Clove oil
Oils, clove
Clove oil is mostly eugenol, a phenol that repels insects at high strength in the lab but ships in real products at a fraction of a percent, more for scent than for protection. Its more consequential trait is how toxic it is to pets.
How it works
Eugenol, clove's main constituent, deters and can kill insects on contact and masks host cues with its strong odor. The effect is dose-dependent and fades fast, which matters because most clove-containing sprays use well under 1%.
Safety around dogs & cats
Clove oil is mostly eugenol, a phenol, and phenols are among the most dangerous compounds for cats, which cannot glucuronidate them; it can cause liver injury and collapse. Dogs are also at real risk. Do not apply it to any pet, and keep cats well away from treated skin and diffusers.
High confidence. Ratings from ASPCA Animal Poison Control, the Pet Poison Helpline, and published veterinary toxicology. This is general information, not veterinary advice. If your pet is exposed, call your vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435.
Mosquito protection by concentration: Clove oil
Complete protection time (dark = lower bound, light = upper bound) on the same 12 h scale used across the site. Modeled from published dose-response data in our research library.
The evidence
Lab screens from 1999 and 2005 show clove and eugenol repel mosquitoes at high concentrations, and CDC's 2024 reviews record only brief tick protection. None of that carries down to the 0.01-to-0.25% doses in products like Kinfield, Buggins, and Natrapel, where clove works as a fragrance and minor co-active.
- Toxicoses from essential oils in animalsReview
The Merck Veterinary Manual's reference on essential-oil poisoning in animals, explaining how pets are exposed (skin contact, grooming, inhalation) and why cats are the most vulnerable species.
- Repellent activity of essential oils to the Lone Star tick, Amblyomma americanum2024LabLimited evidence
A screen of natural and synthetic molecules for repelling lone star tick nymphs, run across three bioassay formats to see how much the test method changes the ranking. Its standout was a synthetic, chrysanthemic acid, far more potent than DEET, alongside a panel of essential oils.
- Efficacy of Unregulated Minimum Risk Products to Kill and Repel Ticks2024ReviewDefinitive evidence
A CDC review in Emerging Infectious Diseases asking whether the unregulated minimum-risk botanical products sold to kill and repel ticks actually work, against EPA-registered products. Its verdict: efficacy is wide-ranging, often poor, and unpredictable, and real skin-repellency data for them barely existed.
- Efficacy of unregulated minimum risk tick repellent products evaluated with Ixodes scapularis nymphs in a human skin bioassay2024LabWell-supported evidence
This study filled the exact gap the CDC review flagged: it measured, on human skin, how well eleven unregulated botanical tick repellents keep blacklegged-tick nymphs off, against DEET, across 6.5 hours.
- Repellent efficacy of 20 essential oils on Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and Ixodes scapularis ticks in contact-repellency assays2023LabWell-supported evidence
A New Mexico State University lab put 20 minimum-risk repellent ingredients through the same test at the same 10% strength, so the oils could be compared head to head instead of across studies that each used different doses and methods. The point was a like-for-like ranking of how long each one keeps Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and blacklegged ticks off skin.
- Comparative repellency of 38 essential oils against mosquito bites2005LabWell-supported evidence
A large laboratory screen ranking 38 essential oils by how well they stop Aedes aegypti biting treated human skin. It is one of the most-cited head-to-head botanical comparisons, and its main lesson is that most oils lose nearly all their repellency once diluted.
- Repellency of essential oils to mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae)1999LabWell-supported evidence
A controlled study measuring how long five essential oils, alone and in blends, keep mosquitoes from biting treated skin across a wide range of concentrations. It sets a clear hierarchy and shows these oils do nothing at low doses.
- Molecular basis for deficient acetaminophen glucuronidation in cats: an interspecies comparison of enzyme kinetics in liver microsomes1997Lab
A laboratory enzyme study that pinned down why cats handle phenolic compounds so poorly, comparing how liver enzymes from cats, dogs, humans, and other species process acetaminophen as a probe.
Products using it
Quantum Health
Buzz Away Extreme Spray
Citronella oil 0.98% · Clove oil 0.40%
Complete protection
Natrapel
Natrapel Essential Oil Insect Repellent
Cedarwood oil 1.50% · Clove oil 0.25%
Complete protection
Maggie's Farm
Maggie's Farm Natural Insect Repellent
Citronella oil 0.95% · Clove oil 0.50%
Complete protection
Kinfield
Golden Hour DEET-Free Mosquito Repellent
Citronella oil 10.00% · Clove oil 0.01%
Complete protection
Not recommended
No proven mosquito protection
BUGGINS
BUGGINS Original Insect Repellent
Clove oil 0.05% · Lemongrass oil 0.06%
Complete protection
Not recommended
Formula not fully disclosed +1 more
Heretic Parfum
The Entomologist Insect Repellent Spray
Cedarwood oil · Clove oil
Complete protection
Not recommended
Formula not fully disclosed +1 more
Skeeter Screen
Skeeter Screen 4 oz. Personal Spray
Cedarwood oil · Clove oil
Complete protection
Not recommended
Formula not fully disclosed +1 more
Sidebalm
Outside Balm
Cedarwood oil · Clove oil
Complete protection
Not recommended
Formula not fully disclosed +1 more
Bugvaya
Bugvaya Lemongrass Insect Repellent
Cedarwood oil · Clove oil
Complete protection
Not recommended
Formula not fully disclosed +1 more
Bugvaya
Bugvaya Cinnamon Sensitive Skin Insect Repellent
Cedarwood oil · Clove oil
Complete protection
Not recommended
Formula not fully disclosed +1 more
Bugvaya
Bugvaya Lemongrass Sensitive Skin Insect Repellent
Cedarwood oil · Clove oil
Complete protection
Not recommended
Formula not fully disclosed +1 more
SallyeAnder
SallyeAnder No-Bite-Me Bug Repellent Cream
Cedarwood oil · Clove oil
Complete protection
Not recommended
Formula not fully disclosed +1 more
Bugvaya
Bugvaya Cinnamon Insect Repellent
Cedarwood oil · Clove oil
Complete protection
Not recommended
Potentially not EPA compliant
Para'Kito
Para'Kito Mosquito Repellent Roll-On Gel
Citronella oil 2.475% · Clove oil 0.21%
Complete protection
Regulatory notes
EPA minimum risk (FIFRA 25(b)) approved active ingredient; matched to SRS registry entry.
Safety notes
Eugenol is a recognized skin and eye irritant and contact allergen with low leave-on limits set by IFRA and RIFM, so it needs heavy dilution. It is also dangerous to cats, which cannot clear phenols; see the pet-safety note below.