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Essential Oils for Bug Repellent and Spray Recipe

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I love making and using essential oils for bug repellent. Because it’s all natural and effective! Are you tired of the bugs bugging you!?

Let me tell you, we have SO MANY bugs down here in the deep south. The mosquitoes and gnats always seem determined to carry us away anytime the weather is pleasant. It is so annoying. Since our family does not use any products containing DEET, I decided to create my own bug spray to help repel those pesky pests. And I am happy to report that we have had great success keeping our Lowcountry bugs at bay by using essential oils for bug repellent! (If you live in a different demographic, you may find that you need to play around with which oils work best to deter the insect species where you are.) For this recipe, I chose several essential oils known for their insect repelling properties. (Remember this will not kill bugs, it works to repel them.) I also decided not to use any citrus essential oils for this recipe. The reason is they are photosensitive, and we are likely to be out in the sunshine when we use this. 

Here is a simple breakdown of the essential oils for bug repellent that I chose and what bugs generally dislike them.

Essential Oils for Bug Repellent:

Rosemary essential oil has an earthy, sweet, minty, and herbaceous scent that can be effective at repelling flies, mosquitoes, and ants. (To learn more about the benefits of rosemary essential oil, see my detailed post here.) 

Citronella essential oil has a fresh, green, and lemony aroma that is well known for deterring outdoor pests like mosquitoes and spiders.

Lemongrass essential oil has a fresh, lemony, and grassy smell that can work to repel mosquitoes, gnats, and fleas.

Geranium essential oil has a fresh floral aroma that can work to keep mosquitoes, gnats, flies, ants, fleas, gnats, and ticks at bay. (To learn more about the benefits of geranium essential oil, see my detailed post here.) 

Lavender essential oil has a sweet floral fragrance that can deter fleas, gnats, ticks, flies, and spiders. (To learn more about the benefits of lavender essential oil, see my detailed post here.) 

Eucalyptus globulus essential oil has a fresh eucalyptus scent that can repel mosquitoes, gnats, ticks, bees, ants and spiders.

Essential Oils for Bug Repellent Spray Recipe Ingredients Needed

Materials Needed:

  • 4 ounce glass spray bottle (I like these basic colored glass bottles from Amazon)
  • essential oils listed above (I made each essential oil bottle clickable for easy shopping)
  • 2 ounces of witch hazel (Find the Quinn’s here from Amazon)
  • filtered water 

Essential Oil Bug Repellent Recipe:

1: First gather all the supplies and ingredients. Then open the 4 ounce glass spray bottle. 

Essential Oils for Bug Repellent Spray Recipe Step 1

2: Add 10-15 drops of EACH essential oil to the glass bottle and set the spray top aside. 

Essential Oils for Bug Repellent Spray Recipe Step 2

3: Add 2 ounces of witch hazel to the glass bottle

Essential Oils for Bug Repellent Spray Recipe Step 3

4: Top off glass bottle with filtered or distilled water – being careful to leave space for the spray top.

Essential Oils for Bug Repellent Spray Recipe Step 4

5: Secure top and gently shake to combine. Enjoy your homemade essential oil bug repellent spray!

Essential Oils for Bug Repellent Spray Recipe Step 5

Directions: Shake well before each use! Use on skin or clothing to help deter bugs when outdoors. Exercise caution not to get into eyes, nose, or mouth. Reapply as needed. 

Essential Oils for Bug Repellent Spray Recipe Directions

“Why didn’t Noah swat those two mosquitoes?” ~ Annonymous

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