How to Get Rid of Flies | 2025 Guide
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Fly infestations can spread disease, so if you find gnats, fruit flies, or house flies swarming around your house, it’s important to act quickly. Our guide below outlines how to get rid of flies in your house and backyard with home remedies, natural remedies, and more aggressive repellents, such as pesticides and zappers. By learning how to kill flies, you can protect your family from certain illnesses.

Pest Control Cost
A general pest control plan costs from $400 to $950 per year, on average.

Pest Inspection
Some companies, including Terminix, offer free inspections.

Extermination
Professional pest control services, on average, cost between $150 and $450.
Types of Flies
There are many different flies that can infest homes. Fruit flies swarm around produce, for example, and cluster flies clatter against your windows. Learn more about the most common fly types below.
- Blowflies: Blowflies are a bit bigger than houseflies, and their bodies are metallic blue or green. You’ll find them near trash cans or rotten food, and they breed near feces, rubbish, and dead animals. A combination of herbal plants, insecticidal sprays, and good sanitation will get rid of blowflies.
- Cluster flies: Cluster flies are double the size of houseflies. They’re typically gray or black, and have red eyes. You’ll find them near windows because they like light and warmth. To get rid of cluster flies, you’ll need to use insecticides, and seal gaps around your doors or windows.
- Drain flies: Drain flies are tiny, fuzzy flies that lay eggs in drains and garbage disposals. Rotten food that collects in garbage disposals often attracts them. You can cut down on a drain fly infestation by setting traps. Eradicating them completely requires you to deep clean your drains more aggressively, and maintain strict sanitation standards for weeks.
- Fruit flies: Fruit flies are attracted to ripe and rotten fruit, and you’re likely to find them in your pantry or around your fruit bowl. Get rid of them by eliminating their food sources and trapping them.
- House flies: House flies have gray or black bodies, red eyes, and are about 1/4-inch long. They’re attracted to natural and artificial light, and they breed around food sources such as garbage cans or compost. You must keep your house clean and use traps to get rid of house flies.
How to Identify Fly Infestations
If you want to keep your home completely fly free all year long, you must find out whether you have an infestation. Thoroughly inspect the area where you’ve found flies, such as your kitchen sink or countertops, and see if you can identify any of the signs below, which point to infestations:
- Buzzing: If you hear constant buzzing, and a single fly isn’t caught in your blinds, there are probably several flies nearby.
- Dead flies: Most flies have a relatively short life cycle. If you find lots of fly bodies, there’s probably an infestation.
- Fly feces: Look for dark-colored specks on the surface below your window, or around your sink and fruit. The more dirt or specks you see, the more flies there are nearby.
- High fly populations: If you see multiple flies at once, you’re probably dealing with an infestation.
If you notice any of these events, start preparing to trap, kill, and repel flies inside or outside your home.
Indoor Fly Control Methods
Homeowners should consider using multiple methods of fly control at once. This can help to eliminate flies before they lay additional eggs. Try all three methods of fly control below in tandem.
Fly Traps and Bait
Baited fly traps attract adult flies, then trap and kill them before they can lay more eggs. You can purchase premade traps from home improvement stores. Consider the types below.
- Fly paper or tape that catches flies on sticky surfaces
- UV light traps that attract cluster flies and house flies before collecting them in a receptacle
- Scented bait traps that lure specific types of flies into a receptacle they can’t escape
Homeowners can also create do-it-yourself (DIY) fly traps, such as an apple cider vinegar trap. Make this by pouring a small solution of apple cider vinegar and Dawn dish soap into a shallow dish or mason jar. You can leave it open, cover it with plastic wrap that you perforate, or place a cone-shaped roll of paper into the jar. The trap’s fermented, rotten scent will attract fruit flies and drain flies, and then trap the flies.
Place multiple traps around food sources or wherever you commonly see flies.
Natural Fly Repellents
Consider the natural fly repellents below if you have a mild infestation:
