This study evaluates the effect of plant oils on the caterpillars of Spodoptera frugiperda. The oil obtained from Cymbopogon citratus had the lowest median lethal concentration (LC50=0.19 µL/cm²) in comparison with the other treatments. The contact test demonstrated that Zengiber officinale was the most efficient with a median lethal dose (LD50 ) of 0.55 µL/larvae. In the repellency tests, the caterpillars showed a for rice leaves treated with 0.1 and 1% of the oil of Artemisia absinthium, 24 and 48 hrs after the application treatment. The treatments with the oils of Mentha sp., Tanacetum vulgare, Ruta graveolens and Z. officinale at 0.1% did not differ from the control. Thus, among the essential oils studied in this work, the most promising for the control of larvae of S. frugiperda were Z. officinale and C. citratus, the former being more efficient.