CR tests plant-based lotions, sprays, wipes and repellents on real people exposed to real mosquitoes
CR tests repellents by applying them to volunteers and observing how the mosquitoes react.
By Catherine Roberts
An effective insect repellent can help keep pesky mosquitoes away, prevent itchy bites, and reduce the risk of insect-borne diseases such as Lyme disease and West Nile virus. Individual Reports’ tests, in which brave volunteers stick their arms into cages full of mosquitoes, can help you find one that works.
We have over 50 repellents in our ratings, including 20 that we recommend, so it should be easy to find an option that works for you and keeps you protected from bugs. But not all repellents are equally effective. A component that significantly influences: the active ingredient of the product.
“We believe that differences in the formulation and how the active ingredient is incorporated into a repellent can make a big difference in how well it works at repelling insects,” says Chris Regan, who previously led insect repellent testing at CR. “However, among the products we have evaluated, we found that deet, in concentrations between 25% and 30%, provides the most reliable protection against mosquitoes and ticks.”
If you prefer not to use deet, other active ingredients in our recommended products are picaridin and oil of lemon eucalyptus (more on that below).
Here are five of our top-rated repellents. (Digital and All Get entry to members can see CR’s full insect repellent ratings.)
Ben’s 30 Tick & Insect Repellent Wipes
These stand-out repellent wipes from Ben’s are among the pause-performing products in CR’s attempting out. With 30 pc deet as their though-provoking ingredient, they offer top-notch protection against mosquitoes. They’re handiest about reasonable by formulation of their tendency to damage garments fabric—so at the same time as you happen to’re entertaining, check one on an inconspicuous place.
Ben’s 30 Tick & Insect Repellent Pump Spray Desert Formula
This pump spray from Ben’s is one among the pause-performing deet products in CR’s assessments. With 30 pc deet as the though-provoking ingredient, it supplies splendid protection against mosquitoes and ticks.
Off Sportsmen Deep Woods Insect Repellent 3
This 30 pc deet insect repellent from Off is one among the pause-performing aerosol spray alternatives from CR’s assessments. It supplies splendid protection against mosquitoes and ticks. It is prone to damage materials and various supplies, however, so prepare with care.
Repel Lemon Eucalyptus Insect Repellent Pump
This pump spray from Repel is now not any longer handiest essentially the most appealing deet-free repellent in our ratings but moreover one among essentially the most appealing-performing of all of our examined repellents. With 30 pc oil of lemon eucalyptus as its though-provoking ingredient, it supplies splendid protection against mosquitoes and ticks. Plus, CR’s testers chanced on that, unlike many insect repellents, this product tends no longer to damage materials or assorted supplies.
Ben’s 30 Tick & Insect Repellent Eco-Spray Desert Formula Aerosol
This highly effective aerosol spray insect repellent supplies different worth. With deet as its though-provoking ingredient, it provides users a tremendous defense against mosquitoes and ticks. The spray, which has a chemical aroma, goes on moist and leaves an oily feeling on the skin.
How we review insect repellents
In our insect repellent testing laboratory, we start by applying a standard dose of repellent to a specific area of skin on the arms of people participating in our tests. The standard dosage is determined based on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Product Testing Recommendations Guide.
After 30 minutes, these volunteers stick their arm into the first 2 of the 4 cages with 200 mosquitoes that are disease-free for 5 minutes. Our testers carefully observe what happens inside the cage and count each time a mosquito lands on one of the people’s arm, and uses its proboscis (the long part of its mouth) in an attempt to probe the skin to find a capillary vessel or penetrates the arm of the volunteer and begins to feed, the testers conclude this when they notice that the belly of the insect changes from gray to red or brown.
After 5 minutes, the volunteers remove their arms from these cages and repeat the same process by placing their arms inside the second pair of mosquito cages that are also disease-free, but of a different species, for another 5 minutes. Volunteers then walk for about 10 minutes to stimulate sweating and mimic a typical situation in which consumers exercise while using a repellent.
Half an hour later, this process is repeated once, and then again repeated every hour until a repellent fails the test, or until 8 hours have passed from the time it was applied. We consider the product to have failed when 2 mosquito bites are confirmed within a 5-minute session inside the cage, or if one bite is confirmed within each of two consecutive 5-minute sessions.
