SPECIES CARE GUIDE

Leopard Gecko Care Guide

Leopard geckos are one of the most popular pet reptiles in the UK, valued for their docile nature and manageable size. They are not entirely maintenance-free, though – a proper thermal gradient, the right diet and a suitable substrate all matter for a long, healthy life. This guide covers what is involved, from setup through to daily care.

Before you get one

A leopard gecko is a genuine long-term commitment, not an impulse purchase. Before bringing one home, it is worth being realistic about what is involved.

• Commitment & lifespan: with attentive care, leopard geckos commonly live 10–20 years, and some well-cared-for individuals live longer still – reputable sources vary on the exact top end (RSPCA UK: up to 20 years; specialist keeper resources: often 15–20+ years), so treat any single figure as a general guide. Even the lower end is considerably longer than many first-time keepers expect from a small lizard.
• Enclosure space: adults need a genuinely large floor area (see Enclosure, below) – a small starter tank is fine only as a short-term juvenile setup.
• Ongoing costs: beyond the initial setup, expect ongoing costs for electricity (a heat mat and any lighting run for long hours daily), live food and supplements.
• Live food: you will need a reliable supply of appropriately sized live insects – regular shopping or ordering, plus some hands-on prep such as gut-loading.
• Veterinary access: not every vet treats reptiles. Before getting one, it is worth checking there is an exotics-experienced vet within reasonable reach.
• Handling expectations: many leopard geckos become tolerant of gentle, regular handling, but this varies by individual and takes time to build.
• Suitability for children: geckos can be part of a family household, but day-to-day husbandry and handling should be an adult’s responsibility rather than a child’s alone.

Enclosure

Getting the enclosure right is the foundation of good husbandry – it shapes how easily you can maintain the heat gradient and space a leopard gecko needs.

• Minimum size: recommended minimums vary by source. RSPCA UK gives 60 x 40 x 30cm (length x height x depth) as a minimum for one adult, while specialist husbandry resources such as ReptiFiles recommend considerably more floor space – around 36in x 18in x 18in (91 x 46 x 46cm), at least 4.5 sq ft. Leopard geckos are ground-dwelling, so floor space matters far more than height, and where budget and space allow, more floor area than the bare minimum is generally better for this reason.
• Ground-dwelling by nature: unlike some arboreal species, leopard geckos spend almost all their time at ground level, so a low, wide enclosure suits them better than a tall one.
• Ventilation: adequate airflow matters for keeping humidity localised to the humid hide rather than the whole enclosure – a screened lid or vents help prevent the entire setup running too damp.
• Secure doors: sliding or hinged doors should close securely.
• Hides: provide at least three hides – a warm hide, a cool hide, and a humid hide (see Water & hydration, below) – so your gecko can thermoregulate and shed without added stress.
• Furnishing: rocks, cork bark and branches should be secured so nothing can shift or topple, with no sharp edges.
• Avoiding overcrowding: adult male leopard geckos are territorial towards other males and should never be housed together; even male–female or female–female pairings need careful consideration and space.

Juveniles are often started in a smaller rearing setup, but they grow quickly and should move into a fully sized adult enclosure well before adulthood.

Heating & temperature

Leopard geckos cannot regulate their own body temperature internally, so they rely entirely on an external gradient with a genuine warm basking area and a cooler zone to stay healthy.

• Basking surface: aim for roughly 34–36°C (94–97°F) directly over the heat source, measured at the surface itself with a probe thermometer or infrared gun rather than relying on air temperature nearby. This is a surface reading, not an air temperature – RSPCA UK, by comparison, cites a basking-zone figure of 28–30°C, which appears to describe ambient air rather than surface heat, so the two figures are not directly comparable. Always check which type of reading any temperature guidance refers to before applying it.
• Warm hide: a hide placed over or beside the heat source should sit around 32–33°C (90–92°F), giving a slightly less intense option than the open basking spot.
• Cool end: the cool side should read noticeably lower than the basking area – commonly cited as roughly 21–25°C (70–77°F) for ambient air, though RSPCA UK gives a slightly warmer range of 24–26°C – so your gecko has a genuine choice along the gradient. If you follow RSPCA’s narrower range, make sure the basking end still offers a clearly warmer option so a real gradient exists.
• Nighttime drop: a nightly temperature drop is generally considered healthy, though sources differ on how low is acceptable. RSPCA UK recommends supplementary heat once the room falls below 18°C, keeping the enclosure around 18–20°C overnight, while other keeper resources consider a fall to around 16°C (60°F) tolerable without added heat. If you’re unsure which to follow, the more cautious RSPCA range is the safer default, particularly for juveniles, unwell or elderly geckos.
• Heat source: an under-tank heat mat covering roughly a third to a half of the floor area, controlled by a thermostat, is the standard approach – this leaves an unheated area for the gecko to fully escape the heat. Overhead heat (e.g. a low-wattage ceramic heater) can supplement air temperature in a cooler room.
• Thermostat use: a thermostat suited to your heat source is essential to prevent burns and overheating, and should be considered standard equipment rather than an optional extra.
• Measuring properly: use a digital probe thermometer at the actual basking surface and at the cool end – do not rely on the thermostat dial as a proxy for the temperature your gecko actually experiences.
• Safe positioning: heat sources should be guarded so your gecko can never make direct contact with them, and heat rocks are not recommended – they carry a real risk of burns.

