Feeding frequency is one of the most common questions new jumping spider keepers ask, and the answer depends almost entirely on the spider’s life stage. A first instar spiderling eating flightless fruit flies every day has completely different caloric needs and metabolic rates than a full-grown adult female Phidippus regius eating a cricket every 4 to 5 days. Overfeeding shortens lifespan and increases the risk of regurgitation and abdominal rupture from a distended abdomen. Underfeeding stunts growth in juveniles and weakens adults. This guide provides a feeding schedule broken down by age, with species-specific adjustments for the most commonly kept pet jumping spiders and clear guidance on pre-molt fasting, seasonal changes, and how to read your spider’s body condition.
How often should you feed a jumping spider spiderling?
Spiderlings (first through third instar, roughly the first 4 to 8 weeks of life) have the highest relative metabolic rate and the smallest energy reserves. They need to eat frequently to fuel rapid growth through successive molts.
First instar spiderlings: Feed every 1 to 2 days. Offer one or two Drosophila melanogaster (flightless fruit flies) per feeding session. First instar spiderlings are tiny, often 2 to 3 mm in body length, and melanogaster fruit flies are the only commercially available feeder small enough for them. Some keepers also use springtails (Collembola) as a first food, though springtails are less nutritionally dense than fruit flies (source: The Tarantula Collective).
Second instar spiderlings: Feed every 1 to 2 days. Continue with melanogaster fruit flies. Some larger second instar spiderlings from big species (Phidippus regius, Hyllus diardi) may begin accepting Drosophila hydei, the larger fruit fly species.
Third instar spiderlings: Feed every 2 days. At this stage, most spiderlings have grown enough to handle hydei fruit flies reliably. Offer 1 to 2 hydei per session. Remove uneaten flies after a few hours if the spiderling shows no interest, to prevent the flies from crowding and stressing the spiderling in its small enclosure.
The key indicator that a spiderling is being fed adequately is consistent molting on schedule. A well-fed spiderling molts every 1 to 2 weeks during early instars. If molting intervals stretch significantly beyond this range and the spiderling appears thin (shrunken abdomen), increase feeding frequency. If the spiderling’s abdomen looks distended and tight between feedings, reduce slightly.
How often should you feed a juvenile jumping spider?
Juveniles (roughly fourth through sixth instar, depending on species) are past the most fragile growth stage but are still growing and molting regularly. Feeding frequency decreases gradually as the spider gets larger.
Fourth and fifth instar juveniles: Feed every 2 to 3 days. Prey should transition from fruit flies to small crickets (pinhead to 1/8 inch), small Drosophila hydei, or other size-appropriate feeders. This is the stage where dietary variety becomes more practical because the spider is large enough to accept multiple feeder types. The complete diet guide covers all feeder options and sizing rules.
Sixth instar and sub-adult juveniles: Feed every 3 to 4 days. Offer one appropriately sized prey item per session. Sub-adults approaching their penultimate or ultimate molt often slow down their feeding voluntarily as they prepare for the final growth stage.
Juvenile jumping spiders are generally enthusiastic eaters. A juvenile that consistently refuses food outside of a pre-molt period may be experiencing environmental stress (temperature too low, enclosure too small, inadequate hiding spots) or a health issue. Investigate environmental factors first. The not eating troubleshooting guide covers the full diagnostic process.
How often should you feed an adult jumping spider?
Adults (final instar, sexually mature) have completed their growth and no longer molt. Their caloric requirements drop significantly compared to growing juveniles. Overfeeding at this stage is the most common nutritional mistake in jumping spider keeping.
Adult males: Feed every 4 to 5 days. Adult male jumping spiders are generally smaller than females, eat less, and have shorter lifespans. They may voluntarily reduce feeding as they age. A healthy adult male that eats one appropriately sized cricket or bottle fly every 4 to 5 days is well-maintained.
Adult females: Feed every 3 to 5 days. Females are larger, live longer, and have slightly higher caloric needs than males, particularly if they are producing egg sacs. A non-breeding female does well on one prey item every 4 to 5 days. A gravid (egg-carrying) female may benefit from feeding every 3 days to support egg production, but do not increase prey size, only frequency (source: Arachnoboards community breeding guides).
How to read your spider’s body condition
The abdomen is the primary visual indicator of feeding status:
Well-fed (ideal): Abdomen is plump and rounded, roughly as wide as the cephalothorax. The surface is smooth. This is the target body condition.
Underfed: Abdomen is visibly smaller than the cephalothorax, wrinkled, or sunken. Increase feeding frequency by one day (for example, from every 5 days to every 4 days) and monitor for improvement.
Overfed: Abdomen is distended, noticeably larger than the cephalothorax, and appears tight or stretched. The skin between abdominal plates may look thin. Reduce feeding frequency and reduce prey size. An overly distended abdomen is vulnerable to rupture from a fall, which is often fatal.
Checking abdomen shape before each feeding gives you a real-time gauge of whether the schedule is working. Adjust based on what you see, not on a rigid calendar.
Species-specific feeding schedule adjustments
While the age-based framework above works for most pet jumping spiders, individual species vary in size, metabolism, and prey preferences.
Phidippus regius (regal jumping spider)
Regius are the largest commonly kept species, with adult females reaching 15 to 22 mm body length. Their size means they can handle larger prey items and tend to eat more per session than smaller species. Adult regius do well on one medium cricket or bottle fly every 3 to 5 days. Juveniles and sub-adults are voracious eaters and accept a wide range of feeder sizes. Regius spiderlings grow quickly and may need slightly more frequent feeding than the generic schedule suggests during the first two instars.