Our ratings are based primarily on how long a product protected test volunteers against the 2 species of mosquitoes. The highest-rated repellents protected volunteers for 7 hours or more; while those with the lowest scores only lasted 2 hours or less.
Most of our repellents are tested only against mosquitoes, but last year we also tested four options that got very good ratings—two with Deet, one with picaridin, and one with oil of lemon eucalyptus—against ticks. In this smaller-scale test, products with Deet performed the best and offered the longest lasting protection. In previous years, we have seen that repellents that work well against mosquitoes generally also work well against ticks.
In addition to evaluating how well they work, we also test whether repellents can damage materials they often come into contact with, such as the polycarbonate lenses of glasses, a leather belt, cotton and polyester.
We compare Deet, Picaridin and OLE (oil of lemon eucalyptus)
Of the 22 insect repellents we recommend, 14 contain deet as an active ingredient. Of them, 3 are made with 20% picaridin, one with 10% picaridin and 4 contain 30% oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE).
Most of the vegetable oil-based products we tested—including several with lemongrass, peppermint, soy, or other oils—didn’t do well.
OLE, although it comes in pure form from the lemon eucalyptus plant, is not an essential oil. It is processed and concentrated (and in some cases manufactured synthetically) for use in commercial repellents. However, some products with OLE should not be used in children under 3 years old, as more research is still needed on how safe they are—so it’s important to check the label and make sure the product is age-appropriate before using it on young children.
Our tests suggest that when it comes to how well a repellent works, what matters most is the type and concentration of the active ingredient.
For example, all of the Deet products we’ve tested with concentrations between 25% and 30% score very well in our tests. There are also two repellents with 15% Deet that work well, although two others with that same concentration did not have as good results.
And in the case of products with Deet, an effective repellent can come in different forms. For example, three wipes are on our recommendation list. One lotion didn’t score high enough to be recommended, but it still performed well.
Overall, about 3 out of 4 repellents with Deet that we tested have earned our recommendation, and that does not surprise us, since Deet has a long track record as an effective repellent and, in fact, is often used as a benchmark to compare the effectiveness of other types of repellents.
The picture is a little less clear when it comes to other active ingredients. We have found some sprays with picaridin or OLE that work well, and some that don’t. In some cases, products with 20% picaridin even get good ratings in their aerosol form, but not in other forms, such as wipes or lotions. “At the very least, we’re seeing that many products with OLE and picaridin don’t reach the same level as Deet,” Regan says.
Still, if you prefer to avoid Deet, the best options are products with 20% picaridin or 30% OLE. More importantly, in our tests, all so-called “natural” repellents—that is, those whose active ingredients are essential oils—perform very poorly.
Please note that the safety of Deet has been extensively studied by the EPA. When used according to label directions, it should not cause harm. And, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, rare cases of skin rash or irritation are usually caused by using too much product or too high concentrations. For this reason, Individual Reports does not evaluate products with more than 30% Deet—and our tests show that exposure to higher concentrations is not necessary to obtain good protection. (See our article where we compare the active ingredients of different insect repellents.)
How to properly apply insect repellent
For best results, follow the label instructions and these 5 tips:
1. Apply a light layer to all exposed skin, but avoid the eyes and mouth, and use sparingly around the ears. You can also spray repellent on top of your clothing, but don’t apply it under it.
2. Adults should put the repellent on their hands and then apply it to children. Do not spray repellent directly on children or apply it to their hands. This will prevent it from coming into contact with your eyes or mouth, and also avoid applying it to any wounds or irritated skin. (Insect repellents with deet should not be used on children under 2 months.)
3. No need to apply frequently. Wash your hands after applying it and rinse off the repellent at the end of the day.
4. Never spray repellent directly on your face. Better spray the palms of your hands and then apply to your face.
5. When you make use of wipes, make sure you use enough to cover all the skin that is exposed to the repellent. You should see a light sheen of moisture on your skin after wiping the wipes, and avoid sharing the same wipe with another person for the best coverage.
Individual Reports is a fair, nonprofit organization that works facet by facet with patterns to develop a fairer, safer, and extra healthy world. CR does no longer endorse companies or products, and does no longer accumulate marketing. Copyright © 2026, Individual Reports, Inc.
