How Do You Get Rid of Fruit Flies? (7 Methods That Work)

This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

How do you get rid of fruit flies? Remove the breeding source, clean the drains, set a trap, and keep surfaces dry. Fruit flies seem to appear from nowhere and multiply overnight — but once you understand what attracts them, they're straightforward to eliminate.

Why You Have Fruit Flies

Fruit flies are attracted to fermenting organic matter — overripe fruit, vegetable scraps, spilled juice, wine residue in glasses, and the drain where food particles collect. They breed extremely fast: a female can lay 500 eggs in her lifetime, and eggs hatch in under 24 hours under warm conditions.

Killing the adults you see is pointless if you don't eliminate the breeding source.

How they get in

Most infestations start from produce brought home from the shop with eggs already on the skin. Adults also come in through gaps around windows and doors. Once inside, ripening fruit releases ethanol and other compounds that fruit flies detect from a distance, so even a single bruised peach or very ripe banana is enough to start a colony.

The hidden sources

If you have no fruit out and still have flies, the source is somewhere less obvious:

• The kitchen drain — the most common hidden source (see Step 2)
• Recycling — beer dregs, juice and milk residue in unrinsed bottles and cartons
• Spills you can't see — wine or juice that dripped behind a cabinet or under the fridge or dishwasher
• Wet mops, sponges and cloths that stay damp with food residue
• Dirty dishes left overnight — even the residue in a pasta bowl is enough

Step 1: Remove the Breeding Source

This is the most important step. Fruit flies breed in:

• Overripe or rotting fruit left on the counter
• The bin or compost bucket
• Drains in the kitchen sink
• Empty wine, beer, or juice bottles
• Wet mops or sponges
• Standing water under the fridge or dishwasher

Throw away any overripe fruit immediately. Clean your bin. Put fresh fruit in the fridge temporarily. Empty and rinse recyclables before putting them in the bin.

Step 2: Clean the Drains

Pour a kettle of boiling water slowly down the kitchen drain, followed by a cup of baking soda and then a cup of white vinegar. The fizzing reaction helps dislodge organic buildup where fruit flies breed. Follow with another kettle of hot water.

Do this once a day until the infestation is gone. For persistent drain infestations, bio-enzyme drain treatments digest the organic buildup that standard cleaning misses.

Is your drain the source?

The inside of a kitchen drain pipe is close to ideal fruit fly habitat: always moist, warm from the hot water line, and coated with a slimy layer of food particles and grease. Flies lay eggs in that layer, so adults keep emerging even when every surface is spotless. Three ways to check:

• The tape test — loosely cover the drain opening with clear tape overnight, leaving a small gap for air. If flies are breeding inside, some will be stuck to the underside by morning.
• Look inside — shine a torch into the drain. A breeding drain has a dark, slimy layer on the pipe walls, sometimes with a faint vinegary smell.
• Rule out everything else — if the fruit, bin and recycling are dealt with and the flies persist, the drain is almost certainly involved.

Clearing a drain that's breeding flies

For heavier buildup, scrub the drain cover and the first few inches of pipe with a long-handled drain brush, then flush with boiling water. Enzyme treatments work best poured in at night, so they have hours to work before the next rinse; use one weekly for 2–3 weeks, then monthly in peak season. A drain strainer stops most food particles from reaching the pipe in the first place.

Drain flies vs. fruit flies

With a heavy drain infestation, the insects may be drain flies (moth flies) instead:

The treatment is the same — remove the organic layer in the pipe. Insects coming from a bathroom drain are more likely drain flies, since bathroom drains have little of the food residue fruit flies prefer.

Step 3: Set a Trap

Apple cider vinegar traps are extremely effective. You can also buy ready-made fruit fly traps if you want a no-mess option.

Simple DIY trap:

1. Pour about an inch of apple cider vinegar into a small glass or jar
2. Add a drop of dish soap (breaks the surface tension so they sink)
3. Cover with plastic wrap and poke small holes in it — or leave it uncovered (the soap usually prevents escape)
4. Place near the fruit fly hotspot

They're attracted to the vinegar smell, land on it, and sink. Check and replace every couple of days.

Red wine trap: A nearly empty bottle of red wine works even better than vinegar — the narrow neck traps them inside.

Best Fruit Fly Traps to Buy

If you'd rather skip the DIY and want something ready to go, these are the most effective types:

Ready-Made Liquid Traps — Best for Most Kitchens

Pre-filled fruit fly liquid traps come with non-toxic attractant already inside. You just open them and place them near the problem area. They last 30–45 days before needing replacement and are significantly less messy than DIY vinegar setups. Good for kitchen counters, near the bin, or beside the fruit bowl.

Best for: Anyone who wants a set-it-and-forget-it solution without the risk of knocking over a vinegar glass.

UV Light Traps — Best for Persistent Infestations

UV insect light traps use UV light to attract flies onto a replaceable sticky pad. They work around the clock passively and are more effective than liquid traps for larger infestations or when the breeding source is hard to fully eliminate (e.g., hard-to-reach drains).

Best for: Larger infestations, or kitchens where fruit flies keep returning despite source removal.

Drain Gel Treatments — Best When the Drain Is the Source

Bio-enzyme drain treatments break down the organic buildup inside drain pipes that fruit flies use as a breeding ground. Unlike boiling water alone, enzymes continue working for hours after application. Use weekly during peak season (April–August).

Best for: When fruit flies cluster around the kitchen sink drain specifically.

Step 4: Keep Surfaces Clean

Wipe down counters daily. Don't leave dirty dishes sitting overnight. Rinse out glasses that had juice, wine, or beer. Keep the bin tightly closed.

How Long Does It Take?

With the source removed and traps set, you should see a major reduction in 2–3 days and near-elimination within a week. If they persist after a week of cleaning, the breeding source is likely somewhere you haven't found — check under appliances, in cracks, or in less obvious spots like potted plant soil (fungus gnats look similar but breed in wet soil).

Fruit Flies vs. Fungus Gnats

They look similar but have different sources:

• Fruit flies — reddish-brown, attracted to fruit and fermenting food
• Fungus gnats — dark, smaller, hover around houseplant soil

If you have gnats near plants and not food, let the soil dry out between waterings — gnats need moist soil to breed.

Prevention Going Forward

• Store ripe fruit in the fridge
• Empty the bin frequently, especially in summer
• Rinse bottles and cans before recycling
• Don't let dishes sit overnight
• Treat the kitchen drain weekly from April to September, and monthly the rest of the year
• Check under the fridge and dishwasher for old spills

Related Articles

• Best drain cleaners — for the drain buildup fruit flies breed in
• Why is my kitchen sink draining slowly?
• Best garbage disposal cleaners
• How to clean a dishwasher