Native Deodorant: The Heartbreak Stick
A natural deodorant that works beautifully for some and makes others smell actively worse. It's the most expensive coin flip in bodycare.
What real owners actually say
Here's the thing about the user comments — and this is important — most of them aren't actually about Native. They're from threads about body odor solutions in general, and the overwhelming wisdom from the highest-voted comments is that glycolic acid (The Ordinary's toner) and benzoyl peroxide washes (PanOxyl) on your pits are the real game-changers for BO, not any particular deodorant brand. The logic: sweat doesn't smell, bacteria does. Kill the bacteria, and almost any deodorant works. One ER doctor mentioned surviving chaotic, sweaty shifts with Lume, and multiple people praised crystal deodorants and PanOxyl bar soap. When Native IS mentioned directly in these threads, it's not flattering — one user said they 'smelled considerably worse' after a week of use, another said Native 'literally' failed them so badly a teacher had to address classroom smell. The community consensus is clearly that the bacteria-killing prep step matters more than which 'clean beauty' stick you layer on top. Nobody in these high-voted comments is rushing to defend Native's honor.
What Glow loved
- Huge variety of fun, creative scents that people genuinely love
- When it works for your body chemistry, it works really well — some users are fiercely loyal
- Clean ingredient list appeals to people avoiding aluminum and parabens
- Accessible at Target and other drugstores for easy trial
What Glow didn't
- Extremely body-chemistry dependent — many users report smelling WORSE than before
- At ~$12/stick, it's a pricey experiment with a high failure rate
- Causes rashes in some users, particularly those with sensitive underarm skin
- No real guidance on the transition period or application technique that determines success
- Lasts about 6 hours for many users before needing reapplication
The YouTube reviewers who actually tried it
The YouTube landscape for Native is genuinely chaotic. On one end, you have vloggers like ~vlogs.by.ella~ whose comment section is a love fest — 'SOOOO good,' 'BEST deodorant ever,' people raving about Cotton Lily and the Dunkin' Donuts collaboration scent. On the other end, The Wolf of Williamsburg titled his video 'Don't buy Native deodorant!' and commenters agreed: 'Too expensive to not work,' 'I smelled worse after wearing it.' The bombasticnoa video's comment section is brutal — someone's fifth-grade teacher apparently sat the whole class down about smell while they were wearing Native. Nasa The Influence posted a literal #ad for Native, and even in that sponsored content's comments, people wrote 'NOOOO NATIVE STINKSSS' and 'it doesn't keep you smelling fresh all day.' The most nuanced take comes from Rachel Schmidt's year-long unsponsored review, where a commenter detailed needing to go antiperspirant-free for several days first, then apply Native correctly, to avoid stinking and rashing — suggesting there's a learning curve the brand doesn't communicate. The throughline: this is a product where personal body chemistry determines everything, and at roughly $12 a stick, that's an expensive experiment. Some people find their scent and their match and are evangelical. Others smell like onions for their trouble.
The caveats nobody puts on the bottle
When user voice and video reviewers contradict each other, that's usually where the truth lives. Here's the disagreement.
- BRAND markets Native as all-natural and effective, but VIDEO comments are the most polarized of any product — split between 'BEST deodorant ever' and 'I smelled considerably worse,' with no middle ground.
- VIDEO includes a sponsored #ad claiming Native keeps you fresh, but comments directly on that ad say 'NOOOO NATIVE STINKSSS' and 'it differs between every person — mines last about 6 hours.'
- USER comments overwhelmingly recommend glycolic acid and PanOxyl as the actual BO solution, suggesting the prep step matters more than Native's formula — a reality the brand's marketing never addresses.
- VIDEO reviewers who like Native often mention needing a transition period or specific application method (going antiperspirant-free first), but BRAND gives no prominent guidance about this learning curve.
- Multiple VIDEO commenters report getting rashes from Native, while others with the same skin type have zero issues — suggesting the formula's baking soda or botanicals are a coin flip for sensitive skin.
- PRICE is a near-universal pain point across both USER and VIDEO layers: at roughly $12/stick, commenters consistently say it's 'too expensive to not work' — yet those for whom it works happily repurchase.
The 10 videos that informed this verdict
Top YouTube reviews ranked by views. Tap a card to watch on YouTube — no autoplay, no creep tracking, no “you might also like.”