Bedbugs can show up anywhere—urban, suburban or rural
Each summer, as Americans disperse across the country for concerts, festivals, and vacations, they carry with them an invisible risk that no hotel star rating can fully guard against. For the fifth consecutive year, Chicago leads Orkin's national rankings for bedbug treatments — a distinction that speaks less to any single city's failure than to the restless, interconnected nature of modern travel. The insects are patient, small, and indifferent to geography, and the data trailing behind them maps not just where people sleep, but how freely and how far they move.
- Chicago holds the top spot on Orkin's 2026 bedbug rankings for the fifth straight year, with Los Angeles, Detroit, Cleveland, and Indianapolis close behind — a roster that doubles as a map of America's busiest travel corridors.
- Nashville and Oklahoma City each climbed ten spots year-over-year, signaling that the problem is actively spreading rather than settling into familiar patterns.
- Competing analyses complicate the picture: a separate report ranks Michigan as the highest-risk state and Warren, Michigan as the worst city, suggesting the data reflects methodology as much as reality.
- Experts warn that urban-heavy rankings obscure a quieter crisis — rural residents face the same infestations but far fewer resources to fight them.
- With summer travel peaking, travelers are urged to inspect mattress seams and upholstered furniture before unpacking, treating every hotel room as a potential point of transfer.
For the fifth year running, Chicago wears the title no city wants: America's bedbug capital, according to Orkin's annual treatment data. Los Angeles, Detroit, Cleveland, and Indianapolis follow close behind. The rankings arrive at the height of summer travel season, when millions of people are moving through hotels, festival grounds, and sporting venues — precisely the conditions under which bedbugs thrive.
The insects are small, nearly invisible, and effective travelers in their own right. They hide in mattress seams and upholstered furniture, feed on blood, and hitch rides in luggage and clothing. An infestation brought home can take months and significant money to eliminate.
Orkin's data, drawn from May 2025 through May 2026, shows the problem is neither static nor geographically predictable. Nashville and Oklahoma City each jumped ten spots year-over-year, while Youngstown, Omaha, and Knoxville saw notable declines. A separate analysis combining multiple data sources ranked Michigan as the highest-risk state overall, with Warren, Michigan topping its city list — a reminder that the rankings shift depending on how you measure them.
Scholars urge caution in interpreting these lists. University of Kentucky entomologist Zachary DeVries notes that urban areas naturally surface more cases because people live in closer proximity, while rural residents may face equal infestations with far less access to professional treatment. Virginia Tech's Dini Miller adds that rankings may reflect travel patterns as much as actual bedbug density.
The practical guidance for summer travelers remains simple: before unpacking, check mattress seams, headboards, and upholstered furniture. A lint roller on luggage before departure can help ensure the trip ends where it began.
Chicago has reclaimed the unwelcome crown it has worn for five years running: the American city where pest-control companies field the most bedbug calls. As summer travel season accelerates and millions of people book hotels for concerts, festivals, and sporting events, Orkin's latest annual ranking places the Windy City at the top of a list nobody wants to lead, followed by Los Angeles, Detroit, Cleveland, and Indianapolis.
The insects themselves are small, nearly invisible, and relentless. They feed on blood, hide in the seams of mattresses and the folds of upholstered furniture, and cause itchy welts, skin irritation, and sometimes allergic reactions in their hosts. They travel well—hitchhiking in luggage, on clothing, in the crevices of shoes. For travelers, they represent a particular kind of dread: the possibility of bringing home an infestation that can take months and hundreds of dollars to eradicate.
Orkin's rankings, released this summer, are based on treatment data collected from May 2025 through May 2026 across residential and commercial properties. The company found that many of the cities with the worst bedbug problems are also among the nation's most popular tourist destinations. Tampa and Myrtle Beach, both major vacation draws, reported increased activity. Nashville and Oklahoma City each jumped ten spots on the list year-over-year, suggesting the problem is neither static nor confined to the usual suspects. Youngstown, Omaha, and Knoxville, by contrast, saw some of the largest declines.
A separate analysis by casino.ca, which combined Orkin and Terminix treatment data with TripAdvisor reviews, social media posts, and other sources, painted a slightly different picture. That report ranked Michigan as the highest-risk state, followed by Ohio, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Warren, Michigan topped the city rankings, with North Las Vegas and Madison, Wisconsin also appearing among the worst hot spots. Hawaii and Oregon ranked lowest.
But experts caution against reading too much into these lists. Zachary DeVries, an associate professor of urban entomology at the University of Kentucky, points out that rankings like these can create a misleading impression—that bedbugs are an urban problem, period. In reality, he says, the insects turn up in rural areas, suburbs, and cities alike. The difference is visibility and resources. Urban areas, where people live closer together, naturally see more infestations simply because the insects have more hosts to move between. Rural residents, meanwhile, may struggle to find pest-control services at all, making it harder to eliminate an infestation once it takes hold.
Dini Miller, a professor of urban pest management at Virginia Tech, offers another perspective: cities get attention for bedbugs when travelers arrive and start looking for them. The ranking, in other words, may say as much about where people are traveling as where bedbugs actually are.
For those heading out this summer, the advice is straightforward. Before unpacking, inspect the mattress seams, the underside of the headboard, and any upholstered furniture in your room. A sticky lint roller can help detect bedbugs on clothing and luggage before you leave. The goal is simple: enjoy your trip, but don't bring the bedbugs home.
Notable Quotes
These year-over-year changes highlight the persistent and evolving nature of bedbug activity across the nation.— Orkin
Bedbugs can show up anywhere—urban, suburban or rural. Those in rural areas may have less access to good pest control services and thus may find it more difficult to get rid of bedbugs.— Zachary DeVries, associate professor of urban entomology, University of Kentucky
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does Chicago keep showing up at the top of this list year after year?
Orkin's data is based on the number of treatments they performed, so it reflects where they're getting the most calls. Chicago is a major hub—lots of hotels, lots of travelers, lots of movement. That creates opportunity for the insects.
But does that mean Chicago actually has more bedbugs than other cities, or just that more people are looking for them there?
That's the real question, and it's why some experts are skeptical of these rankings. A bedbug in rural Pennsylvania is just as real as one in Chicago. The difference is that the rural resident might not have access to a pest-control company, so it never gets counted.
So the rankings could be misleading?
They could be. They're useful for travelers—they tell you where to be extra vigilant. But they don't tell the whole story about where bedbugs actually live in America.
What should someone actually do if they're staying in a hotel in one of these cities?
Check the mattress seams, the headboard, the furniture. Use a lint roller on your clothes and luggage before you pack them back up. It takes five minutes and could save you months of dealing with an infestation at home.
How bad is a bedbug infestation, really?
It's not dangerous in the way a disease is, but it's miserable. The bites itch intensely. Some people have allergic reactions. And getting rid of them once they're in your home requires professional treatment, heat treatments, sometimes multiple visits. It's expensive and stressful.