathing. That smell permeates through (seemingly) clean clothes!
    via u/leftclicksq2
  • UnhappyImprovement53 I don't get that sweaty or smelly Your roommate is literally telling you that you stink. Just because you don't smell it doesn't mean other people don't smell it. Just because nobody else says anything it doesn't mean they don't smell it. They just might have been too nice to actually say something about it. Take a shower more often.
    via u/UnhappyImprovement53
  • P.S.: Even if you don't exercise you still start stinking. Bacteria break down skin oils and your entire body is covered in bacteria, your diet, and hormones all make you smell.
    via u/UnhappyImprovement53
  • gramma-space-marine And do your laundry frequently and correctly bedsheets and pillowcases too
    via u/gramma-space-marine
  • Chamoismysoul No way OP is on a proper schedule with bedding laundry. They probably wear same t shirt and gym shorts to bed (not PJs) and wash sheets twice a year if that.
    via u/Chamoismysoul
  • Taladanarian27 Yeah I've never met anyone who smelled horrible and skipped lots of showers who also was constantly on top of their laundry and bedding. Dirty people are usually dirty across the board.
    via u/Taladanarian27
  • Sudden-Fudge-7732 Agree! I grew up in a house where my parents both smoked. Growing up I never noticed the smell because it was around me all of the time. Once I left for college and came home to do my laundry and realized my laundry smelled like cigarette smoke, I started doing my laundry at school! That's when I realized how badly I must have smelled to non-smokers throughout the years.
    via u/Sudden-Fudge-7732
  • I mean even if daily showering isn't your thing - I would at least increase the frequency to every other day at the bare minimum. I know myself personally and I can't go out of the house unless I've showered within the last 24 hours. I feel gross and am very self conscious about my smell if I don't.
    via u/Sudden-Fudge-7732
  • contradixx well.. deodorant should be placed on clean skin. are you slabbing it on top of days old deodorant? that could also be adding to the smell.
    via u/contradixx
  • the-largest-marge Bro is using that 72 hour deodorant and taking it seriously.
    via u/the-largest-marge

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clean smell bad roommate smelling gross bad roommates shower smelly hygiene stink Reddit roommates showers dirty showering stinky
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