Natural Ways to Get Rid of Ants in Your Home and Garden

Are you looking for natural ways to get rid of ants in and around your home? You don’t need harsh chemicals to deal with them. There are simple home remedies and natural ant repellents that disrupt their scent trails and discourage them from returning.

Ants are one of the most common household and garden pests, and they tend to appear when the weather warms up. Whether you’re spotting trails across kitchen counters or noticing activity in garden beds and patios, ants are usually searching for food, water, and shelter.

We’ll explore both indoor and outdoor natural methods for deterring ants in this guide (killing and repelling), so you can choose the right approach depending on where the ants are causing problems.

In this guide, we’ll cover natural indoor and outdoor methods for deterring ants, including repellents and simple solutions to reduce ant activity.

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Natural ways to get rid of ants in your house

If you are looking for ideas to get rid of ants indoors, the most effective approach is to combine cleaning, disrupting their trails, and using targeted natural treatments.

Start by removing anything that attracts them:

• Wipe down counters and remove food residue
• Store food in sealed containers
• Clean up sugary spills immediately

Next, break the scent trails ants use to follow each other. This is where natural repellents become useful.

Finally, apply targeted remedies in areas where ants are entering or traveling, such as windowsills, door frames, and along baseboards.

These methods work best when used together rather than individually, especially for recurring ant problems.

Natural ant repellents that actually work

Natural ant repellents don’t kill ants directly. Instead, they disrupt the scent trails ants use to navigate, making your home less attractive and harder for them to travel through.

These methods are most effective for preventing ants from returning after you’ve already cleaned up food sources and blocked entry points.

The key to success is consistency. Repellents usually need to be reapplied until the ant trail is fully broken and the colony moves elsewhere.

Vinegar as a natural ant repellent

Vinegar works by masking the scent trails ants leave behind, which disrupts their ability to follow each other.

Use a 50/50 mix of vinegar (regular or apple cider) and water to clean:

• countertops
• door frames
• windowsills
• areas where ants are actively traveling

This vinegar ant repellent is especially useful for stopping recurring ant lines in kitchens while you address the source of the infestation.

Essential oils that repel ants

Certain essential oils are strong enough to interfere with an ant’s scent tracking. Peppermint oil and clove oil are the most commonly used. 

Add a few drops of the essential oil to water in a spray bottle. You can also add the oils directly to cotton balls.

Spray or wipe on entry points such as:

• cracks near windows
• baseboards
• kitchen edges

These oils don’t kill ants, but they can make treated areas difficult for them to cross.

Cinnamon and black pepper as scent barriers

Strong-smelling spices like cinnamon and black pepper disrupt ant navigation and act as physical scent barriers.

Sprinkle a light line of either ingredient in these areas:

• door thresholds
• cabinet edges
• ant entry paths

These are best used in dry areas where the powder won’t be disturbed easily and are most effective when combined with cleaning and baiting.

Lemon juice and citrus barriers

Lemon juice helps break scent trails while also creating an acidic barrier that ants tend to avoid.

Apply lemon juice directly along:

• door frames
• windowsills
• baseboards

This ant repellent natural barrier is most effective when used consistently over several days until all activity stops.

Garlic is a strong natural deterrent

Garlic produces a strong odor that many ants avoid.

Crushed or cut cloves can be placed near known ant trails or entry points.

This is more of a localized deterrent and works best in small problem areas rather than widespread infestations.

Note: Garlic will dry up over time and may need to be reapplied.

Some herbs are natural ant repellents

Several aromatic herbs repel ants because of their strong smell, which overwhelms the ants’ senses.

Place these herb plants near doorways, or in containers in the kitchen:

• Peppermint
• Rosemary
• Spearmint
• Thyme
• Lavender
• Basil
• Catnip

DIY home remedies to get rid of ants in the house

Home remedies for ants work in different ways depending on the method. Some disrupt scent trails and repel ants, while others use bait-based ingredients that the ants carry back to the colony.

For best results, home remedies should be used after cleaning up food sources and removing anything that attracts ants in the first place.

