Affiliate Disclosure:This Old House’s Reviews Team is committed to delivering honest, objective, and independent reviews on home products and services. To support this business model, This Old House may be compensated if you purchase through links on our website.
While certain insects, such as pollinators, benefits plant life, Japanese beetles, grubs, and other invasive bugs can wreak havoc on your carefully tended garden.
Insecticidal soap targets these insects without poisoning your plants. Since these soaps come with varying ingredients, odors, and more, we conducted research to help you make sense of your options.
Top 5 Insecticidal Soaps
- Best Overall: Safer Brand Insect Killing Soap with Seaweed Extract
- Longest Lasting: Natria Insecticidal Soap
- Best Concentrate: Safer Brand Insect-Killing Soap Concentrate
- Best for Big Jobs: Natria Insecticidal Soap Insect Killer
- Best All-Purpose Insecticidal Soap: Safer Brand Insecticidal Soap and Pyrethrin Concentrate
Best Insecticidal Soap: Safer Brand Insect Killing Soap with Seaweed Extract
Safer Brand Insect-Killing Soap with Seaweed Extract
- $52.88
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Includes six 32-ounce bottles
- Has a ready-to-spray formula
- Contains 2% potassium salts of fatty acids
What Customers Are Saying
Many customers appreciated that this purchase came with six spray bottles because it gave them the same amount of solution as jugs in easier-to-handle containers. However, multiple users complained about this product’s inability to kill aphids.
Longest Lasting Insecticidal Soap: Natria Insecticidal Soap
Natria Insecticidal Soap
- $9.99
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Includes one 24-ounce bottle
- Has a ready-to-spray formula
- Contains 1% potassium salts of fatty acids
What Customers Are Saying
Positively, this ready-to-use insecticidal soap spray helped many customers curb a variety of insect infestations on their plants. The spray was useful for gardens in sunrooms, front yards, backyards, and other areas. Negatively, some users received a half-full bottle from the manufacturer.
Best Insecticidal Soap Concentrate: Safer Brand Insect Killing Soap Concentrate
Safer Brand Insect Killing Soap Concentrate
- $15.99
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Includes one 16-ounce jug
- Has a concentrated formula
- Contains 49.52% potassium salts of fatty acids
What Customers Are Saying
Happy users reported that this soap was effective. As a concentrate, the 16-ounce jug went a long way. Alternatively, some customers complained that the instructions that came with this product were confusing.
Best Insecticidal Soap for Big Jobs: Natria Insecticidal Soap Insect Killer
Natria Insecticidal Soap Insect Killer
- $34.04
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Includes one 128-ounce jug
- Has a ready-to-spray formula
- Contains 1% potassium salts of fatty acids
What Customers Are Saying
Satisfied customers consistently reported that this insect killer was particularly effective against aphids, scales, and mealy bugs—all while being gentle on their plants. Although some users had to apply it multiple times, they were able to achieve satisfactory results over the course of a few weeks.
Best All-Purpose Insecticidal Soap: Safer Brand Insecticidal Soap and Pyrethrin Concentrate
Safer Brand Insecticidal Soap and Pyrethrin Concentrate
- $34.65
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Key Features
- Includes one 32-ounce jug
- Has a concentrated formula
- Contains 20% potassium salts of fatty acids and 0.24% pyrethrin
What Customers Are Saying
This insecticidal soap concentrate was effective for many users, as its added pyrethrin prevented the spread of various insect species. Some customers did have to alter the pH level of their water to balance the concentration of the insecticidal soap mixture. Others claimed that it was overpriced compared to similar options.
Insecticidal Soap Buying Guide
Whether as a practical gift for a gardener in your life or an emergency response to visible damage on your plants, insecticidal soap is helpful and easy to use for amateur and expert gardeners alike. Below, we’ve outlined some of the most important factors in finding the best insecticidal soap for your needs.
Intended Plants and Insects
Try to identify what insects are damaging which of your plants. Different insecticidal soaps target certain species of bugs on specific types of plants.
Insecticidal Soap Ingredients
Many insecticidal soaps are labeled as organic with an Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI) certification. While manufacturers may add supplementary pesticides and other harmful chemicals to increase a spray’s effectiveness, most insecticidal soaps on their own don’t harm your plants, your family, or the environment.
