Contact toxicities of five insecticides viz. malathion, demeton-s-methyl, cypermethrin, deltamethrin and fenvalerate applied to foragers of honeybee Apis mellifera (L.) and Apis cerana (F.) were established. Each insecticide was evaluated at three levels of concentrations for contact toxicity under laboratory conditions. The mortality of honeybees increased with increase in concentration and exposure time. No quick knockdown effect was observed in all insecticides tested. The order of toxicity of different insecticides after 8h of treatment was in the order: malathion > cypermethrin > demeton-s-methyl > fenvalerate > deltamethrin for A. mellifera and malathion > demeton-s-methyl > cypermethrin > fenvalerate > deltamethrin for A. cerana. All the insecticides were highly toxic to honeybees.