
This guide provides information about how to choose the right size Dubia roaches for your animal.
Whether you’re new to Dubia roaches and don’t know what a half-inch versus a 1-inch Dubia roach looks like, or you have a new animal and don’t know what size Dubia roach will suit it best, we can help you narrow your search and get you the size you need.
While it’s tempting to say this kind of animal needs this size Dubia roach and that kind of animal needs that size, it’s not quite that easy. There is so much size variation within species that there is no universal answer. While there may be a common size for certain animals of different ages and stages, we don’t like to guess about Dubia roach sizing because there are always exceptions.
Instead, we like to provide tools people can use to determine what size Dubia they need, based on their unique circumstances. And it’s easy. To get started, you need to know two things:
1. The largest roach the animal can manage along with some Dubia-specific information, and
2. How the roaches are measured
We’ll cover all of this here. If you still have questions, you can ask us a question below.
Taking measurement and considering sizing
Step one involves deciding what size Dubia roach the animal can safely handle. The idea is simple and straightforward: You want to identify the largest roach the animal can capture and eat easily, without undue struggle or risk of harm. Determining this size is often just a matter of taking a measurement or estimating based on the size of another feeder insect you’re familiar with.
The most common way to figure out what size Dubia you need when you have no experience with the animal or Dubia roaches is to measure the distance between the animal’s eyes. This measurment effectively tells you the width of the animal’s jaw. The width of the jaw is a good indication of the largest insect an animal can eat without undue struggle, and this is what you want.
Take this measurement, write it down, and move on to the next step.
If you’re familiar with the animal enough to know what size feeders it normally eats, you can use this knowledge to help you decide on a starter Dubia size too. Since people tend to misjudge the actual size of feeder insects, we recommend that you measure one. Just to see.
Now you have two measurements — the width between your animal’s eyes and the size of at least one of its feeder insects. Consider these two dimensions and think about how easily your animal eats his or her feeders. Could it go bigger? Does going bigger seem like a bad idea?
Now consider how the shape of Dubia roaches compares to your current feeder. Did you measure a cricket? If so, that measurement might apply pretty well to a Dubia roach. Did you measure a superworm? This measurement often will not transfer well to Dubia roaches. Consider how the shape of your current feeder compares to Dubia roaches. As a general rule, Dubia roaches have robust bodies that grow thicker and fatter with food.
Like every feeder insect, Dubia roaches have their own set of nuances. Being aware of these nuances can help you decide whether you want to go with the maximum size you established with your measurement, or perhaps the next smaller size. We recommend being conservative if you’re new to Dubia roaches or if you have an animal that hasn’t eaten them yet.
For example, Dubia roaches aren’t like crickets, which grow very fast at roughly the same rate. Dubia roaches grow slowly, and there is much more size variation among nymphs of the same age. They’re also not like mealworms, which reach a predictable size quickly and then maintain that size for a long time. Dubia roaches grow much more slowly, and their final adult size varies from roach to roach. Many factors play a role in determining how big Dubia roaches get.
Dubia roaches are also shaped differently than many other feeders. And they may behave differently too. For example, an inch long mealworm is much smaller overall than an inch long Dubia roach.
What these things mean is that you may need a little wiggle room with your sizing. Choosing the absolute largest roach you think your animal can eat could lead to waste. Your circumstances will dictate your size choice, but the general lesson is that if you’re unsure, it’s best to choose a smaller roach than the largest size from your estimate. We’ll have more on this below.
What to know
Right off the bat, let us say this: If you need a very specific size, start with our Dubia in discreet sizes. These include Minis, 1/4-inchers, 1/2-inchers, and more. We work hard to size these roaches accurately to minimize variation.
On the other hand, if you are OK with a little variation, start with our Dubia roaches in size ranges. These include extra-small, small, medium, large, and extra-large. You will see on each product page what the size range looks like. These tend to be a little cheaper because they take us less time to process.
