How Long Do Cockroaches Live? Roach Lifespan Explained

There are many cockroaches species, and a few of them are household pests. However, all cockroaches have a different lifespan, so we will be only discussing household pests.

I will post the lifespan of German Roach, American Roach, Oriental Roach (aka waterbug without the space, Water Bug with a space is a different thing), Brown-Banded roach, Asian Roach, and Australian Roach. Let’s see how long do cockroaches live and what makes them so resilient.

Below is a summary of how long a roach can live under IDEAL conditions depending upon its specie:

Cockroach Specie	Baby Nymphs to Adult	Number of Molts	Adult to Death (Male)	Adult to Death (Female)	Total Lifespan
German Roach¹	90 Days	6-7 Molts	100-150 Days	190-200 Days	250-300 Days
American Roach²	168-786+ Days	10-13 Molts	100-450 Days	102-588 Days	800-1000 Days
Oriental Roach³	168-900 Days	7-10 Molts	35-180 Days	110-160 Days	270-1000 Days
Brown Banded Roach⁴	90-276 Days	6-8 Molts	130-315 Days	130-315 Days	220-570 Days
Asian Roach⁵	60-90 Days	6-7 Molts	40-80 Days	90-150 Days	150-220 Days
Australian Roach⁶	180-360 Days	10-12 Molts	90-120 Days	120-180 Days	300-540 Days

1.0 Table Showing Lifespan of Commonly found Cockroach Species

The total lifespan of a cockroach significantly varies with temperature, humidity, and food availability. Roaches can develop and complete their lifecycle quite fastly under ideal conditions. Also, note that the figures given above in the table are average lifespans of cockroaches.

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Table of Contents

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Roach Lifespan of Different Species

Different cockroaches have a different lifespan depending upon their origin, habitat, and evolution. Roaches appeared for the first time millions of years ago, and all species have evolved differently over the years.

Below is a comprehensive summary of each roach’s lifespan in days, weeks, and months.

German Cockroach Lifespan

A German cockroach hatches from an embryo in 28-30 days. A baby german roach will molt into 6-7 instar phases in 90 days to become an adult roach. An adult male roach will live an additional 100-150 days. A female german roach will live 190-200 days, and in this period, it will produce 4-6 egg sacks containing around 30-50 individual eggs.

German Roach	Days	Weeks	Months
Eggs to Nymphs	28-30 Days	4-5 weeks	1 Month
Nymphs to Adults	90 Days	10-13 Weeks	3-4 Months
Adults to Death (Male)	100-150 Days	14-21 Weeks	3-5 Months
Adults to Death (Female)	190-200 Days	27-30 Weeks	6-7 Months
Total Lifespan	250-300 Days	35-42 Weeks	8-10 Months

German Cockroach Lifespan in Days, Weeks, and Months

American Cockroach Lifespan

An American cockroach hatches from an embryo in 40-50 days. An American baby roach will molt into 10-13 instar phases in 168-786 days to become an adult roach. An adult male roach will live an additional 100-450 days. A female American roach will live 102-588 days, and in this period, it will produce 8-12 egg sacks containing around 14-16 individual eggs.

American Roach	Days	Weeks	Months
Eggs to Nymphs	40-50 Days	6-7 weeks	1-2 Months
Nymphs to Adults	168-786+ Days	24-100 Weeks	6-24 Months
Adults to Death (Male)	100-450 Days	14-70 Weeks	4-16 Months
Adults to Death (Female)	102-588 Days	14-84 Weeks	4-20 Months
Total Lifespan	250-300 Days	120-140 Weeks	26-36 Months

American Cockroach Lifespan in Days, Weeks, and Months

Oriental Cockroach Lifespan

An Oriental cockroach (Aka Water bug) hatches from an embryo in 42-81 days. A baby oriental roach will molt into 7-10 instar phases in 168-900 days to become an adult roach. An adult male roach will live an additional 35-180 days. A female Oriental roach will live 110-160 days, and in this period, it will produce 12-18 egg sacks containing around 16-20 individual eggs.

Oriental Roach	Days	Weeks	Months
Eggs to Nymphs	42-81 Days	6-12 weeks	1-3 Months
Nymphs to Adults	168-900 Days	24-130 Weeks	5-30 Months
Adults to Death (Male)	35-180 Days	5-26 Weeks	1-6 Months
Adults to Death (Female)	110-160 Days	15-23 Weeks	4-6 Months
Total Lifespan	270-1000 Days	38-140 Weeks	9-33 Months

Oriental Cockroach Lifespan in Days, Weeks, and Months

Brown Banded Roach Lifespan

A Brown Banded cockroach hatches from an embryo in 30-46 days. A baby brown-banded roach will molt into 6-8 instar phases in 90-276 days to become an adult roach. An adult male roach will live an additional 130-315 days. A female brown-banded roach will live 130-315 days, and in this period, it will produce 10-14 egg sacks containing around 10-16 individual eggs.

