A female housefly lays her eggs in decaying organic material. Housefly eggs hatch into tiny larvae within 24 hours.
Housefly larvae, called maggots, go through three larval phases before building their pupal cocoons. The larval phase lasts about 4 to 13 days.
Housefly pupae complete their development inside of cocoons. The pupal phase typically lasts for 2 to 6 days.
Adult houseflies emerge from their cocoon and typically live for 15 to 25 days. Adult houseflies begin reproducing in 10 to 14 days.
A female housefly deposits up to 500 eggs in 4 days. Houseflies live longer in cooler temperatures.