Adults and larvae inhabit beehives, where they feed on stored pollen and honey. Combs are damaged and brood killed by the burrowing of the beetle larvae. Bees have been observed in Florida to abandon combs once they are infested by the beetles. As an infestation grows, the honey ferments, and bubbles out of the cells. The fermenting honey is said to have the odor of decaying oranges.
Pupae are white to brown and are found in the soil beneath hives.
In South Africa, development from egg to adult required 38 to 81 days, with five generations a year possible during the warmer months. Small hive beetles have been found in feral honeybee hives in Florida. They have been shown to attack bumblebee nests in the laboratory, and have been observed to survive winters in the hive inside the bee cluster. It is also established in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. It also has been found in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Minnesota.