Phidippus audax (bold jumping spider)
Audax are slightly smaller than regius (adult females 8 to 15 mm) and have similar dietary needs but consume proportionally smaller prey. Adult audax do well on small crickets or hydei fruit flies every 4 to 5 days. Their feeding enthusiasm is generally high, and they are less likely to refuse food outside of pre-molt periods compared to some other species.
Hyllus diardi (heavy jumping spider)
Hyllus diardi is a large subtropical species (adult females up to 15 to 20 mm) with higher metabolic demands due to the warmer temperatures they require (78 to 86 degrees Fahrenheit). Feed adult Hyllus every 3 to 4 days with appropriately sized crickets or bottle flies. Their larger body size means they transition to cricket-sized prey earlier in development than Phidippus species do.
Hasarius adansoni (adanson’s house jumper)
Adansoni are small (adult females 6 to 8 mm) and eat correspondingly small prey throughout their lives. Adults do well on hydei fruit flies or very small crickets every 3 to 4 days. Their small size means prey sizing is especially critical. A cricket that looks “small” to a regius keeper may be too large for an adansoni.
How long do jumping spiders fast before molting?
Pre-molt fasting is normal behavior, not a feeding problem. As a jumping spider prepares to molt, it stops eating and retreats to its web hammock. The fasting period varies by age:
Spiderlings: Pre-molt fast of 1 to 3 days. Spiderlings molt frequently and their pre-molt periods are short.
Juveniles: Pre-molt fast of 3 to 5 days. As the spider grows, the gap between the last meal and the actual molt lengthens.
Sub-adults approaching their final molt: Pre-molt fast of 5 to 10 days. The penultimate and ultimate molts are the largest physiological events in the spider’s life, and the spider’s body commits significant resources to the process.
During a pre-molt fast, do not attempt to force-feed or leave live prey in the enclosure. Live crickets left with a molting spider can injure or kill it. Remove uneaten prey and wait. The spider will resume eating 24 to 48 hours after completing the molt, once the new exoskeleton has hardened enough for the chelicerae to function.
Does feeding frequency change with temperature?
Yes. Jumping spiders are ectotherms, meaning their metabolic rate is directly influenced by ambient temperature. At the lower end of their comfort range (around 72 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit), metabolism slows and the spider needs less food. At the warmer end (80 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit), metabolism increases and the spider burns through calories faster.
If your spider’s enclosure runs warmer (in a heated room, near a window that gets afternoon sun), you may need to feed one day more frequently than the baseline schedule. If the enclosure is cooler (basement room, winter without supplemental heating), you may extend the interval by a day. Use the abdomen shape as your guide rather than adjusting the schedule based on temperature alone.
The temperature and humidity guide covers optimal ranges and seasonal management. The lighting guide addresses the light cycle’s role in activity patterns that also influence feeding behavior.
Common feeding schedule mistakes
Feeding every day as a default. Daily feeding is appropriate only for first and second instar spiderlings. For juveniles and adults, daily feeding leads to obesity and a shortened lifespan. The spider does not need to eat every day and is healthier with rest days between meals.
Using a rigid calendar regardless of body condition. A feeding schedule is a starting framework, not a fixed rule. If the spider’s abdomen is still full from the last meal, skip the scheduled feeding and check again the next day. If the abdomen looks deflated ahead of schedule, feed early.
Offering prey during pre-molt. Leaving live feeders with a fasting spider risks injury during the molt. If the spider has not eaten for several days and is hiding in its hammock, assume pre-molt and wait.
Not adjusting for species size. A small species like Hasarius adansoni on a Phidippus regius feeding schedule will be drastically overfed in terms of prey size, even if the frequency is identical. Always calibrate both prey size and frequency to the specific spider.
Frequently asked questions
Can you overfeed a jumping spider?
Yes. Chronic overfeeding leads to an obese spider with a distended abdomen that is prone to rupture. Obese jumping spiders also tend to be less active and have shorter lifespans than spiders maintained at a healthy body weight. If the abdomen consistently looks stretched and disproportionately large, reduce both feeding frequency and prey size.
Should you feed a jumping spider at a specific time of day?
Jumping spiders are diurnal hunters, so offering food during the “daytime” light period aligns with their natural activity cycle. Most keepers feed in the morning or early afternoon when the spider is active and alert. Feeding late at night when the spider has retreated to its hammock for rest typically results in the prey going uneaten.
What if my jumping spider only eats one type of feeder?
Some individuals develop strong prey preferences. A spider that only accepts fruit flies but refuses crickets is not nutritionally deficient as long as the fruit flies are gut-loaded, though variety is preferable. You can encourage acceptance of new feeders by offering them when the spider is hungrier (at the end of a normal feeding interval rather than the beginning) and by starting with smaller individuals of the new prey type. The feeder insects guide covers strategies for introducing new feeder species.
Do pregnant (gravid) jumping spiders need more food?
Yes. Gravid females producing egg sacs benefit from slightly more frequent feeding (every 3 days rather than every 4 to 5 days) with well-gut-loaded prey. The additional nutrition supports egg development. After the egg sac is laid, the female typically guards it and may eat less during the guarding period. Resume normal feeding frequency once she moves away from the sac.
Researched and written by the ExoPetGuides editorial team with AI-assisted drafting. All husbandry parameters and feeding recommendations independently verified against The Tarantula Collective care resources, Arachnoboards community breeding and feeding guides, and established jumping spider husbandry practices.
Disclaimer: This content is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional veterinary advice. Always consult a qualified veterinarian for any health concern about your pet. Care recommendations may vary based on species, individual animal, and local regulations.