The present study evaluated the efficacy of Maxforce gel baits containing 0.01% fipronil (Maxforce), 0.05% fipronil (Maxforce Magnum), 1.0% clothianidin (Maxforce Impact), and 0.6% indoxacarb (Avion gel bait; all from Bayer Environmental Science, Clayton, CA, USA) against reference and wild strains (Mobasher, Andisheh, Tamin‐e Ejtemaei, and Maskoni) of German cockroach collected in 2016. Test design and bait placement were according to World Health Organization (WHO) procedures for efficacy achieving a 95% mortality rate. Although cockroaches fed on all gel baits, gel baits containing clothianidin and indoxacarb were eaten at higher rates than gel baits containing 0.01% and 0.05% fipronil. The cumulative mortality rates reached 100% for all cockroach strains at 32, 28, 28 and 40 h after eating baits containing 0.01% fipronil, 0.05% fipronil, clothianidin, and indoxacarb, respectively. Efficacy (a 95% mortality rate) after exposure (consumption) of gel baits containing 0.05% fipronil and clothianidin was seen after 28 h, compared with 32 h for 0.01% fipronil and 40 h for indoxacarb. In conclusion, commercial gel baits have improved and may be more effective than spray formulations against German cockroaches.