Quick Take
- One of these nine bugs is drawn to something rotting inside your drain that has nothing to do with food, which is something most people never suspect. See what decays in drains →
- The household fix for cockroaches is already sitting in your pantry, though it only works if you combine two ingredients most people would never pair together. Try the pantry fix →
- Trying to clean your way out of a springtail problem could accidentally make it worse, and there is a specific mixing mistake you need to avoid. Avoid the mixing mistake →
- Spiders showing up in your bathroom usually aren't there for the reason you think, and understanding their real motive changes how you get rid of them. Understand spiders' real motive →
Have you ever turned on your bathroom light only to be greeted by an unwelcome guest? Well, you are not alone. Millions of people in the United States live with insects on a daily basis. Their favorite spots to hide are moist areas with high humidity and food sources, such as kitchens and bathrooms. Check out our handy bathroom bugs identification guide to decipher which insects are causing your problem and how to get rid of them.
1. Cockroaches
| What do they look like? | Cockroaches are some of the bigger bugs you will find in the bathroom. They are oval-shaped with long antennae and black, dark brown, or reddish-brown coloring. |
| What attracts them? | Leaking pipes, humidity, plumbing problems |
| Where will you find them? | Under bathroom sinks, inside cabinets, behind toilets, bathtub corners |
| How do you get rid of them? | Fix holes in the wall, seal crevices, fix leaky faucets, and seal drain pipes. Sprinkle a mixture of baking soda and sugar around the problem areas. |
Cockroaches can often be found under sinks, inside cabinets, or behind toilets.
©Furiarossa/Shutterstock.com
2. Springtails
| What do they look like? | Springtails have elongated or globular bodies with four-segmented antennae. They have six legs and come in various colors, such as brown, black, gray, white, purple, red, or orange. |
| What attracts them? | These small jumping bugs can be attracted to standing water, leaking pipes, and rotting wood in the bathroom. |
| Where will you find them? | Around leaking pipes or around sinks and tubs |
| How do you get rid of them? | Seal leaks and wipe down affected surfaces with vinegar or bleach (but don’t mix the two). |
Springtails are attracted to standing water and leaking pipes.
©Ihor Hvozdetskyi/Shutterstock.com
3. Ants
| What do they look like? | Ants are small black bugs with three distinct body sections: head, thorax, and abdomen. They can also be brown, red, or tan. The most common bathroom ants are dark brown to shiny black like odorous house ants or yellow to light brown like pharaoh ants. |
| What attracts them? | Ants are attracted to chemical odors from the drain, such as fermented hair and stagnant water. They also like moisture and damp, rotting wood. |
| Where will you find them? | Window ledges or anywhere moisture collects |
| How do you get rid of them? | Unclog drains and spray around problem areas with a vinegar and water solution. You can also use commercial ant traps. |
Ants may be attracted to fermented hair in dirty drains.
©Victor Suarez Naranjo/Shutterstock.com
4. Silverfish
| What do they look like? | Silverfish are teardrop-shaped insects with three sets of appendages that look like bristles. They also have long antennae and are typically silver-gray or metallic silver in color. |
| What attracts them? | Silverfish like warm, moist areas with mold, mildew, and fungi. |
| Where will you find them? | You can often see them in bathtubs and sinks. But also behind baseboards and small crevices. |
| How do you get rid of them? | Reduce humidity and sprinkle boric acid around drains. |
Silverfish prefer dark, damp, and humid areas like basements and bathrooms.
©2Dvisualize/Shutterstock.com
5. House Centipedes
| What do they look like? | These insects have elongated bodies with 15 to 177 pairs of legs. They range in color from light brown to yellow, dark brown, red, and gray. They may also have striped markings. |
| What attracts them? | They like warm and moist areas; they are also attracted to leaks and stagnant water. |
| Where will you find them? | You may find them crawling across the floor, hiding in crevices, or sitting near shower drains. |
| How do you get rid of them? | Repair water leaks, use a dehumidifier, and run exhaust fans. You can also pour vinegar down drains. |
Centipedes like warm, moist environments, where they hide in crevices and sit near shower drains.
©No machine-readable author provided. Decius assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons – Original / License
6. Crickets
| What do they look like? | Crickets are jumping insects with long hind legs. They have long antennae, cylindrical bodies, and are colored brown or black. They can reach up to two inches long. |
| What attracts them? | They gravitate toward humidity and moisture, such as in bathrooms with leaky faucets and pipes. |
| Where will you find them? | You may find them behind the toilet, under the sink cabinet, inside the bathtub or shower, in dark corners, or behind molding and baseboards. |
| How do you get rid of them? | Repair any leaks. You can also use traps, a molasses and water mixture in a jar or bowl, or diatomaceous earth. |
House crickets are often found behind toilets or under sink cabinets.
©iStock.com/Florian DENIS
7. Drain Flies
| What do they look like? | Drain flies are small, fuzzy flies with grey or brown bodies and wings. |
| What attracts them? | These bathroom bugs love stagnant water, especially slow-draining bathroom sinks and shower drains. |
| Where will you find them? | You can find these flies near bathroom drains, unused toilets, leaking pipes, or any standing water. |
| How do you get rid of them? | Remedy any clogged drains, remove standing water, fix leaking pipes, and mix a solution of apple cider vinegar and dish detergent and leave it in a bowl near problem areas. |
Drain flies live and breed near bathroom drains, unused toilets, and standing water.
©Birgit Bierschenk/Shutterstock.com
8. Gnats and Fruit Flies
| What do they look like? | These tiny bugs look like slender flies. They have long legs and gray or black coloring. Fruit flies tend to be more reddish in color. |
| What attracts them? | Gnats are attracted to the moisture and decaying organic matter inside drains and pipes. |
| Where will you find them? | You can find them near shower drains, bathroom sinks, and leaky pipes. |
| How do you get rid of them? | Unclog and clean out drains, get rid of standing water, and place a vinegar trap near drains. |
Gnats are attracted to decaying organic matter and stagnant moisture inside drain pipes.
©Pixelbender36/Shutterstock.com
9. Spiders
| What do they look like? | Spiders come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Cellar spiders are one of the most common spiders you’ll see in the bathroom. They have pale grey or tan bodies and very long, thin legs. |
| What attracts them? | During the dry season in your region, you may see an uptick in spiders near the bathroom. They are often searching for water. |
| Where will you find them? | Spiders can be anywhere in the bathroom, including small gaps, windows, vents, corners of the room, sinks, and tubs. |
| How do you get rid of them? | Seal cracks and crevices, pick up any items on the floor, and spray a vinegar and water mixture around corners. |
Spiders can hide in corners, small gaps, or any other area of a bathroom.
©CsaboPhoto/Shutterstock.com
10. Pillbugs and Sowbugs
| What do they look like? | They have an oblong, oval grey to brown body with a more convex back and a flat underside. Their armor is made seven overlapping plates. Pillbugs roll into a tight ball when disturbed, but sowbugs cannot. |
| What attracts them? | Pill bugs require high moisture to survive, and bathrooms often provide the humidity and water they need. |
| Where will you find them? | They can be found on a leaking pipe or inside the sink, tub, or shower. |
| How do you get rid of them? | Seal cracks and crevices, repair leaking pipes, improve ventilation, and wipe up any standing water. They are harmless and usually die in a few days in dry indoor air. |
Pillbugs require high moisture to survive, so if they get inside, they will gravitate to bathrooms.
©iStock.com/Werhane
