Pest control in Columbus and the suburbs
Columbus pest control from a licensed local company
Bed bugs or roaches in the kitchen? Mice in the walls? Tell us what you're seeing and your ZIP. A licensed company that serves your area calls you back and sets a time to look.
Ask for an inspection and a written price before anything is treated. You shouldn't have to sign a year-long contract just to get a quote.
Licensed companies only: an Ohio Department of Agriculture pesticide business license. Check any license yourself
- Licensed companies onlyOhio Department of Agriculture pesticide license
- Free to askNo fee to you and no obligation
- Price before treatmentAsk for an inspection and a written price first
- LocalColumbus and the Franklin County suburbs
What a local company can handle
The Columbus pest year
How we built this- Avg. days with a daily mean of 50°F+ (NOAA, 2001 to 2025)
- Termite swarm season (spring)
- 5+ nights at 65°F or warmer: mosquito months
- 5+ freezing nights: mice move in
A bat in the bedroom or a raccoon in the house?
Call or text and say it's urgent. Keep kids and pets in another room until someone looks.
Renters and old houses
Bed bugs and roaches in rentals
About 56% of occupied homes in the 25 Columbus city ZIP codes we track are rented (Census ACS 2020 to 2024), and the University District and Short North turn over every August. Columbus residents asked the city to pick up bed bug infested items 2,201 times in 2024 and 2025, and filed 757 complaints about pests in rental property.
- Renting with pests in Ohio: what the landlord has to fix, and how to ask
- Move-in season and bed bugs: check the place before the boxes come in
- Rats and the city's 311 program: what the city treats outside, and what it does not
How it works
- Tell us what you're seeing. Use the form, or text a photo of the bug or the damage.
- A licensed local company calls you back. They ask a few questions and set a time to look.
- Ask for an inspection and a written price. Nothing is treated until you say yes.
Central Ohio Pest Pros is a referral service. The company that calls you does the inspection and the work, and sets its own prices.
What it usually costs
Published national price ranges, not quotes. The company that inspects your home gives you its own price before any treatment.
General pest control, one-time treatment
$50 to $500
This Old House, March 12, 2026
Termite inspection
$75 to $325
This Old House, June 17, 2026
Bed bug treatment, any method
$1,000 to $4,000
This Old House, March 12, 2026
Mice and other rodents
$180 to $600
This Old House, March 12, 2026
Wasp nest removal
$325 to $450
Fixr, January 31, 2025
Mosquito yard treatment, full season
$373 to $694
Fixr, December 31, 2025
Why Columbus homes see the pests they do
The bug season is shorter than in the South, but it's full. NOAA's daily record for John Glenn airport shows 216 days a year with a daily mean of 50°F or warmer (2001 to 2025), roughly when insects become active, and nearly every day from May through September qualifies. The median last spring freeze is April 16 and the first fall freeze October 29, about 189 frost-free days. This year ran warm: 215 such days through October 24, 2026, against about 201 by that date in an average year.
Then it gets cold. About 100 nights a year drop to freezing, and that is when mice look for a way inside, and so do stink bugs and lady beetles. City 311 rat requests peak in summer, June to August, when rats are out in alleys and yards.
The housing is old. About 35% of homes in the Columbus city ZIPs were built before 1960, and 56% of German Village's before 1940. Old foundations and shared walls in doubles are how mice and roaches get in, and how bed bugs move between units.
Insect-active days per month in Columbus (daily mean 50°F or warmer)
Rat requests to Columbus 311 by month (outdoor rats and rodent code complaints)
Columbus by the numbers
5,690
pest-related requests to Columbus 311 in 2024 and 2025: rats, bed bugs, rental pests, mosquitoes
216
insect-active days a year at John Glenn (daily mean 50°F+, NOAA 2001 to 2025)
35%
of homes in the Columbus city ZIP codes were built before 1960 (Census ACS 2020 to 2024)
290
Franklin County commercial applicators licensed for general pest control (ODA list, October 26, 2026)
Read this before you call
What pest control costs
Published price ranges for common jobs, from one visit to a termite treatment.
Renting with pests in Ohio
What Ohio law makes the landlord's job, and how to ask in writing.
Rats and the city's 311 program
What Columbus Public Health treats outside, and when you need a company.
Move-in season and bed bugs
How to check a campus-area rental and used furniture before you move in.
Bed bugs: heat or chemical?
What kills every stage, and when you can sleep in the bed again.
Common house bugs in Ohio
Fall invaders and basement bugs, and which ones need a pro.
Check an Ohio pest license
Look up the applicator and the category in two minutes.
Termite swarm season
Swarmers vs flying ants, and what to do the day you see them.
Areas we cover
Columbus neighborhoods and the Franklin County suburbs around them. If your town isn't listed, ask anyway.
How much does pest control cost in Columbus?
It depends on the pest and the house. Our cost guide lists published price ranges for the common jobs, with sources. The company gives you its own price before any treatment.
Why do Columbus homes get so many mice in the fall?
The cold comes fast. John Glenn airport averages about 100 nights a year at 32°F or colder, and the median first fall freeze is October 29 (NOAA, 2001 to 2025). Mice move toward warm buildings as nights cool, and older houses have more gaps to get in.
Does the City of Columbus get rid of rats?
Columbus Public Health treats rats outside, in yards, for addresses in the city, when you file a 311 request and the yard meets its conditions. It doesn't treat inside homes, and it doesn't treat apartment buildings or businesses. Our rat guide explains the steps.
How do I know the company is licensed?
Ohio pest control businesses need a pesticide business license from the Ohio Department of Agriculture, and the people who treat your home need a commercial applicator license. You can look up an applicator on the ODA website. Our license guide shows how. We only refer licensed companies.
Who will come to my house?
An independent, licensed pest control company that serves your ZIP code. Central Ohio Pest Pros is a referral service; we pass along your request so you don't have to call around.
Get the bugs out of the house
One request. A licensed local company. An inspection and a written price before any treatment.