UVB & lighting

Whether leopard geckos need UVB has long been debated, since they are crepuscular rather than strictly diurnal – but the guidance here has shifted in recent years.

• Historical view: leopard geckos were traditionally kept without UVB, on the assumption that a nocturnal or crepuscular species gained little from it and could get all its vitamin D3 from dietary supplementation.
• Current guidance: more recent research (including work by Oonincx and colleagues) has shown leopard geckos are capable of synthesising vitamin D3 from low-level UV exposure, and that geckos given access to UVB can maintain higher D3 levels than those relying on oral supplementation alone. The same research found dietary supplementation alone was still sufficient for normal growth over the first six months, with no outward signs of deficiency, so UVB is best understood as good practice and extra insurance rather than as something a leopard gecko cannot survive without. Many keepers and vets now recommend providing low-level UVB as a precaution rather than assuming it is unnecessary.
• A suitable approach: a low-output T5 HO tube, commonly in the 2–6% UVB range (Ferguson Zone 1, reflecting a shade-dwelling species that gets brief, filtered sun exposure), positioned so it covers part of the enclosure, leaving shaded retreat areas. RSPCA UK’s guidance targets a UV Index of roughly 0.7 in the basking zone, falling to close to zero in shaded hides – a UV index meter gives a far more reliable check than the printed percentage alone, since real-world output varies between products.
• Placement & distance: follow the manufacturer’s guidance for your specific tube – output varies between products – and note that mesh reduces output further, while glass or plastic blocks UVB almost entirely.
• Photoperiod: a consistent day/night cycle matters – commonly around 12–14 hours of light, run on a timer, mirroring a natural cycle.
• Lamp replacement: UVB output fades well before the visible light does, so tubes are commonly replaced roughly annually – check the guidance for your specific product.
• Supplementation either way: because the UVB debate is not fully settled and provision varies, most keepers continue to dust feeder insects with a vitamin D3-inclusive supplement even when UVB lighting is provided, rather than treating the two as interchangeable.

Substrate & flooring

Substrate choice for leopard geckos is another genuinely debated area of husbandry, particularly around the risk of impaction – so it is worth understanding the trade-offs rather than following one rigid rule.

• Easy-clean options: paper towel, newspaper or a reptile-safe tile surface are low-maintenance, simple to keep hygienic, and a sensible choice for juveniles or while a new gecko settles in.
• Naturalistic options: a fine, well-mixed excavator-clay-style substrate, or a bioactive soil-based mix packed to a reasonable depth, can look more natural and support some natural digging behaviour – these are generally better suited to experienced keepers.
• The sand debate: loose sand remains controversial. Some keepers and sources report it can be used safely for healthy adult geckos with good husbandry, while others recommend avoiding it altogether, particularly for juveniles, unwell geckos, or new arrivals not yet settled in and checked over. In practice, impaction is generally linked to poor husbandry – incorrect temperatures, dehydration, or an already-unwell gecko – rather than being an inevitable result of the substrate itself, though a non-loose option removes the question entirely if you would rather not weigh it up.
• What to avoid: calcium sand marketed as “safe if eaten,” walnut shell, and gravel are widely discouraged.
• Feeding setup: many keepers offer insects in a shallow dish rather than directly on the substrate, reducing the chance of substrate being ingested alongside food.
• Hygiene: whatever you use, it needs regular spot cleaning and a periodic full clean-out (see Cleaning & routine care, below).

Feeding

Leopard geckos are insectivorous, so unlike some other popular pet lizards, no fruit or vegetables are needed – the whole diet is live prey.

