How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies in the Kitchen, According to an Exterminator

No matter how tidy you keep your home, fruit flies can find their way inside. Before you know it, you’re swatting pesky insects when you’re chopping veggies at the kitchen counter or washing dishes in the sink. 

To learn how to keep these bugs at bay — and keep them from coming back — we consulted a pest control expert. Here’s what you need to know.

What are fruit flies?

Also known as vinegar flies, fruit flies are tiny, rust-colored insects. They feed on and breed in produce. “They’re attracted to the fermenting sugars in overripe or decaying fruits and vegetables,” explains Misti Coyle, a licensed pest control applicator who works at Suburban Pest Control in Yonkers, New York. 

Where do fruit flies come from?

There are several ways that fruit flies can get into your kitchen. Sometimes, they lay eggs inside fresh produce, and the flies themselves don’t hatch and emerge until up to a week after you’ve unpacked your grocery haul. If you have a vegetable garden, you may unwittingly bring the flies indoors with your harvest. 

Even if your produce is completely fruit-fly-free when you bring it into the kitchen, storing fruits and vegetables at room temperature on the counter can draw the bugs in. “They get in just like house flies: they only need the smallest crack or crevice to get into,” says Coyle.

That’s why you may see fruit flies hovering around bananas ripening on the countertop or above the drain of your kitchen sink, where fruit and vegetable scraps can accumulate. Similarly, any residue from spills on kitchen counters, beneath appliances, or inside your trash barrel can draw fruit flies in — and keep them in — your kitchen. 

Another common breeding ground is compost containers and recycling bins. In the latter, leftover cans and bottles often have small amounts of liquids or debris inside, which attract and sustain fruit flies. “They’re literally living off those fermented items,” Coyle says.

How to get rid of fruit flies

Once fruit flies get into your kitchen, things can spiral quickly. The insects lay up to 50 eggs at a time, and larvae grow into full-fledged adults within a week. 

The first step is to eliminate their food sources. Get rid of any produce that’s currently sitting out on the counter. Store any newly purchased or grown fruits or vegetables in the fridge, where it’s too cold for fruit flies to survive, until at least an hour before you plan to eat them. 

Next, clean all kitchen surfaces with antibacterial spray, and make sure to get beneath and between appliances. Empty your trash and spray the sides and bottom of the can, too.

You’ll also need to wash your kitchen sink thoroughly. “Things build up around the drain, especially on the underside of the stopper,” Coyle says. 

After you clean the sink and stopper, disinfect the drain with homemade, nontoxic drain cleaner. Pour a half-cup of baking soda down the drain, followed by a half-cup of white vinegar. Plug the drain and let it sit, untouched, for an hour. Remove the stopper and pour two to four cups of boiling water down the drain. 

How to make a homemade fruit fly trap

Once you’ve cleaned the kitchen, make a trap to get rid of the remaining insects. “Fruit fly traps are amazing and easy to DIY at home,” Coyle says. “They really do work.” Here’s how to do it:

1. Start with an empty can or bottle. Anything with a small opening at the top will work.
2. Pour in a couple tablespoons of dish soap and something to attract the flies, like a splash of vinegar, beer, or wine. A few tablespoons will do the trick.
3. Cover the opening tightly with plastic wrap, then poke a few small holes in the plastic with a toothpick or safety pin. The fruit flies will be drawn into the vessel by the vinegar, beer, or wine you’ve poured into the bottom, but won’t be able to get out once they fly inside.
4. Once the fruit flies you’ve trapped are no longer moving, get rid of the bottle.

How to prevent fruit flies from coming back

One way to prevent fruit flies is to store produce in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours after you bring it home from the grocery store or farmers market. This initial chill kills off any bugs that might be lurking in your fresh fruit or veggies. Afterward, you can transfer any items you want to keep at room temperature, such as tomatoes or peaches.

Pest control experts note that this only eliminates existing fruit flies, however; new ones can find their ways inside to feed on your countertop bounty. The best ways to prevent future fruit flies infestations is to regularly and thoroughly clean your kitchen so there are fewer places for bugs to thrive; store produce in the refrigerator, especially in warmer months; and to regularly clean all kitchen surfaces. 

“Just keep on top of it, wiping down countertops regularly and getting beneath appliances, too,” Coyle says. “We don’t always think about these things — out of sight, out of mind. But cleaning is the best defense.”