So here are some general things you need to know about Dubia roaches as feeders when deciding on a size, along with some tips:
- Given the right conditions, Dubia roaches will grow. And the smaller they are, the faster they grow. The lesson here is when in doubt, we think it’s better to underestimate what size roach your animal can handle than to overestimate it. If you underestimate, the roaches will grow and you can feed them off when they’re ready. If you overestimate, the roaches will grow, and you will still have roaches that are too big for your animal.
- In general, people tend to overestimate the size Dubia roach their animals can handle. When in doubt, pick smaller ones. Or…
- Buy just a few Dubia roaches to start or try our Dubia roach size sampler. You get a few roaches in two consecutive sizes, which helps you figure out what size works best with minimal waste.
- Expect some size variation between roaches. They aren’t like most other insects that grow quickly at uniform rates. Crickets are a good example of uniform growth. Dubia roaches also vary by feeding status. Their bodies elongate when they eat and shrink when they’re hungry. This is another reason to underestimate the size you need. If you go with the largest size Dubia roach your animal can handle, you may end up with some that are too big. Choosing a smaller size gives you room for error.
- If necessary, we recommend looking at a ruler to refresh your view of what a quarter-inch, one-inch, etc, look like in person. People who haven’t measured anything in a while seem to tend to underestimate roach sizing when they go “by feel”.
- If you end up with roaches that are too big, you can shrink them. As mentioned above, Dubia roaches’ bodies elongate when they eat. It follows that they can be made smaller by withholding food and water for a few days or a week. If your animal won’t eat a stuffed roach because it’s too big, you may have better luck when it’s hungry and smaller. If you’re concerned about what this will do to the roaches, don’t worry. It won’t hurt them. They can survive weeks without water and months without food. Cockroaches are famous for this, actually.
- When you have the right size Dubia roaches, you can maintain their size by feeding them regularly and keeping them between 50ºF and 70ºF. They will still eat and drink, but they will grow much slower without the high heat they need for full growth and reproduction. At the lower end of this range, they may grow as much as ten times slower than when kept at their ideal temperature range.
- Species specific Dubia roach sizing is something we’ve addressed in various places on our website. For example, our article about bearded dragons and Dubia roaches provides information about how to choose the right size Dubia roach for your bearded dragon.
How we size our Dubia roaches
In choosing the right size for your animal, it may come in handy to know how we size our Dubia roaches. While seemingly straightforward, measuring Dubia roaches is part science and part art. There’s a technique to it, and experience matters. Small nuances can make a big difference in the final outcome — especially with the smaller sizes.
Generally, we measure their maximum body length, like when they are standing on flat ground. This is somewhat tricky because they like to curl up when handled and they have to be flattened out. This is where “art” and experience come in.
We aim for accuracy and consistency in our measurements. However, the nature of insects and other living animals is that there will always be some error in measurement. Of course we do what we can to minimize this, but when there is error, we try to err on the side of too small. This is because roaches that are too big for an animal are usually useless as feeders, while ones that are too small are not. They can be fattened up by feeding, grown out over days or weeks, or fed to animals as-is.
As we’ve mentioned, Dubia roaches that are too large can be “shrunk” by withholding food and water for a short time. Just as their bodies elongate when they eat, they retract when they’re hungry. We see this as kind of a last resort though. The potential for growing out small roaches is much greater than it is for shrinking large ones.
If you find a size to be too small, you can always size them up the next time. When you’re completely unsure, you can order a small quantity (like 25) of the size you think would work best, or you can try a Dubia roach size sampler, which we created for this purpose. Each one contains a small number of roaches in two consecutive sizes. You can feed them to your animal and observe which size works best for them.
So these are our basic tips for how to pick the right size Dubia roaches. As we said, it’s pretty simple, and we hope this information makes it even easier.
Have a question?
If you have a question, please feel free to ask! You can use the comment form below.
Sar says
Is the width between the eyes thing for the width of the dubia or the length?
