Here’s a friendly, practical guide on how to get rid of lizards in and around your home, using safe methods and a bit of strategy.

Quick Scoop

If you want fewer (or zero) lizards at home, focus on three pillars:

  • Block how they enter.
  • Remove what attracts them (insects, moisture, dark clutter).
  • Use smells and textures they dislike, instead of killing them.

Lizards actually eat mosquitoes, flies, and roaches, so they’re not “evil” roommates—but it’s understandable if you don’t want them on your walls.

Step 1: Make Your Home Hard to Enter

Lizards have thin, flexible bodies and can squeeze through tiny gaps around windows, doors, and vents. Do this:

  1. Inspect at night with a flashlight
    • Check around: window frames, door frames, bathroom vents, AC openings, cracks in walls, piping gaps.
    • If you’ve seen a lizard in a particular room, start there.
  2. Seal cracks and gaps
    • Use caulk for small wall cracks and gaps around window/door frames.
    • Install or repair weather stripping on doors so there’s no light visible at the bottom.
    • Put fine mesh on vents, exhaust fans, or large wall openings.
  3. Use screens
    • Add tight-mesh screens to frequently opened windows.
    • Repair any torn mosquito nets—lizards can follow insects through the same rips.

Step 2: Remove What Attracts Lizards (Food & Shelter)

If there is food and hiding space, lizards will keep coming back. Cut their food supply:

  • Clean the kitchen every night: no exposed food, crumbs, or dirty dishes left in the sink.
  • Keep trash in closed bins and empty them regularly.
  • Control other pests (cockroaches, flies, mosquitoes, spiders) with:
    • Regular cleaning,
    • Traps and safe insecticides as needed,
    • Fixing leaks and removing stagnant water.

Reduce hiding spots:

  • Declutter corners, behind cupboards, under the sink, and storage rooms.
  • Move furniture slightly away from walls to reduce dark, safe gaps.
  • Keep cardboard boxes off the floor; use plastic bins with lids instead.

Step 3: Natural Smells and DIY Repellents

Many people prefer non-lethal ways to get rid of lizards. These methods don’t guarantee “zero lizards,” but they can significantly reduce visits.

Common home remedies people use

  • Pepper or chilli spray
    • Mix water with black pepper, cayenne, or hot sauce.
    • Spray along walls, corners, and near windows where lizards usually appear.
    • Important: This can irritate human eyes and lungs too, so avoid over-spraying and keep away from kids and pets.
  • Onion and garlic
    • Place slices of onion or garlic cloves near sinks, window sills, kitchen corners, and behind appliances.
    • Their strong smell can discourage lizards from staying in those spots.
  • Peppermint oil spray
    • Mix a few drops of peppermint essential oil with water in a spray bottle.
    • Spray in corners, behind furniture, near doors and windows.
    • Reapply every couple of days; scents fade.
  • Eggshells (non-messy version)
    • Some people place dried eggshell halves around corners or window sills because lizards supposedly associate them with predators.
    • If you try this, rinse and dry the shells well to avoid smell and bugs.
  • Pine-scented cleaners
    • Clean floors and surfaces with strong pine-scented cleaner.
    • While the scent is strong, lizards tend to avoid those areas.

These tricks are more about discouraging than killing. They work best when combined with sealing entry points and cleaning.

Step 4: Day-to-Day Habits That Keep Lizards Away

A few small habits can make your home much less attractive to lizards long- term.

  • Regular cleaning routine
    • Sweep/vacuum floors to remove insect food and lizard droppings.
    • Wipe kitchen counters at night and keep the stove area clean.
  • Control lighting that attracts insects
    • Use warm/yellow lights instead of very bright white lights near windows and doors.
    • Turn off unnecessary outdoor lights at night to avoid insect swarms (which draw lizards).
  • Tidy outdoor areas
    • Trim plants close to windows and doors.
    • Remove leaf piles and debris near the house walls.
    • Fix leaking taps and avoid stagnant water in buckets or trays.

Step 5: How to Get a Lizard Out Right Now (Humane Methods)

If there’s a lizard currently in your room and you want it gone immediately , you can try:

  1. The “one-room trap” method
    • Close doors to other rooms so it can’t spread through the house.
    • Open one door or window that leads outside.
    • Gently “herd” the lizard towards that opening using a broom from a distance (no hitting, just guiding).
    • Turn off bright lights inside; lizards often move toward dimmer, safer-looking areas.
  2. Container-and-paper method
    • Take a transparent container (box or big glass) and a stiff card/piece of paper.
    • Slowly place the container over the lizard when it’s still.
    • Slide the card between wall and container to trap it inside.
    • Carry it outside and release away from your door.
  3. Leave it a path and time
    • Sometimes simply leaving the door open to a balcony or corridor, then turning off lights and leaving the room, is enough for the lizard to find its way out.

What to Avoid (For Safety and Ethics)

  • Avoid strong toxic chemicals or random sprays just for lizards; they can harm you, kids, pets, and beneficial insects.
  • Avoid glue traps or sticky boards; they often cause slow suffering and can catch unintended animals.
  • Avoid hitting them with objects; you might injure yourself and create a bloody mess, and it’s unnecessary when humane methods exist.

Remember: lizards are not inherently dangerous in most regions. If you’re in an area with venomous species, or you’re simply very uncomfortable, calling a professional pest control service is the safest option.

Mini “Forum-Style” Angle

If this were a forum discussion, typical replies would look like:

“Seal every tiny crack, get rid of insects, and they’ll mostly leave. The more bugs you have, the more lizards you’ll see.”

“Pepper spray and garlic work for me; I just don’t spray anywhere near my eyes or the kids’ room.”

“Screens + nightly kitchen cleanup = almost no lizards now.”

You’ll see different viewpoints—some people tolerate lizards because they kill bugs; others want a completely lizard-free home. The most effective real-world approach is usually a combo : block entry, remove food, and use gentle repellents.

Quick TL;DR

  • Close the “doors”: seal cracks, fix screens, block tiny gaps.
  • Remove what they love: insects, food scraps, moisture, clutter.
  • Use smells they hate: pepper, garlic/onion, peppermint oil, pine cleaners, eggshells.
  • For lizards already inside: gently guide them out or trap-and-release with a container.
  • Skip cruel or highly toxic methods; they’re unnecessary in most home situations.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.