• Live insects: offer a rotation of appropriately sized feeders – crickets, mealworms, dubia or discoid roaches, black soldier fly larvae, and occasional waxworms or captive-bred hornworms as a treat. Avoid wild-caught insects, which can carry pesticides or parasites.
• Portion size: as a rough guide, insects should be no larger than the space between your gecko’s eyes.
• Gut-loading: feed your feeder insects a nutritious diet for a day or two before offering them, so your gecko benefits indirectly from what the insects have eaten.
• Supplementation: the right approach depends on whether you provide UVB. If UVB lighting is provided, your gecko can synthesise some of its own vitamin D3, so most exotics vets and specialist sources recommend dusting with a plain, D3-free calcium supplement at most feeds, using a D3-inclusive supplement more sparingly if at all – stacking dietary D3 on top of UVB-synthesised D3 risks hypervitaminosis D3. If UVB is not provided, use a calcium supplement that includes D3 more regularly, since diet is then the only D3 source. Either way, also keep a small dish of plain calcium powder available at all times for your gecko to self-regulate from, and follow your specific product’s instructions, as frequency varies between brands.
• Feeding frequency: this varies with age, and adult guidance varies by source too. Juveniles are typically fed daily, and sub-adults every other day or so. For adults, RSPCA UK recommends every other day, while some specialist keeper resources suggest every 3–5 days is sufficient for a well-conditioned adult – within that range, let appetite and how well-fed the tail looks (see below) guide you rather than following one fixed number.
• Tail as a condition guide: a healthy leopard gecko stores fat in its tail, so a full, evenly rounded tail is a good general sign of condition, while a thin or pinched tail can indicate it is underweight. Tail thickness is a useful clue, but not a definitive test on its own – weigh it alongside overall body shape, muscle tone, and how prominent the hip, spine and rib bones are, and check with an exotics vet if you’re ever unsure.
• Foods to avoid: fireflies (toxic), and any wild-caught or pesticide-exposed insects.

Water & hydration

Leopard geckos come from arid and semi-arid regions, so overall enclosure humidity should stay low – but a dedicated humid spot is still an important part of the setup.

• Drinking water: a shallow, sturdy water dish should be available at all times and refreshed daily – leopard geckos will drink from it readily.
• Overall humidity: aim broadly for 30–40% through most of the enclosure – a hygrometer is worth using rather than guessing, since overly damp conditions can contribute to respiratory or skin problems in an otherwise arid-adapted species.
• Humid hide: a separate hide with damp sphagnum moss or similar, kept at a much higher humidity (commonly cited around 70–80%), gives a spot to support shedding without raising humidity everywhere else. This is particularly important in the days around a shed.
• Signs hydration or shedding may need attention: retained shed – especially around the toes or tail tip – sunken eyes, or skin that looks unusually dry or wrinkled are all worth a closer look. If retained shed does not come away easily with a humid soak, it is best raised with an experienced reptile vet rather than pulled off by hand.

Handling & behaviour

Leopard geckos are generally considered a docile, manageable species, though individual personality varies, and they are more crepuscular than many keepers expect, being most active around dawn and dusk rather than throughout the day.

• Acclimatisation: give a newly settled gecko a week or two in its enclosure before starting regular handling, and keep the first sessions brief.
• Safe handling: support the body fully rather than gripping, and never pick a leopard gecko up by the tail – like many geckos, they can voluntarily drop it as a defence mechanism (tail autotomy), and while it will regrow, it is a stressful event best avoided.
• Session length: as a general guide, keep sessions to around 10–15 minutes to start (RSPCA UK’s figure), gradually increasing towards 20 minutes as trust builds, with rest days in between.
• Signs of stress: vocalising (a bark or squeak), tail waving or vibrating, and attempting to flee are all cues to end the session and try again another day.
• Individual temperament: not every gecko enjoys the same amount of handling, and some are simply more skittish than others – reading your own gecko’s preferences matters more than following a general rule.

Cleaning & routine care

• Spot cleaning: remove faeces and any leftover shed skin daily – it’s normal for a gecko to eat some of its own shed before you get to it, so don’t be concerned if there’s little to find.
• Food removal: take out any uneaten live insects the same day, so they do not stress or nibble at your gecko overnight.
• Water bowl: clean and refill daily.
• Humid hide: check and re-dampen as needed, generally every few days.
• Deeper cleaning: a full clean-out of substrate and furnishings roughly once a month (RSPCA UK’s guideline), or sooner if it looks or smells like it needs it, with everything disinfected before being replaced.
• Hygiene: reptiles can carry Salmonella. Wash your hands thoroughly after handling your gecko or anything in its enclosure.
• Simple records: keeping brief notes on feeding, cleaning and anything unusual makes it much easier to spot gradual changes early (more in Routine record keeping, below).

Health warning signs

Routine record keeping

Keeping a simple record of your gecko’s care makes it much easier to notice gradual changes – a slowly thinning tail or a lengthening gap between sheds is far easier to catch on paper than from memory.

• Feeding – what, how much, and how often
• Weight or tail condition, checked periodically
• Sheds – frequency and whether they were complete
• Faeces – frequency and appearance
• Behaviour – anything out of the ordinary
• Medication, if any is prescribed
• Vet visits and advice given
• UVB tube replacement dates (if used)
• Enclosure maintenance and cleaning

Equipment checklist

A practical starting checklist, grouped by category. This is general guidance on what you will need – not specific product recommendations, and not an affiliate list.

Related care

This guide sits alongside the rest of PetReptiles’ care resources.