Cleaning & Organizing Pest Control

How to Get Rid of Sugar Ants: 5 Easy Methods

Natural Solutions, Baits, and When to Call an Exterminator

How to Get Rid of Sugar Ants

The Spruce / Theresa Chiechi

Sugar ants are a common, home-invading, headache-causing pest. Known to pest professionals as the odorous house ant (Tapinoma sessile), they do not sting and rarely bite but can invade homes in large numbers in search of food, especially after rainy weather. They mainly search for sweet foods and drinks like fruit, candy, desserts, and sodas.

Small in size, sugar ants are budding ants that don't pose any particular risks—but their steady lines, large numbers, and desire for sweets can be annoying to deal with, especially if your home or neighborhood is prone to ongoing sugar ant issues.

What Is a Budding Ant?

While certain ant colonies have only one queen, budding ant species (like true sugar ants) have multiple queens that are friendly to each other. The colony uses multiple queens as a means of reproduction and protection. The process of "budding" occurs when one (or more) queens leave with a group of workers to establish a nest somewhere else.

What Do Sugar Ants Look Like?

Many types of ants might pop up inside your home (or car), which can be tricky to identify. In certain situations, a microscope and a trained eye are the only means of identification. Even if the ants you notice get into something sweet, this doesn't guarantee a sugar ant problem.

Sugar ants have the following characteristics:

  • Small, 2.5-3mm in length
  • Black to brown
  • Have a distinct "rotten coconut" smell when crushed
  • 12 distinct antennae segments

Keep in mind incorrect identification of ants is very easy. While sugar ants (also known as odorous house ants or OHAs) have these characteristics, they are easily confused with other species. Contact a local pest control company specializing in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) if you want a definitive identification. They'll be able to help identify the issue and advise on the best treatment options.

Signs of Sugar Ants in Your Home

The most apparent sign of sugar ants inside the home is active trailing. Unless active trails are noticed, missing a sugar ant issue can be easy, even when the nest is nearby or inside the home.

Inside, sugar ants like heat and can be found nesting in places like:

  • Under flooring
  • Near water heaters
  • Around copper pipes

Consider the time of year and rate the severity of the issue. Is it frequent and severe, or just a few here or there? If you notice an interior sugar ant issue in the wintertime, this is cause for concern. This could mean that you have an ant nest that has moved inside to overwinter.

Outside, sugar ants (odorous house ants) are likely to be found nesting:

  • Under stones
  • Around walkways
  • Beneath boards

5 Ways to Get Rid of Sugar Ants in Your Home

Warning

Sugar ants are widespread. Over-the-counter ant sprays are repellant products and poorly suited for controlling budding ants like sugar ants. Over-the-counter sprays can cause fracturing in budding ant colonies, likely worsening the problem.

Seal Them Out

Seal up cracks that could allow pests such as ants to enter your home. This could involve caulking in areas such as:

  • Around windows
  • In bathrooms
  • Near exterior doors
  • Along baseboards

Also, ensure that exterior door sweeps and window screens are fitted well, undamaged, and well-secured.

Tip

Think about your home's pest history. Has your property been plagued with sugar ants year after year? Sealing up cracks and crevices is especially important if your home has had an ongoing interior ant issue.

Reduce Food Sources

An essential step in any pest control program is eliminating potential food sources. Sugar ants will go out of their way to track down the sweetest snacks. Clean up any food messes quickly and thoroughly to avoid accumulations that could attract more ants.

Sugar ants also love honeydew (the gardening term for insect excrement). This honeydew can be found on the branches of plants and trees where aphids are present. Aphids produce a lot of honeydew. If you have a regular pest control provider, ask if they perform winter-time dormant oil treatments. These treatments can reduce spring aphid populations and ant activity.

Once sugar ants (odorous house ants) have found a food source, they will signal other ants in the colony that a verified food source has been identified. If you see a dense trail of ants coming and going inside, follow them, look at what they are eating, and remove the food source.

A group of sugar ants gathering to feast on a dropped piece of caramel popcorn.

ABimagestudio

Try Natural Baits and Repellents

You don't have to use harmful chemicals to remove ants; instead, try natural remedies.