Concentration
It’s much easier to dilute insecticidal soap that’s too concentrated rather than try to strengthen a weaker spray. If you’re unsure how severe your garden insect infestation is or you want to make sure your insecticidal soap is strong enough, it’s best to buy unmixed, concentrated insect killer.
Amount
Insecticidal soaps, whether concentrated or pre-mixed, usually come in 16-ounce, 24-ounce, or one-gallon containers. Concentrated bottles go further because you mix them to create multiple gallons of ready-to-use spray.
Insecticidal Soap Odor
Unfortunately, unlike scented household soap, many insecticidal soap products have a foul odor. However, select insecticidal soaps have little to no noticeable odor.
How To Use Insecticidal Soap
For the best results, you must know how to use your insecticidal soap. Although directions may vary from product to product, we’ve outlined some basic guidelines below.
Shake Well
Most manufacturers advise vigorously shaking their insecticidal soap, whether it’s pre-mixed or concentrated. This dissolves and disperses the active ingredients.
Test an Inconspicuous Area
Test a small area of your garden with the soap before spraying the entire bed. Wait 24 hours before checking the test spot. If you see browning or wilting, rinse the area with water and dilute the insecticidal soap. Apply the new version to another area, and repeat the process until you get a satisfactory result.
Water Thoroughly
Once you’ve achieved the appropriate concentration level, water your plants thoroughly. Spraying the insect killer on wet leaves is more likely to disrupt the infestation.
Spray Carefully
Spray your freshly watered plants slowly. By thoroughly spraying top to bottom, you’re more likely to kill bottom-dwelling insects, such as whiteflies, slugs, mites, and hoppers.
Repeat as Needed
If you’re still seeing insect activity, you can reapply the soap after seven to 10 days. For serious infestations, you can treat your plants every two to three days.
Insecticidal Soap FAQs
Who needs insecticidal soap?
Anyone dealing with a garden bug infestation can benefit from insecticidal soap. Although using insecticidal soap isn’t the only way to respond to insect activity, it’s an organic, easy, direct, and effective option.
What time of day should I apply insecticidal soap?
Spray your plants when the temperature is cool, and the sun isn’t directly overhead. In the summertime, this is usually in the early morning or late evening.
Can conventional dish or hand soap function as insecticidal soap?
Some dish and hand soaps may work with some infestations. However, because they’re only 2% of the concentration of insecticidal soaps, they’re much less effective.
Where should I store my insecticidal soap?
Similar to other yard care products, store your insecticidal soap somewhere dark, cool, dry, and ventilated. Unopened insecticidal soap should last multiple years, while an opened bottle can last up to one year.
How We Selected the Best Insecticidal Soaps
To provide our readers with the best insecticidal soap recommendations possible, we rely on several key sources of information to help guide our selection process.
Initial Research: Our research process began by generating a list of insecticidal soaps with a significant number of verified-buyer reviews and an average customer review rating of 4–5 stars. We looked at positive and negative reviews alike, focusing on information from both satisfied and critical buyers.
Expert Insights: Through our years of experience, we’ve learned that listening to what others have to say is key to building accurate, well-rounded articles. To complement our in-house expertise, our team looked at reviews and videos from trusted publications and independent testers, spoke with subject matter experts, and drew insights from reader contributions.
Final Product Selection: We then began fine-tuning our list by replacing older models with the latest versions and eliminating any discontinued models. From there, we pared the list down further by comparing each model’s feature-set and selecting the best-in-class options for a variety of buyers, budgets, and scenarios.
Why You Can Trust Us
This Old House has empowered homeowners and DIY-ers for more than four decades with top-notch home improvement advice in the form of television programs, print media, and digital content.
Our Reviews Team focuses on creating in-depth product and service review content. To date, we’ve published over 1,600 reviews on products in the home space, from doorbell cameras and backyard fencing to pool vacuums and snow blowers.
Once we conclude our research, we craft a comprehensive, user-friendly article of recommended products and additional information to help our readers make the right purchase.
Questions or Comments?
To share feedback or ask a question about this article, send a note to our Reviews Team at reviews@thisoldhousereviews.com.