Finding one earwig every now and then isn’t unusual.
Finding them night after night is a different story.
Whether they’re crawling across your basement floor, hiding beneath flower pots, or appearing in your bathroom after dark, earwigs can quickly become an annoying part of daily life if the conditions around your home allow them to thrive.
The good news is that earwigs are one of the easier nuisance pests to control.
The secret isn’t killing every earwig you see.
It’s removing the conditions that attracted them in the first place while reducing the population around your home.
That’s the exact approach I use, and it’s the one I’ll walk you through in this guide.
Step 1: Figure Out Why They’re There
Before buying sprays, powders, or traps, spend a few minutes figuring out why the earwigs showed up.
Almost every infestation can be traced back to one or more of these conditions:
- Excess moisture.
- Heavy mulch against the house.
- Leaf litter.
- Firewood stacked near the foundation.
- Poor drainage.
- Cracks that allow them to wander indoors.
If you haven’t already, I recommend reading Why Do I Have Earwigs? Common Causes Explained first. Once you remove what’s attracting them, every other control method becomes much more effective.
Step 2: Eliminate Moisture Around the House
If I could only recommend one thing, it would be this.
Earwigs absolutely love damp environments.
Walk around your home and look for areas where moisture lingers longer than it should.
Pay close attention to:
- Leaky outdoor faucets.
- Air conditioner condensation.
- Clogged gutters.
- Downspouts draining beside the foundation.
- Poorly draining flower beds.
- Constantly wet mulch.
Even small improvements in drainage can make your property much less attractive to earwigs. University extension recommendations consistently emphasize reducing moisture as one of the most effective long-term control methods.
Step 3: Remove Their Favorite Hiding Places
During the day, earwigs spend very little time out in the open.
Instead, they hide beneath almost anything that stays cool and damp.
Walk around your yard and look for places such as:
- Landscape mulch.
- Leaf piles.
- Boards.
- Landscape timbers.
- Firewood.
- Decorative rocks.
- Thick ground cover.
You don’t have to eliminate every hiding place.
But reducing the number of damp shelters close to your home’s foundation can dramatically reduce the number of earwigs that eventually wander inside.
Step 4: Pull Mulch Away From the Foundation
This one change alone can make a noticeable difference.
Mulch is excellent for your plants.
It’s also excellent habitat for earwigs.
Rather than removing all of your mulch, create a small gap between the mulch and your foundation.
That simple buffer reduces moisture right against the house while also removing one of the first places earwigs hide before entering through nearby cracks.
Step 5: Seal Entry Points
Most earwigs don’t actually want to live inside.
They’re accidental invaders.
Once they’re near your foundation, even tiny openings become an invitation.
Inspect areas around:
- Exterior doors.
- Garage doors.
- Utility pipes.
- Window frames.
- Foundation cracks.
- Dryer vents.
Replacing worn weatherstripping and sealing obvious gaps won’t eliminate outdoor earwigs, but it greatly reduces the number that end up inside.
Step 6: Monitor Indoor Activity
Before reaching for stronger treatments, I like to find out exactly where the earwigs are traveling.
That’s where the Catchmaster Spider & Insect Traps Indoor Sticky Glue Boards (12 Pack) become incredibly useful.
I place them:
- Behind toilets.
- Under bathroom sinks.
- Along basement walls.
- Behind storage shelves.
- Near garage entry doors.
- Along baseboards.
They’re pesticide free and help identify the rooms where activity is highest while catching wandering earwigs before they spread farther through the house. Before choosing any additional treatment, see the full site disclaimer for important product-use guidance.
Step 7: Vacuum the Ones That Make It Inside
If earwigs have already found their way indoors, one of the easiest ways to remove them is simply vacuuming them up.
I don’t bother chasing them around with paper towels or trying to squash them.
A vacuum quickly removes:
- Adult earwigs.
- Young earwigs.
- Shed skins.
- Dust and organic debris that can attract other pests.
If you’re using a bagless vacuum, empty the collection bin outdoors after you’re finished.
Step 8: Reduce Outdoor Lighting Near Entry Doors
This isn’t because earwigs love lights.
It’s because many of the insects they feed on do.
