BV vs Yeast vs Trich: the quick difference guide
If you’ve got odor, itching, burning, or discharge changes, it’s easy to spiral and guess wrong. Here’s a simple way to tell what’s more likely going on and when you should stop guessing and get tested.
Quick links (if you’re in a hurry):
Fishy vs onion vs ammonia smell: what each usually means
Why odor changes after sex (and when it’s not normal)
First: the “3 big clues”
Pay attention to:
Odor (fishy? none? strong?)
Itching/burning (mild? intense?)
Discharge (thin? thick? yellow/green?)
Now let’s break it down.
BV (Bacterial Vaginosis)
Most common clue: fishy smell (often stronger after sex or around your period)
Discharge: thin, watery, sometimes gray/white
Itching: usually mild or none (but can happen)
Burning: sometimes, especially with irritation
BV is basically a pH imbalance where certain bacteria overgrow.
When BV is likely: odor is the main symptom.
Yeast Infection
Most common clue: intense itching
Discharge: thick, white, “cottage cheese” texture (sometimes not much discharge)
Odor: usually not strong (more “bread-like” or just different, not fishy)
Burning: common, especially with sex or peeing (from irritated skin)
When yeast is likely: itching is the main symptom.
Trich (Trichomoniasis)
This one gets missed a lot because symptoms can be mild or come and go.
Most common clues:
odor (can be strong/funky, not always fishy)
irritation, burning
discharge changes
Discharge: can be thin, and can be yellow/green; sometimes more than usual
Itching/burning: common
Important: it’s an STI, so partners need treatment too.
When trich is possible: symptoms keep returning, treatment doesn’t work, or there’s new partner risk.
Quick cheat sheet
Fishy smell + thin discharge → BV is more likely
Itching like you want to crawl out of your body → yeast is more likely
Strong odor + irritation + discharge changes that don’t make sense → test for trich (and BV/yeast too)
When to stop guessing and get tested
Get checked if:
symptoms last more than a few days
symptoms keep coming back
Over-the-counter yeast treatment didn’t help
you’re pregnant
you have pelvic pain, fever, or bleeding you can’t explain
you’re worried about STI exposure
Testing saves time, money, and stress. Guessing is how people end up treating yeast when it’s BV (or vice versa) and staying stuck.
