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We Reviewed Every Public Bathroom on the National Mall So You Don’t Have To

Photo via iStock.

More than 25 million people visit the National Mall each year, and most of them need to pee at some point. Fortunately for their bladders, the Mall offers 10 public bathrooms. Washingtonian sent scouts to each one—from Lincoln to Jefferson to Washington—and assessed them. We rated each for for smell, cleanliness, and ease of access on a scale of 1 to 5 and also assessed basics like toilet paper and soap. Here’s how they stack up.

Rosa is a senior editor at Bitch Magazine. She’s written for Washingtonian and Smithsonian magazine.

Former editorial fellow Kayla Randall is City Lights editor at Washington City Paper.

Editorial Fellow

Christine Jackson joined Washingtonian as an editorial fellow in summer 2017. She enjoys writing about art, culture, history, news of the weird and, occasionally, hockey. She is originally from St. Louis, Missouri and is an alumna of the Missouri School of Journalism at the University of Missouri, more affectionately known as Mizzou. For now you can find her hanging around Cathedral Heights.

Editorial Fellow

Former editorial fellow Erica Sloan is now an editorial assistant at Martha Stewart Weddings and Martha Stewart Living.

Courtney Vinopal is a former Washingtonian editorial fellow. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University, and previously worked as a press attaché for the Embassy of France in Washington, where she ran the institution’s social media accounts and newsletters. She lives in Woodley Park.