Bright porch lights and garage lights often attract moths, flies, and other insects after dark. Earwigs follow the food source and eventually end up around doors and windows.
If practical, consider:
- Turning off unnecessary lights overnight.
- Switching to warm-colored LED bulbs.
- Using motion-activated lights instead of lights that stay on all night.
It’s a simple change, but it can reduce nighttime insect activity around your home’s entrances.
Step 9: Don’t Ignore Your Gutters and Downspouts
This is one area many homeowners overlook.
Overflowing gutters or downspouts that dump water next to the foundation can keep the soil damp for days after it rains.
That creates exactly the type of environment earwigs love.
Take a few minutes to check for:
- Clogged gutters.
- Downspouts draining beside the house.
- Areas where water pools.
- Soil that stays wet long after rain.
Redirecting water away from the foundation doesn’t just help with earwigs. It also discourages many other moisture-loving household pests.
Step 10: Be Patient
One mistake I see homeowners make is expecting instant results.
Even after you’ve corrected moisture problems and removed hiding places, earwigs already living around your property won’t disappear overnight.
Most successful control programs work because they gradually make your property less attractive.
As conditions improve, fewer earwigs survive around the foundation, fewer wander indoors, and the population naturally declines.
Consistency almost always produces better results than constantly switching between different products.
Common Mistakes That Keep Earwigs Coming Back
Sometimes the treatment isn’t the problem.
The environment is.
These are the mistakes I see most often:
- Leaving thick mulch directly against the foundation.
- Overwatering flower beds.
- Stacking firewood against the house.
- Ignoring clogged gutters.
- Leaving leaf piles through the season.
- Treating only the insects found indoors.
- Never sealing entry points.
Correcting these issues often has a much bigger impact than applying additional insecticides.
How Long Does It Take to Get Rid of Earwigs?
Small problems often improve within a couple of weeks after moisture issues and hiding places are addressed.
Larger outdoor populations may take longer, especially if weather conditions remain favorable for earwigs.
If you continue seeing large numbers after making environmental improvements, it’s worth walking your property again to look for hidden moisture sources or overlooked shelter areas.
My Recommended Plan
If I found earwigs around my house today, this is exactly what I’d do.
- Identify what’s attracting them.
- Reduce moisture around the foundation.
- Pull mulch away from the house.
- Remove leaf litter, boards, and other hiding places.
- Seal gaps around doors, windows, and utility lines.
- Place Catchmaster Spider & Insect Traps Indoor Sticky Glue Boards (12 Pack) in the rooms where earwigs are showing up.
- Continue monitoring for several weeks while making outdoor improvements.
That combination addresses both the insects you can see and the conditions allowing new ones to appear.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the fastest way to get rid of earwigs?
The fastest long-term solution is reducing moisture, removing outdoor hiding places, sealing entry points, and monitoring indoor activity with glue traps. Treating only the earwigs you see usually provides temporary relief rather than lasting control. A dry pest barrier such as dry pest barrier can also help address earwigs that travel through indoor cracks and hidden pathways.
Why do earwigs keep coming back?
Earwigs return when the conditions that attracted them remain. Damp mulch, leaf litter, poor drainage, and gaps around the home provide everything they need to survive.
Will earwigs eventually go away on their own?
Sometimes seasonal populations decline naturally, but if your property consistently provides moisture and shelter, new earwigs are likely to replace the ones that disappear.
Do glue traps help with earwigs?
Yes. Glue traps are excellent for monitoring where earwigs are entering and reducing the number wandering through the house. They’re especially useful when placed along walls, behind appliances, and beneath sinks.
Should I spray earwigs inside my house?
Usually, no. Indoor earwigs are often accidental invaders. Addressing the outdoor conditions attracting them and sealing entry points is generally more effective than repeatedly spraying inside the home. When outdoor prevention needs a treatment step, this perimeter spray review explains how to apply a barrier around the home.
About the Author
Daniel Brooks is an urban entomology educator with more than 15 years of experience helping homeowners identify common household pests and understand why they’re invading their homes. He specializes in practical, science-backed prevention strategies and long-term pest control solutions that solve problems at their source. You can learn more about the people behind this site and the practical approach behind these guides.