Below are some of the most commonly used natural home remedies to get rid of ants indoors.

Ant bait with baking soda and sugar ant bait

One of the most widely used home remedies for ants is a mixture of baking soda and sugar.

The sugar attracts ants, while the baking soda reacts internally and helps eliminate them over time when the ants take it back to their nest.

To use:

• Mix equal parts baking soda and powdered sugar
• Place small amounts near ant trails or entry points
• Reapply as needed until activity decreases

This method is most effective when ants are actively foraging indoors.

Borax-based ant bait (semi-natural option)

Borax is often used in home ant bait recipes because ants carry it back to the colony after ingestion.

The Borax ant bait:

• 2 parts Borax
• 2 parts sugar
• 1 part honey
• 1 cup of boiling water

Mix well and apply where ants are visible.

This method is typically more effective for larger or recurring infestations.

I tested several Borax ant killer home remedies to see which ones worked the best when compared to the retail brand Terro. See the Borax ant killer results here.

Important note: Use Borax carefully and keep it away from children and pets, since it is not fully non-toxic.

How to get rid of ants outside naturally (garden and yard)

Outdoor ants are usually less of a problem than indoor ones, but they can still become disruptive when they start nesting in garden beds, lawns, patios, or container plants.

The goal outside is different from indoors because you’re not just repelling ants, you’re reducing nesting areas and breaking up colonies without damaging your soil or plants.

Target ant trails in garden beds and walkways

Ants rely on scent trails to move between food sources and their nests. In outdoor spaces, these trails often form along:

• Garden bed edges
• Paving stones and cracks
• Raised bed borders
• Patio seams
• Fences

A simple natural approach is to disrupt these trails consistently so ants lose their navigation pattern and relocate.

Use natural scent barriers around problem areas

Strong natural scents can discourage ants from re-establishing trails in the same location. These work best as repeated perimeter treatments rather than one-time fixes.

Common garden-safe options include:

• Cinnamon sprinkled along entry points and bed edges
• Crushed peppermint or peppermint oil diluted in water
• Vinegar spray along hardscape cracks and pathways
• Coffee grounds are used as a light perimeter barrier in soil areas
• Strongly scented plants in areas where ants frequent

These don’t “kill” colonies, but they can reduce activity in high-traffic zones.

Reduce attractants in outdoor spaces

Ant control outdoors is often more about environmental management than treatment. Ants are drawn to:

• Sweet fallen fruit or berries
• Pet food left outside
• Sticky plant residues (like aphid honeydew)
• Open compost or organic debris piles

Cleaning up these sources reduces the reason ants establish long-term activity in the first place.

Treat nests naturally when needed

If you can locate a visible nest in soil, mulch, or under stones, a targeted treatment can help reduce the colony rather than just deterring surface activity.

Natural options used carefully include:

• Boiling water applied directly to visible nests (spot treatment only)
• Diatomaceous earth sprinkled around nest entrances in dry conditions
• Borax bait (used cautiously away from pollinators and pets)

For garden use, spot treatment is key. Blanket applications usually disrupt beneficial insects as well.

Keep long-term control by making the garden less inviting

Long-term outdoor control comes from consistency rather than one-time fixes:

• Keep mulch from building too thick against foundations
• Water evenly to avoid overly dry nesting zones
• Prune plants that create hidden protected soil pockets
• Monitor aphids on plants (they often indirectly “feed” ants)

Over time, this reduces the conditions ants prefer for establishing stable colonies.

Natural ant control checklist

You can print the ant control checklist as high-resolution JPGs or PDFs by using the links below:

• Get the high-resolution controlling ants checklist (JPG)↗
• Get the PDF controlling ants checklist (PDF)↗

Printing instructions:

1. Select portrait orientation and “fit to page” on your printer settings for a full-page printout.
2. You can also print out the checklist from the project card at the bottom of this page. Scroll down to the card and press “print”.

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Admin note: This article on the best way to get rid of ants naturally first appeared on the blog in March 2017. This post has been updated with new photos, a printable checklist for repelling ants, and a slideshow video about natural ways to get rid of ants.

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