Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Schrank), was reared on three different kinds of food under laboratory conditions at 25 ± 1°C. Its life  cycle averaged 14.39 and 16.04 days: 13.34 and 14.43 days 15.26 and 16.91  days for  male and female  when fed on egg masses of the root knot nematode, Meloidogvne incognita (Kofoid and White) Chitwood, dry cheese and yeast, respectively. Female life  span averaged 39.78, 42.52 and 44.00 days: while that of male was 24.34, 23.47 and 27.82 days on the previously mentioned food, respectively. The highest R_o value 288.22 of expected female progeny per female was obtained with yeast, followed by 196.34 and 65.59 for dry cheese and M. incognita egg masses, respectively. The intrinsic rate of natural increase (r_m) and subsequently, the finite rate of increase (e^rm)  averaged 0.236-1.26; 0.224 - 1.25 and  0.187 - 1.20 when T. putrescentiae was provided with cheese, yeast and M. incognita egg masses, respectively.