Another option is to go with natural remedies. Keeping pets in your home can keep a lot of bugs and smaller insects away, since they’ll fear whatever pet you’ve enlisted to help you guard your home. Alternatively, plants such as the venus fly trap are extremely efficient bug killers, and could turn out to be your best friend with only minimal upkeep efforts. Opening a window to get some fresh air always seems like a great idea until your house is invaded by every winged critter in a hundred-mile radius. It’s times like these that the best fly killers come in extremely handy: after all, our homes can be a welcoming source of food, water and safety for all sorts of wee flying creatures, especially in the warmer months. Always identify your species of fly before purchasing a trap—not all flies are attracted to the same traps,” Thomas says. “A successful fly program starts with cleaning up the source of infestation, sealing any entryways, and trapping and/or treating the remaining adults and larvae.” READ NEXT: The best house plants to buy The best fly killers to buy in 2023 1. Zero In Handy Bug Bat: Best traditional fly swatter Putting traps outside not only helps with outdoor infestations, but can also help with your indoor fly problem as flies are often attracted into the area from items left outdoors. Dr. Thomas says house flies are attracted to “nearby garbage or garbage receptacles, decaying plants, lawn clippings, straw, mulch, and other organic items in the open.”

The Victor Fly Magnet M380 is the best fly trap that is reusable and suitable for outdoor use. This is a large trap at 32 ounces, and it’s capable of catching up to 20,000 flies. The kit includes three reusable traps, bait refills, and chains for easy hanging outdoors. The trap's lid has four holes for catching multiple flies at once. The container is made of a durable, hard plastic with a clear reservoir to monitor the fly level inside. The non-toxic Safer Indoor Fly Trap is the best fly trap for indoors, especially for homes with curious kids and pets. The trap uses light as a lure so it doesn’t have any chemical insecticides or baits that could be harmful. The trap looks more like a night light or an air freshener than a fly trap and is one of the best-designed on our list, seamlessly blending in with home decor. Before buying a fly trap, Thomas advises a multi-step process to make sure you have the best chance of completely eradicating the flies. Due to the bait’s strong smell, you’ll need to hang the trap at least 20 feet away from any living spaces. If you have a porch or other outdoor living space, you’ll want to hang the trap away from these areas as the trap will attract any insects within smelling distance. Dr. Thomas cautions that, “Liquid fly containers have an attractant that can draw in more flies. They have been known to attract hundreds of flies that may otherwise not have been an issue.” However, Dr. Thomas says these traps work very well and are great to use if you need to kill a lot of flies—you’ll just want to be sure they’re placed outdoors and far away from the areas you’re trying to keep fly-free. Though each ribbon can last up to three months, once the ribbon is full you should throw it away. The disposal method isn’t as clean as other options, but it’s fairly simple. Just wrap the trap in a newspaper, paper, or plastic bag, and throw it in the trash.After 30 days or once the trap is full, wrap a bag around the trap and put it in the trash. These traps are specially designed for flies—if mosquitoes are the problem insect in your yard, you might want to hire a mosquito control company or use a mosquito repellent. If you’re interested in natural outdoor pest control methods, consider planting insect-repelling outdoor plants in your garden or around your home. The type of trap you need will vary depending on your situation. The kind of species you want to target is one of the most important questions to ask, as not all traps will work for every kind of insect. Though most traps on this list are suitable for all flying insects, for infestations of fruit flies you’ll likely want a trap specifically designed for this species, like the Terro Fruit Fly Trap. When the trap is full, discard the dead insects into the trash, re-bait, and add water to reuse the trap. The wide mouth of the trap allows easy filling and washing, though keep in mind the trap should not be cleaned in a dishwasher. To use, empty bait into a trap, add warm water to the fill line, and swirl to mix. Once baited and ready to use, hang the trap outside near a fly source like garbage or compost pile. As the trap fills up with flies, add enough water to keep flies submerged. The Rescue! Disposable Fly Trap is a disposable hanging fly trap that uses bait to attract flying insects and is our recommendation for the best fly trap for outside your home.

