With their twitchy legs and quick movements, house centipedes often make a memorable, and unwelcome, appearance. Known scientifically as Scutigera coleoptrata, these fast-moving arthropods don’t sting or bite people, but their sudden arrivals can be jarring. Spotting one indoors typically leads to two big questions: “Why are they here?” and “Should I be worried?”

The answer is fairly simple: they’re following their survival instincts. When your home offers food, moisture, and shelter, it becomes an ideal environment for these insect hunters.

How They Slip Inside Without Being Noticed

It doesn’t take much for a house centipede to enter your home. Small gaps around pipes, loose siding, open vents, or unsealed windows are all it takes. Once indoors, they search for cool, damp spaces where insects are easy to catch.

Because they’re mostly active after dark, it may take a while before you realize they’ve moved in. Basements, crawl spaces, and humid bathrooms are some of their favorite hiding spots.

Centipedes Are Likely Following Prey Into Your Home

Most house centipedes start off outdoors, tucking themselves beneath stones, in mulch beds, or under rotting leaves. But when insect activity shifts closer to your foundation, or disappears from the yard altogether, they’ll follow their prey indoors.

If you’re seeing centipedes around the house, they might be chasing down another infestation. These predators feed on a wide variety of common pests, including:

Ants
Bed bugs
Cockroaches
Crickets
Earwigs
Moths
Silverfish
Spiders
Termites
And many more

Moisture Problems Keep Them Coming Back

Whether outside or in, centipedes are drawn to moisture. Wet mulch, damp soil, and shaded yard debris attract them outdoors, while poorly ventilated rooms and water leaks create cozy habitats indoors.

If you want to make your home less appealing, it’s important to manage humidity and limit access to water. Try the following steps:

Fix outdoors leaks such as spigots and hoses that soak the soil.
Unclog gutters and redirect downspouts away from your foundation.
Thin out dense shrubs to help damp areas dry out faster.
Use dehumidifiers in humid basements or laundry rooms.
Ventilate bathrooms control steam buildup and reduce indoor moisture.

Hiding Spots Make It Easy for Centipedes to Stick Around

These nocturnal bugs shy away from human activity and seek out quiet, dark places to rest. Inside cluttered rooms or beneath yard debris, centipedes can hide comfortably and remain undisturbed for long periods.

Reducing clutter inside and outside your home can discourage them from settling in. Here’s how to remove their favorite hideouts:

Keep firewood elevated and away from walls.
Remove unused outdoor furniture, garden tools, or scrap piles.
Bring in toys and outdoor gear that may hold moisture.
Rake any leaves and compost them or dispose of them promptly.
Maintain a tidy lawn and trim back overgrown weeds.
Seal all gaps around windows, doors, and utility lines, no matter how small they are.
Repair damaged screens and worn-out weatherstripping.

House Centipedes Don’t Only Live Indoors

While they’re often spotted crawling across baseboards or disappearing into drains, house centipedes usually begin life outside. These insect hunters prefer dark, damp conditions where they can hide and hunt in peace. Common hiding spots include decomposing wood, mulched garden beds, piles of leaves, and the shady underside of rocks or bricks.

A favorite place for them to hunt is the soil lining your home’s foundation. It tends to stay cool and moist, creating an insect-rich habitat that centipedes find irresistible. Once they’re established along the perimeter, slipping inside becomes easy, especially when outdoor conditions turn hot and dry.

To help prevent them from moving indoors, check these typical outdoor hideouts:

Flower beds and decorative plants: These often attract tiny insects like aphids and mites, perfect prey for centipedes.
Pavers, bricks, and rock borders: Beneath these surfaces, bugs congregate, giving centipedes a consistent food supply.
Improperly sealed trash bins: The odor of decaying waste pulls in flies and spiders, and centipedes follow close behind.

A cluttered, damp yard doesn’t just invite pests, it creates an all-you-can-eat buffet for their predators too.

Should You Be Concerned About Seeing A House Centipede?

Despite their many legs and startling speed, house centipedes usually aren’t out to cause trouble. They’re skittish and non-aggressive, often sprinting away at the first sign of movement. For the most part, they just want to be left alone.

Still, direct contact isn’t a good idea. Like other centipedes, they use venom to subdue their insect prey. If handled or cornered, one might give a defensive pinch using its front legs. Most people compare it to a mild bee sting, sharp but short-lived.

However, individuals with insect venom allergies could have a stronger reaction, including swelling, breathing issues, or dizziness. In those cases, medical help should be sought immediately.

Even though they don’t pose a widespread risk, it’s wise to prevent kids and pets from interacting with them.

How to Spot a House Centipede

With so many centipede species in existence, it helps to know how to identify this specific kind. Here’s what sets them apart:

Legs: Thin, long, and delicate, their legs stretch outward, giving a spider-like profile.
Leg pairs: They have 15 pairs, fewer than many larger species but still enough to move quickly.
Speed: These centipedes are impressively fast, often covering more than a foot per second.
Color: Their bodies are typically grayish-yellow, marked by three dark stripes running lengthwise.
Antennae: Extra-long and sensitive, perfect for navigating tight crevices and shadowy areas.
Temperament: Unlike some tropical cousins, they’re timid and steer clear of conflict.
Venom: Weak and rarely bothersome to people, unless there’s an allergy involved.

A Single Centipede Might Signal a Bigger Problem

Seeing one house centipede doesn’t necessarily mean an infestation, but it usually means something else is going on. These predators don’t settle in unless they have a steady supply of prey. If they’re sticking around, they’re probably feeding on a hidden population of bugs that’s thriving in your home.

Killing one centipede won’t resolve the underlying cause. To truly fix the problem, you’ll need to identify what’s attracting them, and what’s feeding them.

That’s where we come in. A detailed pest inspection can reveal signs of insect activity, locate hiding places, and help build a plan to cut off the centipedes’ food supply at its source.