Getting rid of spiders indoors starts with cutting off what actually draws them in: other bugs and easy hiding spots, not the spiders themselves. Vacuuming up webs and egg sacs, decluttering storage areas, and sealing the small gaps spiders and their prey use to get inside can handle most spider problems within a week or two. Since spiders follow food, reducing the insects they hunt, like moths and flies, often does more than treating the spiders directly. Most spiders found inside a typical home are harmless, and finding a few doesn’t usually mean a much bigger group is hiding somewhere unseen.
A web spun across a corner overnight, or a spider bolting for the baseboard the second a light flips on, is usually enough to make someone want every spider in the house gone by the weekend.
Most of the time, though, getting rid of spiders has less to do with the spiders themselves and more to do with whatever’s drawing them in. Figuring out how to get rid of spiders for good starts with that shift in focus.
Why Spiders Get Inside in the First Place
Spiders come inside mainly chasing food, though a dry, undisturbed corner matters once they’re in. A house spider showing up in a corner usually means small flying or crawling insects are already there, since that’s what keeps a spider fed once it’s inside.
Common house spiders like the American house spider and cellar spiders build a web and wait, so finding one in the same spot for weeks usually means that spot has a steady supply of something smaller passing through.
Moisture and clutter matter too. Basements, garages, and crawl spaces stay cooler and less disturbed than the rest of a house. That combination makes them a favorite for spiders that prefer to build a web undisturbed for a long stretch.
Wolf spiders behave differently since they hunt on foot rather than building webs, but they’re drawn indoors by the same combination of available prey and a quiet corner to rest in during the day.
A spider showing up in a bedroom or living room usually traveled from somewhere else in the house rather than coming straight in from outside, since those rooms get too much daily activity for most spiders to settle in comfortably. Tracing a spider back to a basement, garage, or attic usually does more to solve the problem than dealing with the one that wandered into view.
How to Get Rid of Spiders Already Inside
Vacuuming beats swatting for spiders already inside, since a vacuum removes the web, the egg sac, and the spider all at once instead of only the adult. Egg sacs left behind in a corner can hatch dozens of spiderlings weeks after the adult is gone, so getting the sac along with the spider matters more than the spider itself.
A single American house spider can produce several egg sacs over a season, each holding anywhere from a few dozen to more than a hundred eggs. That’s part of why one overlooked sac in a rarely used closet can turn into a much bigger cleanup a few months later.
A few things that make a real difference:
- Vacuum corners, closet ceilings, and window frames every couple of weeks during the months spiders are most active.
- Boxes and clutter piled in a basement or garage are prime web-building spots, so clearing them out removes both the shelter and the spider.
- If a specific corner keeps getting a new web within days, check nearby for the smaller insects the spider is feeding on.
- Reducing outdoor lighting near entry doors cuts down on the flying insects that draw spiders toward a house after dark.
A vacuum and a flashlight for checking the corners most people skip, like behind furniture pushed against a wall or the inside corners of a rarely opened closet, cover most of what this takes.
How to Keep Spiders From Coming Back
Sealing entry points stops the cycle better than any amount of vacuuming, since a home that keeps producing new spiders usually has an ongoing way for both the spiders and their prey to get inside. Caulking gaps around windows, door thresholds, and where pipes or wires pass through an exterior wall closes off the same routes spiders and smaller insects both use.
Trimming plants and mulch back from the foundation removes another common bridge, since branches or bushes touching the siding give spiders a direct path from outside vegetation to a wall. Stacked firewood, leaf piles, and mulch beds pushed right up against the house work the same way, giving spiders a covered walkway they wouldn’t otherwise have.
A basement with a heavier spider problem than the rest of the house usually needs a closer look at moisture and clutter specifically, since damp corners and stacked boxes are exactly what a web-building spider looks for. Our guide to getting rid of spiders in a basement covers that space in more detail.
Are House Spiders Dangerous?
The vast majority of spiders found inside a typical home are harmless. American house spiders, cellar spiders, and wolf spiders don’t pose a real risk to people or pets, and most bites, when they happen at all, are no worse than a mosquito bite.
A small number of spider species found in parts of the country, like black widows and brown recluses, can deliver a bite worth taking seriously, though even those species avoid contact and only bite when trapped against the skin.
Because most house spiders look similar to the untrained eye, identifying the specific spider is worth doing before assuming the worst, especially if a bite causes swelling or pain that doesn’t improve within a day.
Ready to Get Rid of Spiders?
Spiders that keep showing up week after week are usually the visible tip of something else going on, either a steady food source or a handful of entry points that never got sealed.
proof. Pest Control looks at both sides of that equation instead of just treating whatever’s visible tonight. We use botanically derived products that are effective, responsible, and safe for families, pets, and the surrounding environment, and every visit is backed by our pest-free guarantee™.
A basement or garage that produces a new web every few days, no matter how often it’s cleared, usually points to a prey problem worth addressing directly.
Call (888) 291-5333 and our team will walk through what’s actually feeding the spiders in your home, not just the webs you can see.
We proudly serve families throughout our service areas, including: