Pyralidae is a large family of moths with a wide variety of larval life histories and diverse morphological structures. The subfamily Phycitinae is the largest subfamily of pyralid moths, and is notoriously difficult to identify or classify, prompting the use of molecular characters to understand the evolution of these taxa. Here we present the first molecular phylogeny for both the Phycitinae and Pyralidae, which is inferred from mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequences. Relationships among the genera will be discussed in relation to previous morphological treatments of Phycitinae. We will also examine the placement of the subfamily within Pyralidae, and briefly discuss the evolution of morphological structures and larval life history traits.