Choosing Decor and Hides for a Leopard Gecko Enclosure
Hide sizing
A hide that's too large and open doesn't provide the same sense of security as one where a gecko's body makes contact with the walls and ceiling — snug-fitting hides are consistently preferred over spacious, open ones for reducing stress.
Materials
Cork bark rounds and flats, resin or ceramic reptile hides, and half-log style hides are all common safe choices. Avoid anything with sharp edges, small ingestible pieces, or unknown chemical treatment.
Secure any heavy decor
Rock stacks, branches, or any climbing structure should be secured so they can't shift or collapse — a falling piece of decor is a real injury risk in a small enclosure.
How much cover is enough
More visual cover generally correlates with a less stressed gecko. A gecko should never have a clear line of sight across the entire enclosure with nowhere to retreat — background decor on at least the back and sides helps with this even beyond hides themselves.
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A single adult leopard gecko needs a 20-gallon long tank as an absolute minimum, with a 36x18 in (40-gallon breeder) footprint now considered the recommended standard — plus a secure lid, an under-tank heater on a thermostat, a thermal gradient, at least three hides, and a shallow water dish.
Set up in this order: substrate, then heat source wired through a thermostat, then hides and water dish, then decor — and run the whole enclosure for at least 24–48 hours to confirm stable temperatures before your gecko moves in.
Hatchlings can start in a 10-gallon tank or tub, juveniles do well in 20 gallons, and adults need a 20-gallon long as an absolute minimum — with 36x18 in (40-gallon breeder) now the widely recommended standard, not just an upgrade.
Heat a leopard gecko enclosure with an under-tank heater and/or overhead heat source (halogen or deep heat projector) wired through a thermostat — a thermostat is mandatory, not optional, and heat rocks should never be used.
Leopard geckos can survive without UVB using dietary D3 supplementation, but current husbandry guidance now recommends low-level UVB (roughly 2–6% T5) as best practice — it improves D3 synthesis, bone density, and natural behavior, and views on it have shifted significantly from older nocturnal-species advice.
Keep ambient humidity around 30–40% across most of the enclosure, with a dedicated humid hide raised to roughly 70–80% to support smooth, complete sheds.