Dubia roaches vs crickets

Dubia roaches and crickets are both useful staple feeders, and both are low in calcium, so either one needs gut loading and dusting. Dubia roaches cannot climb smooth surfaces, give off little odor and take months to mature, so they keep well in a holding bin. Crickets chirp, jump and have a short life cycle, but they can suit animals that hunt fast prey best.

Are dubia roaches better than crickets?

For most keepers who buy feeders in bulk, dubia roaches are easier to keep between feedings. On nutrition the two are closer than most comparisons suggest. Both have more phosphorus than calcium, and both need supplementing before they go to a reptile.¹³

A review of feeder insect nutrition advises offering insectivores a varied diet rather than a single insect species, because a mixed diet is less likely to leave gaps.² The choice is often which insect makes up the bulk of the diet, not which one to feed forever. Our guide to the best feeder insects for bearded dragons covers how dubia, waxworms and black soldier fly larvae fit together.

Dubia vs crickets nutrition

The cleanest comparison comes from a Wageningen University study that raised both species from birth in the same climate chamber, at 82 F (28 C). Each species ate its own commercial control diet. The researchers harvested each container when the first adults appeared, so most insects were late nymphs.¹

Dubia roaches and house crickets raised on control diets at 82 F (28 C). Values are means from Oonincx and colleagues, 2015.¹

Measure	Dubia roach	House cricket
Dry matter, % of live weight	31.6	24.1
Crude protein, % of dry matter	69.8	57.8
Total fatty acids, % of dry matter	15.2	17.4
Phosphorus, g per kg dry matter	6.2	8.9
Days from birth to harvest	211	48

On these numbers a dubia roach carries more dry matter and more protein than a cricket, and less phosphorus. The study did not measure calcium. Total fatty acids are not the same as crude fat, so treat that row as a rough guide to fat.¹

Why the numbers vary

Diet changes the result a great deal. In the same study, dubia crude protein ranged from 37.5% to 72.5% of dry matter across five diets.¹ A UK study measured 46.3% to 51.2% in adult dubia.⁴ A US study measured 76.9% in fasted dubia nymphs.³ Read any single nutrition chart as one batch of insects on one diet.

Calcium is low in both

Most insects hold less than 0.3% calcium on a dry matter basis because they have no mineralized skeleton.² In a study of commercially raised feeders that included adult and nymph house crickets, every sample fell short of the calcium standard the author used.⁵ Fasted dubia nymphs in the US study held 0.13% calcium, a calcium to phosphorus ratio below 0.2 to 1.³ Our guide on how to gut load feeder insects explains how a high calcium diet and dusting fix this for either insect.

Noise and smell

Male house crickets make a calling song by rubbing a scraper on one wing against a file on the other.⁶ A University of Florida fact sheet notes that crickets kept as pet food can escape into the house and keep calling.⁶ We found no published report of dubia roaches producing a call.

Do dubia roaches smell?

An Auburn University thesis on dubia biology describes the species as producing little odor, unlike other cockroaches. The thesis states this without citing a measurement.⁷ We found no study that measured the odor of either insect in a holding bin. Keepers commonly report that cricket bins smell more, and that dead insects and damp waste make any bin worse. Keepers also find that removing dead feeders and stale food keeps odor down for either species.

Escapes and climbing

Dubia roaches lack the developed pads between their claws that many insects use to grip. The Auburn thesis reports that neither adults nor nymphs can climb smooth surfaces.⁷ Adult males have wings but rarely fly.⁷ A smooth plastic bin with a ventilated lid holds them well.

Crickets jump, and the University of Florida notes that house crickets turn up indoors where they have escaped or been released.⁶ A loose male cricket can keep calling until someone finds it.⁶

How long each lives in a holding bin

House crickets complete their whole life cycle in two to three months when reared at 80 to 90 F (27 to 32 C).⁶ Crickets sold at adult size are already near the end of that cycle.

Dubia roaches grow far more slowly. In the Wageningen study, dubia took about 211 days from birth to harvest on the control diet, against 48 days for crickets.¹ A temperature study found that dubia nymphs developed to adulthood at 68, 77 and 86 F (20, 25 and 30 C), but all died before the fifth instar at 95 F (35 C).⁸ In a 2025 feeding trial, dubia held at about 72 F (22 C) room temperature showed low mortality over seven days on two different diets.³

In practice, a box of dubia bought at feeding size can last for weeks with food, moisture and a clean bin. Our dubia roach care guide covers bins, food and temperature for keepers who feed them out.

Do crickets bite sleeping reptiles?

The MSD Veterinary Manual warns that bites from uneaten prey cause injuries that can become infected, and says any reptile with a prey-inflicted wound should see a veterinarian.⁹ Its advice is written mainly about rodents. We found no veterinary study that measures how often crickets bite reptiles. Keepers commonly report crickets chewing on resting animals, which is why many remove uneaten crickets after each feeding.

