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Yellow Sac Spider (Cheiracanthium inclusum)
Identify it, prevent it, and know when to call. A South Florida guide from Pro-Spray.
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What Is a Yellow Sac Spider?
Yellow sac spiders don't build webs to catch prey. They hunt at night and spend the day in a small, tube-like silk pouch tucked into a corner or fold. Outdoors they live on plants and come inside as the weather changes or when they wander in through gaps. Because they roam across beds and clothes at night, they're a common source of bites.
How to Identify Them
Look for a small, pale, almost glossy spider with no obvious pattern, long front legs and dark "lipstick" tips on the jaws. People sometimes mistake them for a brown recluse, but sac spiders lack the violin mark and the brown recluse isn't established in South Florida.
Life Cycle
Females lay eggs inside their silk retreats, often in late spring or summer, and guard them. Spiderlings disperse after hatching. Adults can live for about a year, so you may see them through every season in our climate.
Look-alikes and How to Tell Them Apart
- Brown recluse: has a dark violin shape on its back and six eyes; not established in South Florida.
- Common house spider: builds tangled cobwebs and has a rounded, patterned abdomen.
- Wolf spider: larger, hairy and brown with stripes, running on floors rather than walls and ceilings.
- Cellar spider: very long, thin legs and hangs in loose webs.
Where They Hide in South Florida Homes
Ceiling corners, behind picture frames and curtains, inside window frames and sliding door tracks, in stored clothes and shoes, and in folded towels. Outdoors, they shelter in foliage near doors and windows, then wander in at night.
When to Call a Pro
Call if you're finding silk sacs in several rooms, waking up with unexplained bites, or seeing these spiders often indoors. A doctor should check any bite that worsens.
Signs of Yellow Sac Spiders
- Small white silk sacs in ceiling corners or window frames
- Pale spiders crawling on walls or ceilings at night
- Unexplained single bites after sleeping or dressing
Is it dangerous?
- Bites
One of the spiders most likely to bite people in homes; bites are painful but usually minor.
Prevention Tips
- Shake out clothes, shoes and towels that have been sitting.
- Move beds a few inches from the wall and keep bed skirts off the floor.
- Vacuum corners and remove the sacs.
- Seal gaps around windows and doors and fix torn screens.
How Pro-Spray Treats Yellow Sac Spiders
We inspect for sacs and entry points, remove webbing and sacs we can reach, and treat cracks, eaves, window frames and the home's perimeter, plus targeted indoor spots. Cutting down the insects they hunt helps too. Our Bug Free Guarantee: If pests come back between visits, so do we, at no extra cost.
New customer offer
$50 OFF your first service
+ FREE inspection
Then stay protected with our $125 quarterly pest control plan, about $42/month.
New customers only. No code needed and no expiration. Mention this offer when you call or text.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are yellow sac spider bites dangerous?
Why do I find them on the ceiling?
Is this a brown recluse?
Reviewed October 2026 by Pro-Spray's family-run team
Pests don't wait.
Protect your home today.
Get $50 OFF your first pest service and a FREE inspection & estimate. Ongoing protection is $125 quarterly (about $42/month), with no contracts and no cancellation fees.
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