Whether it’s a colony of fruit flies in the kitchen or a house fly that won’t stop buzzing around the trash can, a fly invasion is a huge annoyance. And once they’re inside, it often seems impossible to get rid of them.Fly traps will work best if placed near insect hot spots, such as near doors, garbage cans, kitchen sinks, windows, and compost. Some traps, like outdoor traps that use smelly bait, will need to be placed far from living spaces due to their odor. Keep in mind that some traps may only have an effective radius big enough to cover one room and will not protect the entire home. Dr. Thomas says this type of trap is her recommendation for a typical pest control situation. She says, “for indoor control of flies, I recommend a light trap. These plug-in light traps will capture a variety of species and can be plugged in near the source of infestation.” To use, insert a glue card and plug the trap into any standard indoor outlet. For maximum effectiveness, it’s best to place the trap near common insect hotspots, including near houseplants, in kitchens, bathrooms, and garages. The trap starts working immediately to attract, trap, and kill flies, fruit flies, moths, and gnats, protecting rooms up to 600 square feet. Be sure to leave the trap plugged in at night because that’s when it can attract the most insects. Once insects are caught and killed, the discreet scone-like design hides them behind the decorative faceplate so you don’t have to see them.

We’re right there with you. A small fruit fly managed to infiltrate your kitchen and evade your mightiest swings. In a matter of days, your eastern countertops were totally overrun due to accelerated breeding and the full bin that you forgot to empty. You managed to whittle their numbers down, but they’re too agile, and too small for swatters to make a real impact. The non-staining bait within the trap attracts adult fruit flies, and the apple-shaped trap design is designed to blend into the kitchen, a favorite hangout spot for fruit flies. Each trap has a built-in window, allowing you to easily keep an eye on how many flies have been caught and bait levels. Each of the two traps included lasts up to 45 days, giving you up to 90 days of protection.While there is a protective grille and low voltage, Dr. Thomas says she advises families with small children to, “avoid electrical traps that zap insects. These can hurt little fingers if something is injected into the wiring unit.” Because of this, you’ll also want to keep zappers away from pets. Light traps such as the DynaTrap Flylight Indoor Insect Trap are a more modern fly trap that use UV light to attract insects. These traps are typically used indoors and use a glue card or container to trap the flies. Light traps have the advantage of being pet and kid safe, odorless, and mess-free, though they require electricity to work. Container traps like the Rescue! Disposable Fly Trap always use some form of attractant, such as light or bait, to lure insects into the container. These containers are designed to keep insects securely sealed inside once they enter. Some container traps go a step further and kill trapped insects with water or insecticide once inside the container. Compared to others on our list, this fly trap has a slightly more complex setup, and you’ll need to supply your own string or wire for hanging. Follow the directions on the bag to expose the trap entrance, then add water to activate the bait and hang the trap outside. Lured by the scent, flies enter the trap through the cap and drown in the water.

Fly traps can attract more flies, depending on the type of trap you are using. Traps that use bait will attract more flies due to the strong-smelling bait drawing all the insects in the area to the trap. Traps that use light as a lure will attract all the flies within the trap’s radius but will attract fewer than a baited trap. If you are using traps that don’t use any kind of lure, the trap will not attract more flies. This reusable option is best suited for situations when you have a large number of flies in outdoor areas and don’t want to keep replacing traps. Since the strong-smelling bait will attract flies, ensure that you place these traps at least 20 feet away from living areas or other spaces that you’re trying to keep free of flies. The trap uses a UV LED light to attract flying insects, which are then caught by the trap’s glue card. The thoughtful design hides the dead insects as they pile up on the glue card. This trap advertises 400 square feet of protection, so multiple traps may be required for full home coverage.

However, be aware that fruit flies are often confused with drain flies, as they are both small flies that can be attracted to kitchen areas. Traps designed for fruit flies may not be effective against drain flies.