Removing leftovers is good practice with any live feeder. A UK study found no change in the protein, fat or dry matter of gut-loaded dubia left unfed for 12 hours, and suggested removing feeders that are still uneaten after that.⁴ If your reptile has a wound, swelling or a sore that does not heal, take it to a reptile vet.

Why cricket colonies die off

Acheta domesticus densovirus is a documented cause of cricket die-offs. It has repeatedly wiped out commercial house cricket rearing in Europe, and sudden outbreaks have hit commercial rearing across North America since the autumn of 2009.¹⁰ Infected crickets were smaller and less active and did not jump as high. Most deaths came in the last nymph stage and in young adults.¹⁰

The same research found that two other cricket species, the Jamaican field cricket and the European field cricket, resisted the virus.¹⁰ We found no report of this virus causing die-offs in dubia roaches.

Cost per feeding

The price on the box is only part of the cost. To compare dubia and crickets for your animal, work through these numbers for each insect:

1. The price per insect at the size your animal eats.
2. How many insects are still alive and usable when you need them.
3. How many feedings one order covers before you reorder.
4. What you spend on gut load, supplements and bins to hold them.

Crickets have a short life cycle, so losses in the holding bin raise the real cost of each feeding.⁶ Dubia keep for much longer, so one larger order can cover more feedings.¹ If you feed on a steady schedule, our subscribe and save plan delivers every 1, 2 or 3 months at 15% off, and you can skip, pause or cancel from your account.

When crickets are the better choice

Crickets are not a worse feeder in every case. They can make more sense in these situations.

• Your animal ignores slow prey. Some keepers find that a reluctant eater strikes at jumping crickets after refusing slower insects. We found no study that compares feeding response to dubia and crickets.
• Your animal needs very small prey. Our smallest dubia size is 1/4 to 1/2 in. An animal that needs food smaller than that is not ready for our dubia.
• You feed many insects within a few days of buying them. Short holding times cut losses, and crickets may then cost less per feeding.
• Your vet has flagged gout risk. Studies of other cockroach species found more uric acid than in house crickets, and a review advises feeding insects lower in uric acid to insectivores prone to gout.² We found no published uric acid value for dubia. Ask your reptile vet.

Crickets vs roaches for bearded dragons

For a bearded dragon, the practical points above decide most cases. Dubia stay in their bin, keep for weeks and give a high protein feeder. Crickets add movement and variety. Whichever you use, gut load before feeding and dust with a calcium supplement.³¹¹

To pick the right size and count for your dragon's age, see our dubia roach size chart for bearded dragons. When you are ready, order dubia roaches in Small, Medium, Large or XL, in counts of 100 to 1000. Shipping and live arrival details are on our shipping page.

Sources

1. Oonincx DGAB, van Broekhoven S, van Huis A, van Loon JJA. 2015. Feed conversion, survival and development, and composition of four insect species on diets composed of food by-products. PLoS ONE 10(12): e0144601.
2. Finke MD, Oonincx DGAB. 2023. Insects as food for insectivores. Chapter 18 in Mass Production of Beneficial Organisms, 2nd edition, pages 511 to 540. Elsevier.
3. Barras E, Boykin KL, Aguilar MG, Lex Z, Bitter A, Mitchell MA. 2025. Effect of commercial diets on the nutritional value and mortality rates of dubia roaches (Blaptica dubia). Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery 35(3), pages 176 to 191.
4. Gorst VM, Mitchell K, Whitehouse-Tedd KM. 2015. Effect of post-gut loading time on the macro-nutrient content of three feeder invertebrate species. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 3(3), pages 87 to 93.
5. Finke MD. 2002. Complete nutrient composition of commercially raised invertebrates used as food for insectivores. Zoo Biology 21, pages 269 to 285.
6. Walker TJ. House cricket, Acheta domesticus (Linnaeus) (Insecta: Orthoptera: Gryllidae). Featured Creatures EENY-063. University of Florida IFAS Extension.
7. Wu H. 2013. Biology of Blaptica dubia (Blattodea: Blaberidae). Master of Science thesis, Auburn University.
8. Wu H, Hu XP, Appel AG. 2017. Temperature-dependent development and thermal sensitivity of Blaptica dubia (Blattodea: Blaberidae). Journal of Economic Entomology 110(2), pages 546 to 551.
9. Divers SJ. Emergencies of reptiles. MSD Veterinary Manual, Pet Owner Version. Reviewed 2020, updated 2024.
10. Szelei J, Woodring J, Goettel MS, and others. 2011. Susceptibility of North-American and European crickets to Acheta domesticus densovirus (AdDNV) and associated epizootics. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 106(3), pages 394 to 399.
11. Livingston S, Lavin SR, Sullivan K, Attard L, Valdes EV. 2014. Challenges with effective nutrient supplementation for amphibians: a review of cricket studies. Zoo Biology 33(6), pages 565 to 576.