Over 2 billion people lack access to clean water; 3.6 billion have no toilets or basic sanitation at home. The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare the devastating results of such inequities in cities across the globe. As cities continue to grow, huge demands are placed on already woefully insufficient sanitation, water, and waste systems. What is to be done? Colin McFarlane outlines the worldwide sanitation crisis and offers a vision for a renewed, equitable investment that could democratise and liberate the modern city. Adopting Henri Lefebvre's concept of 'the right to the city', McFarlane uses the notion of 'citylife' to reframe the debate on sanitation from a narrowly defined policy discussion to an essential question of public life and health.