The best way to prevent midge bites is to wear EPA-registered insect repellent, especially if you're wearing clothes that expose large areas of skin. Biting midges can't bite through clothes, but they can get underneath them. When enjoying outdoor activities, like hiking, it's best to wear long sleeves or pants.

Generally, biting midges cannot bite through clothing, as their mouthparts are designed for piercing skin rather than penetrating fabric fibers. Unlike mosquitoes, which can sometimes poke through thin, tight-fitting spandex or leggings, midges are too small and lack the physical leverage to get through most standard clothing. However, a "high-fidelity" warning for travelers in midge-heavy areas (like the Scottish Highlands) is that midges are experts at finding gaps. They will crawl under loose sleeves, down collars, and up pant legs to reach exposed skin. To be effectively "midge-proof," you should wear long sleeves and trousers made of a tight weave, and ideally, tuck your trousers into your socks and your shirt into your waistband. In 2026, many outdoor enthusiasts also use insect-repellent-treated clothing (Permethrin) which provides a "high-fidelity" chemical barrier, ensuring that even if the midges find a way to land on your clothes, they are deterred before they can crawl toward a gap in your defenses.