Brown Banded Roach	Days	Weeks	Months
Eggs to Nymphs	30-46 Days	4-6 weeks	1-1.5 Months
Nymphs to Adults	90-276 Days	13-40 Weeks	3-9 Months
Adults to Death (Male)	130-315 Days	18-45 Weeks	4-11 Months
Adults to Death (Female)	130-315 Days	18-45 Weeks	4-11 Months
Total Lifespan	220-570 Days	30-80 Weeks	7-19 Months

Brown Banded Cockroach Lifespan in Days, Weeks, and Months

Asian Cockroach Lifespan

An Asian cockroach hatches from an embryo in 28-30 days. A baby Asian roach will molt into 6-7 instar phases in 60-90 days to become an adult roach. An adult male roach will live an additional 40-80 days. A female Asian roach will live 90-150 days, and in this period, it will produce 4-6 egg sacks containing around 30-40 individual eggs.

Asian Roach	Days	Weeks	Months
Eggs to Nymphs	28-30 Days	4-5 weeks	1 Month
Nymphs to Adults	60-90 Days	8-13 Weeks	2-3 Months
Adults to Death (Male)	40-80 Days	5-12 Weeks	1-3 Months
Adults to Death (Female)	90-150 Days	13-21 Weeks	3-5 Months
Total Lifespan	150-220 Days	30-80 Weeks	5-7 Months

Asian Cockroach Lifespan in Days, Weeks, and Months

Australian Cockroach Lifespan

An Australian cockroach hatches from an embryo in 36-42 days. An Australian baby roach will molt into 10-12 instar phases in 180-360 days to become an adult roach. An adult male roach will live an additional 90-120 days. A female Australian roach will live 120-180 days, and in this period, it will produce 12-18 egg sacks containing around 20-26 individual eggs.

Australian Roach	Days	Weeks	Months
Eggs to Nymphs	36-42 Days	5-6 weeks	1-1.5 Month
Nymphs to Adults	180-360 Days	26-52 Weeks	6-12 Months
Adults to Death (Male)	90-120 Days	12-15 Weeks	3-4 Months
Adults to Death (Female)	120-180 Days	15-25 Weeks	4-6 Months
Total Lifespan	300-540 Days	42-77 Weeks	10-18 Months

Australian Cockroach Lifespan in Days, Weeks, and Months

What Effects a Lifespan of a Cockroach?

Ideally, a roach needs dark, moist, and damp places to survive; however, due to its adjustable qualities, it can pull through any kind of environmental conditions except when it gets too much to handle.

Here is the list of things that make a cockroach love to infest homes and buildings. The cockroach life expectancy depends on these factors.

Temperature vs a Cockroach Lifespan

The growth and lifespan of a cockroach are highly dependent on the temperature around itself. According to research by the University of Florida, adult American Cockroach females live about 440 days at ordinary room conditions(e.g. 70°F/20°C), but at 84°F/29°C, adult females live about 225 days.

Just an increase of 14°F/09°C can enhance the speed of its life cycle to complete quite quickly that a colder room temperature. Cockroaches do not like cold.

You may ask that isn’t living for long a better idea? For us humans, it’s yes. But insects try to reach adulthood and reproduce as fast as possible. So they envy a shorter lifespan.

Cockroaches infest homes mainly because it is warm inside. A temperature of about 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit is perfect for them to survive, whereas a temperature below 15 degrees Fahrenheit will kill roaches.

Therefore, a home is an excellent choice for roaches to nest. Roaches will try to be in warmer spots like the kitchen, basement, near electronic appliances, etc. Cockroaches can hide in small cracks and crevices in these spots.

Supply of Food vs Roach Life Cycle

A cockroach’s life cycle is great depending on the supply of food. Roaches will grow extremely fast if there is plenty of food available.

Cockroaches will eat almost any household item that they can get hands-on. Including bakery products, hair, soap, paper, glue, or even leather! Yet, organic matter such as dead plants or animals remains its favorite.

Roaches sleep and rest in the daytime and hunt for food in the dark. Yes, cockroaches can see in darkness.

Water & Humidity vs Cockroach Life Extectancy

Along with food and a suitable temperature, cockroaches charm a surrounding with more dampness, dirt, and moisture, which is why they are primarily found around the sewers, leaking pipes, or drains. Cockroaches can not survive for long without water.

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