- Store-bought deterrent sprays that you can spray on countertops, in your sink, on your trash can, and along window sills
- Herbs such as mint, lavender, lemongrass, and basil
- Essential oils and DIY sprays that feature diluted essential oils, such as citronella, mint, peppermint, eucalyptus, and tea tree oil
Applying these repellents will deter flies from swarming around windows, countertops, and sink drains.
Sanitation Measures
Keep your countertops, trash cans, and sink drains completely clean. Wipe down the surfaces regularly, and take out the trash every day to reduce potential attractants. You can store produce in your refrigerator until the infestation is over.Mop up spills immediately, and thoroughly scrub the rubber gasket around your kitchen garbage disposal to get rid of drain flies. Cleaning eliminates food sources, and disturbs potential nest sites, which kills flies and disrupts flies’ life cycles.
Outdoor Fly Control Methods
Outdoor infestations are less disruptive than indoor infestations, but they can still be a problem. Eradicating flies in your backyard reduces the risk of flies making it inside your home. Use layers of deterrents and repellents to keep outdoor fly populations under control.
Plants That Repel Flies
Fill your lawn and garden with plants that naturally repel flies, such as marigolds, citronella, basil, and lavender. Place them near your doors, windows, grill, and backyard tables. These plants naturally deter flies without harsh chemicals, which means children and pets are safe around them.
Outdoor Fly Traps
Place store-bought or DIY fly traps around your patio and outdoor living space. Popular options include strong fly tape strips, especially near your outdoor kitchen or grill, receptacle traps that use bait to draw in flies, and bait stations with poisons that disrupt mating.
Place fly traps near your home’s entryways, and any other place you notice swarms. Many outdoor traps can include toxic chemicals and insecticides, so don’t place them in spots that children or pets can reach.
Yard Sanitation
Clean up your landscape and outdoor living space to eliminate fly breeding grounds. Best practices include the following:
- Cleaning the surfaces of your outdoor kitchen and patio table
- Making sure your drainage systems are in good working order, and don’t host pools of water
- Removing pet waste from your backyard regularly
- Sealing compost piles in containers, and keeping wood piles away from your patio and home
Good yard sanitation practices will eliminate flies’ food sources and shelter.
How to Prevent Future Fly Infestations
Once you’ve eradicated a fly infestation, make sure you keep up with routine prevention and repellent methods. This will prevent future fly infestations.
Add these preventative measures to your chore list:
- Add window screens, weather stripping, or door sweeps around your home so flies cannot get inside easily.
- Clean inside and outside of your home frequently to eliminate trash and food sources.
- Keep your interior trash cans and outdoor trash bins covered. You can also move trash bins far from your home.
- Seal or reseal your home’s doors and windows to keep flies outside.
You should routinely inspect your home for signs of flies or fly infestations. If you see more than the occasional fly, identify which type of fly you’re dealing with, and start using repellents and traps accordingly.
Our Recommendation
Flies can be a dangerous hazard if you don’t take measures to remove them from your household. Keep flies out of your home by sealing your doors and windows, setting traps and repellents, and eliminating potential food sources. If you’re dealing with severe fly problems, call a professional exterminator.

Pest Control Cost
A general pest control plan costs from $400 to $950 per year, on average.

Pest Inspection
Some companies, including Terminix, offer free inspections.

Extermination
Professional pest control services, on average, cost between $150 and $450.
How to Get Rid of Flies FAQ
Can flies bite humans?
Stable flies, deer flies, and horse flies can bite humans.
How long do flies live?
Flies live approximately 28 days, and houseflies typically live between 15 and 30 days.
What are the tiny flies in my kitchen?
The tiny flies in your kitchen are probably fruit flies or drain flies. Fruit flies hover around food spills and fruit bowls, and drain flies stay near your kitchen sink.
What scents repel flies?
Scents that repel flies include peppermint, mint, lavender, basil, and lemongrass. You can use essential oils, diluted essential oil sprays, and herb plants to repel flies in and outside your home.