Most Americans fear finding bugs in their holiday decorations

Beware those unwanted house guests — Americans are worried their holiday plans will attract bugs to join in on their festivities.

A survey of 2,000 US adults showed 77% agreed they’d start to feel worried if they came across only a couple of bugs in their home over the holidays.

Nearly nine in 10 (87%) said they host more people in their home during the holiday season than any other time of year and 78% are concerned about spotting bugs in their home while hosting guests.

During the holiday season, the study — commissioned by Zevo, developed by P&G Ventures, and conducted by OnePoll — found 72% are concerned about finding bugs hiding amongst their holiday decorations when it comes time to dig things out of storage.

People are most concerned about spiders (49%), fruit flies (46%), ants (45%) and cockroaches (44%). Sixteen percent are afraid of finding fungus gnats among their holiday decorations.

Respondents said they’re especially concerned about finding bugs in their wreaths (63%), holiday lights (60%), trees (52%), garlands (51%) and ornaments (40%).

Forty-five percent are at least lucky enough to find bugs in their decorations before putting them up; 43% don’t realize it until it’s too late.

“When people think of winter, they’re probably not thinking about bugs,” said Daniel Perry, P&G’s go-to entomologist at Zevo. “But the truth is, many of the same pests we try to avoid in the summer are just as alive in the winter. And more often than not, they’re hiding out in our homes or among our stored belongings to get reprieve from the colder weather.”

Results also found that 65% of Americans like using fake plants as their holiday decorations, while 59% like using real plants.

Those who prefer live plants said it’s because they seem more “holiday” like (61%), they smell better (56%) and it’s part of a family tradition (52%). Yet 91% are concerned about bugs hiding out in them.

Alternatively, those who prefer fake plants said it’s because their pets would destroy real plants (52%), it’s better quality (50%) and their pets are allergic or would be harmed by live plants (47%). And compared to live plants, only 64% are concerned about bugs hiding in fake plants.

Regardless of where bugs are hiding, people said they’d react to seeing bugs in their home during the winter months by calling an exterminator to take care of them (39%), killing them immediately (32%) or simply being embarrassed (27%).

“Spotting insects in the colder months can potentially spell disaster when the weather warms up,” continued Perry. “Aside from just finding them among holiday decorations, these bugs can be an early warning sign to a bigger infestation developing later in the home.

“The last thing anyone wants is to face a bug problem that’s out of control, especially during the holiday season, so it’s best to implement a proactive solution.”

Survey methodology:
This random double-opt-in survey of 2,000 Americans who celebrate a winter holiday was commissioned by Zevo between October 31 and November 1, 2023. It was conducted by market research company OnePoll, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society and have corporate membership to the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).