DRD says
You want to consider the largest measurement, which is length in most cases. Sometimes small Dubia roaches (and big ones when unfed) can be round. In these cases, you can measure any way you like. However, when they are longer than they are wide, use length as your measure.
Tyana says
What size do I need for a baby bearded dragon?
DRD says
Newborn bearded dragons typically start on 1/4-inch Dubia roaches. However, they grow very fast and move through sizes quickly. The best way to decide what size Dubia roach your animal needs is to measure the distance between its eyes. This distance is generally considered the maximum size roach you should feed an animal if you’re concerned about safety. Monitor this measurement as your beardie grows and adjust the size of the Dubia you give it when necessary.
Theresa says
Hi! What size do you recommend for a juvenile Savannah monitor?
DRD says
A wild guess is going to be 1-inch or larger, but it’s going to depend on the monitor’s size.
The standard advice is to measure the distance between the eyes and start with a small number of roaches that would fit comfortably in that space, based on your measurement.
What you want to avoid is a situation where the roaches are too big and the animal struggles to swallow them. That’s hard to imagine with a monitor, but to be safe, start with the measurement and go from there. When you see the animal eat you’ll know pretty quickly whether or not you need to move up a size.
Kasey says
Have a 3 year old beardie, she is roughly 16 inch’s long from head to tail. & A little over weight. What size roaches should I get for her and how many a day?
DRD says
The way to figure out which size Dubia you need is to first estimate the maximum size roaches for your beardie. You can do this by measuring the distance between its eyes. Buy some roaches that are slightly smaller than your measurement, feed them to the beardie, and see how it goes. It’s really hard to guess how many it will eat because that depends on a variety of things. Bearded dragons are omnivores that require both insects and vegetation, and very often how many insects they eat depends on how much vegetation they’re also eating.
Dave says
What size roaches for an almost 1 year old bearded dragon? Also, how many should I feed her a day?
Thank you.
DRD says
It depends on the animal’s size. A typical bearded dragon around that age can probably handle 1-inch Dubia, and maybe larger.
To know for sure, measure the distance between the eyes and make that the maximum roach size. However, if you’re testing out sizes, you might want to start a bit smaller just to be safe. You can go up in size if you need to. We have Dubia Roach Size Samplers if you want to test out a small number of roaches in two different sizes, or you can just start with a small quantity and adjust from there.
How many roaches to feed per day will depend on many things, including the size of the roaches, the size of the animal, and the animal’s appetite & dietary composition. This is one of those things you have to test to find out, given your unique animal and situation.
Angie says
What size Dubia do you recommend for a small green anole?
DRD says
Green anoles are small, so ¼-inch Dubias are the most obvious choice. However, if you meant a small green anole, you might consider Minis to start, or a Mini + ¼-inch Size Sampler.
JJ says
I have a spotted Leopard Gecko that is about 6.5 to 7 inches long. How large should I get the Dubia Roaches? I was going to order 5/8 inches. Is that the correct size?
DRD says
Based on your description, a ballpark guess would be in the ½-inch to ¾-inch range.
A general rule of thumb for feeding Dubia roaches and other insects to reptiles is to limit the size of the insect to the width of the space between the animal’s eyes. So if this is ⅝-inch for your gecko, that’s probably a safe size. You could even start with something slightly smaller to be sure your gecko can manage it safely.
Feeder size is often one of those things you have to try firsthand to really know what works best. If you err, do so on the side of caution (i.e. too small). If you want to try a few sizes, a ½-inch & ¾-inch Size Sampler seems like a good choice.
Caitlyn says
What size would you recommend for a three inch long house gecko and a 3-1/2 inch long leopard frog?
DRD says
For both the house gecko and the leopard frog, consider starting with a Mini + quarter inch size sampler. The Leopard frog will almost certainly need Minis. The gecko will probably be able to handle Minis without issue and may be able to manage ¼-inchers. You can place a larger order once you see for yourself how the animals manage those sizes.