Pet spiders eat live insects. Jumping spiders eat fruit flies, small crickets, and houseflies. Tarantulas eat crickets, Dubia roaches, and occasionally mealworms or superworms. Pick prey that is no bigger than the spider, and feed more often when it is young.
What Popular Pet Spiders Eat
- Jumping spiders: flightless fruit flies, small houseflies, small crickets, roach nymphs. Feed two to four times a week for adults.
- Tarantulas (ground-dwelling and tree species): crickets and Dubia roaches sized to about the spider’s body length, with the odd mealworm or superworm. Adults eat roughly once a week or two.
- Orb weavers and other small web-builders: flies, moths, and small crickets dropped into the web.
- Baby spiders: springtails and flightless fruit flies.
Which Feeder Insects Are Best?
- Dubia roaches: meaty, easy to raise, quiet, and safe for most species.
- Crickets: inexpensive and active, but they can bother a molting spider, so remove leftovers.
- Flightless fruit flies: perfect for small spiders and spiderlings.
- Mealworms and superworms: best as an occasional treat for tarantulas, since they have hard shells and are fatty.
- Waxworms: a rare treat, because they are fatty.
How to Feed
- Offer prey in the evening, when most species are most active.
- Offer the insect, then watch the spider. If it ignores the prey, remove it after a day.
- Gut-load feeder insects with fresh vegetables, so the spider gets better nutrition.
- Keep fresh water available: a shallow dish for tarantulas, a light mist for jumping spiders.
When a Spider Stops Eating
A spider that is about to molt will stop eating, sometimes for weeks, and a tarantula may kick webbing over its burrow. Do not force food on it. Wait until the molt is done, give the spider a few days to harden, and then offer a small meal.
Foods to Avoid
Do not give wild-caught insects, which may have pesticides, and skip human food. Spiders cannot digest it.
Related: what can I feed my spider, what cobalt blue tarantulas eat, and vitamins for spiders.
Bottom Line
Feed pet spiders live feeder insects sized to the spider, and let molting spiders alone. Dubia roaches, crickets, and fruit flies cover almost every pet species.