  • Vinegar: Vinegar is so strong smelling that it disrupts the ants' sense of smell and ants following scent trails. Spray on cracks and crevices or where they've been seen trailing.
  • Peppermint: This natural repellent is easy to make. Mix 10 to 20 drops of peppermint essential oil with 2 cups of water. Spray the mixture anywhere you have seen ants.
  • Bay leaves: Another natural repellent, you can spread bay leaves where you have seen ants. Replace them periodically since they can lose their ant-detesting smell over time.
  • Diatomaceous earth: This silica is made of fossilized remains of aquatic plankton organisms called diatoms; it's a natural desiccant and dries out the ants. You can easily buy food-grade diatomaceous earth and sprinkle it along ant trails; however, avoid inhaling it or getting it on your skin.

Use Ant Bait

Refrain from over-the-counter sprays, but over-the-counter baits like TERRO stations are helpful. Baits may not kill an entire colony but can draw ants away from high-traffic areas.

Baits are made to be sweet and formulated to attract ants to them. Keep this in mind when deciding where to place your ant bait. Don't put them in spots where you can easily see them, like countertops or near your cooking space; instead, put them under the sink so you won't see ant trails.

Hire a Professional

Sugar ants are budding ants that might be moving on to establish another nest, so hiring an experienced professional is essential if your ant problem is severe. Chemical treatment might be needed. A professional can help positively identify the ants you're dealing with and know exactly what products to use.

What Causes Sugar Ants in Your Home?

Sugar ants might be popping up in your home for many reasons. These could include:

  • The arrival of warm weather
  • A nest nearby (outside or inside)
  • An attractant (food source)
  • Recent rainy weather or garden watering

If sugar ants have suddenly popped up inside, be patient and wait a day or two to see what the activity does. If they bother you, use ant baits to draw the ants from high-traffic areas and observe whether the activity dies down.

Sugar Ant vs. Pavement Ant

Ant identification can be tricky. Sugar ants are regularly confused for various ants, including pavement ants. Both are small and brown, making it challenging to positively identify them unless you know exactly what to look for. Pavement ants are also budding ants.

One way to tell between these pests? Nodes. Nodes are small lumps on the back (abdomen) of ants. Sugar ants have a single node, whereas pavement ants have two. This is the easiest way to tell these lookalikes apart, but they are tiny and difficult to see. It's always best to get a second opinion to be 100% sure.

Sugar Ants
    • 2.5-3mm long
    • Brown to black in color
    • Single node on back
    • 12 antennae segments with no club
    • Distinct odor when crushed
Pavement Ants
    • 2.5-3mm long
    • Light brown to black in color
    • Two nodes on back
    • 12 antennae segments with 3-segment club
    • Leaves mounds of sand on patios
Sugar ants gathered on a pink lollipop that was dropped on the ground outside.

DanielAlbach

A distinct pile of sand left along patio stones by pavement ants. The hole in the middle is used for nest access.
Pavement ants push mounds of dirt into the sun to warm, marking entrances to their nests.

Chris Jongkind

Be Patient

Have ants recently popped up inside your home? If so, there could be a few causes. Has your area recently experienced rainy weather? Did you overwater your garden? Sugar ants spend a lot of time outside foraging for honeydew. During rains or watering, ants are flushed out of the soil, and honeydew is washed out of the surrounding plants. This could lead to sugar ants moving inside in search of food.

Ensure your unwanted ant guests don't have access to any food sources and wait until the weather dries out. This ant activity may be temporary and will go away on its own.

FAQ
  • Where do sugar ants come from?

    Sugar ants (also called odorous house ants or OHAs) are a very common household pest in North America, from Canada to Mexico. If you're concerned about sugar ants, have a plan to keep them outside where they belong without over-applying harmful chemicals.

  • Will sugar ants go away on their own?

    Yes and no. If it has been rainy or you have recently watered your yard or garden, sugar ants may pop up inside because they have been flushed out of the soil and plants nearby. If sugar ants are super active inside and have been for a while, they won't go away on their own. In this situation, it's probably time to call in the pros.

  • Do sugar ants bite?

    Sugar ants do not sting, bite, or pose specific health or structural risks to humans. They may defend themselves when disturbed by using their mouthparts to bite, which is not painful, nor will it produce symptoms. 

  • How long do sugar ants live?

    With 100-10,000 ants in one colony, the sugar ant life cycle can take anywhere from five weeks to seven months, depending on the temperature and time of year. Workers and female ants can live for several years under the right conditions. Male ants, however, die within a few days of emerging.

The Spruce uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
  1. Ant Management in Oregon. Oregon State University.

  2. A Primer on Dormant Oil Applications. Plant and Pest Advisory, Rutgers Cooperative Extension.