10 Best Electric Fly Swatters 2024 in the United States

During summertime, you want to leave the windows open, to let in fresh air. But that can also let in a lot of unwanted visitors, such as flies, mosquitoes, and other flying insects. You can try using foggers--fumigating insecticides that fill an entire room. Or you can just spray the room with bug spray with a few passes. But then you have to make sure the bug spray doesn’t come in contact with food, which is a hassle. The spray sometimes leaves an unpleasant residue as well.

If you want to get rid of flying pests without any insecticides, an electric fly swatter is a great alternative. Much like the stationary bug zappers that you see hanging around in public eateries or convenience stores, an electric fly swatter uses an electrified mesh to kill small insects. The shock can be painful to you or me--but to a tiny bug, it's fatal. The electric swatter is typically in the form of a paddle or tennis racket, which gives it a wide surface area to zap those bugs.

An electric fly swatter is actually better than the stationary zapper devices that attract flying bugs by means of a blue light that lures them in. This is because biting insects, such as mosquitoes, aren’t actually attracted to the stationary zappers. They’re are looking more for a living, breathing host that’s warm and exhales carbon dioxide. That’s why you have a better chance of hunting after them with a hand-held zapper. And, you’ll also have the satisfaction of hearing the little buggers fry when they get hit!

We’ve composed this buyer’s guide to help you make the right decision when selecting an electric fly swatter. It'll help you:

• Choose the right type of electric fly swatter,

• See useful tips about that particular type of electric fly swatter,

• Read reviews of different electric fly swatters, and what customers are saying,

• Select the right brand of an electric fly swatter, and

• Compare prices and find the best deals.

• 1-Layer Mesh: There are fly swatters where the electric grid in the racket is fully exposed. This has the advantage in that it will be more effective by killing insects on contact. On the other hand, it may be more of a hazard to the user, since it can give you a painful shock if you touch the grid. And definitely don’t try it on your dog or cat--they will not be pleased! An example is the Elucto Electric Mosquito Swatter.

• 3-Layer Mesh: These have the electric grid in between two protective layers of nylon mesh. These protective layers reduce the risk of you giving yourself a shock by coming in contact with the fly swatter. But the disadvantage here is that the swatter might not kill insects on the first strike, especially when dealing with large insects. They won’t come in contact with the holes in the mesh, and so they won’t really get any shock. The Koramzi Mosquito Swatters are made with this design, to be safe for children and pets.

Note: It is advised not to try to remove the protective nylon mesh layers from the device. That will make the device somewhat more effective in killing flying insects--but, you can also damage the wire mesh in the process. That could make the device inoperable--so it’s best to leave it intact.

• Lightweight enough for even children to use: The Zap-It! Mini Electric Mosquito Racket weighs 0.2 pounds and is smaller, making it suitable for even small children to swing it.

• Nice grip: Some customers were pleased with the Koramzi Mosquito Swatter, because of its nice grip, very much like a tennis racket. The switch is also conveniently located near your thumb so that you can turn the device on and off with ease. 

• Large surface area: The traditional fly swatter typically has a very small surface area: It is usually around 4 inches across, with a handle that is 1-2 feet long. On the other hand, these electric fly swatters have a large surface area, of around 12” across. This increases the chances of eliminating mosquitoes and flies with a single stroke.

• You can see that an electric fly swatter will offer almost twice the surface area.

Traditional Fly Swatter, by Willert Home Products. The surface area of the swatter is 4.25” x 6.5” = 27.6 square inches

Ostad Electric Fly Swatter, with a surface area of 6.29” x 7.36” = 46.29 square inches

• Investigate for which insects is it effective: Most of these fly swatters will be effective against mosquitoes. But for flies and other insect pests such as spiders or beetles, the larger insects might not come in contact with the electrified mesh, especially in the models with a protective mesh.

• LED light: Just like in a typical bug zapper, there are electric fly swatters that are equipped with a blue LED light. The blue lights tend to attract more insects, making it easier to kill them. However, some warn that it can all kill beneficial insects, such as bees. So you’ll have to exercise caution, by turning on the device only when an insect pest approaches.

• Power of the swatter: The power of the swatter will depend greatly on the number of watts at which the device operates. You will typically find swatters generating 2750-3000 Volts.

• Equipped with a flashlight: There are fly swatters that include a flashlight. This is good for use in a dark room since mosquitoes tend to be nocturnal and are active principally at night. They will hide in a well-lit room but will buzz around when you turn the lights off. A zapper with a dim flashlight can help you in such situations.

• Disposable or rechargeable batteries: Most of these devices provide thousands of volts of bug-killing power from just 2 “AA” batteries. However, you can always use rechargeable batteries, and keep the device charged at all times. The ZapIt! Mosquito Swatter Racket is supplied with its own rechargeable battery that can be recharged from a USB port.

• Bugzoff is a maker of pest control and repeller products. They make an ultrasonic device that repels pests such as roaches, rats, and ants. Their portable electric fly swatter can eliminate flying insects with a single strike.

• Elucto markets a number of electric bug swatters, for both indoor and outdoor use.

• Trapro makes a variety of pest control products, amongst them a humane trap for mice, rats, and other rodents, sticky traps for flying insects, bug zappers, cockroach traps, and more.

• Koramzi manufactures a range of electronics accessories, amongst them pest control devices and mobile phone equipment, such as screen protectors and earphones. Their mosquito swatters employ two protective nylon meshes so that you don’t give yourself a shock by accident.