Orkin: Baltimore tops bed bug list

According to Atlanta-based Orkin Pest Control, Baltimore tops this year’s Top 50 Bed Bug Cities list. In the six years Orkin has released the bed bug city rankings, this is the first time Baltimore has made the Top 5, moving up nine spots since last year.

Four metro regions made the list for the first time this year: Las Vegas, Portland, Salt Lake City and Greensboro-High Point-Winston Salem. The list is based on Orkin treatment data from Dec. 1, 2015, through Nov. 30, 2016. Orkin’s parent company, Rollins Inc., reports a 10 percent increase in bed bug revenue over the past year. The ranking includes both residential and commercial treatments.

1. Baltimore (+9)
2. Washington, D.C. (+1)
3. Chicago (-2)
4. New York
5. Columbus, Ohio
6. Los Angeles (-4)
7. Detroit
8. Cincinnati
9. Philadelphia (-3)
10. San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose (+4)
11. Richmond-Petersburg, Va. (-2)
12. Raleigh-Durham, N.C. (-1)
13. Cleveland-Akron-Canton, Ohio (-1)
14. Indianapolis (+1)
15. Dallas-Ft. Worth (-2)
16. Atlanta (+3)
17. Houston
18. Buffalo, N.Y. (+2)
19. Charlotte, N.C. (-3)
20. Norfolk-Portsmouth-Newport News, Va. (+10)
21. Knoxville, Tenn. (+3)
22. Denver (-4)
23. Nashville, Tenn. (-1)
24. Pittsburgh (+5)
25. Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C.-Asheville, N.C. (-4)
26. Phoenix (-3)
27. Grand Rapids-Kalamazoo-Battle Creek, Mich. (+5)
28. Boston (-3)
29. Milwaukee (-3)
30. Champaign-Springfield-Decatur, Ill. (+12)
31. Hartford-New Haven, Conn. (+3)
32. Dayton, Ohio (-4)
33. Omaha, Neb. (+3)
34. Seattle-Tacoma (-6)
35. Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fla. (-4)
36. Charleston-Huntington, W.Va. (-1)
37. St. Louis (+3)
38. Cedar Rapids-Waterloo-Dubuque, Iowa (+3)
39. Myrtle Beach-Florence, S.C. (+11)
40. Syracuse, N.Y. (+6)
41. Louisville, Ky. (-2)
42. Greensboro-High Point-Winston Salem, N.C.
43. Lexington, Ky. (-10)
44. Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, Fla. (-6)
45. Kansas City, Mo. (-1)
46. Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (-3)
47. Salt Lake City, Utah
48. Honolulu, Hawaii
49. Las Vegas
50. Portland, Ore.

Orkin’s bed bug revenue is up more than 10 percent over last year. According to a 2015 “Bugs without Borders Survey” by the National Pest Management Association, nearly all (99.6 percent) of pest professionals nationwide have treated bed bugs in the past year, up from five, 10 and 15 years ago.

While the 50 metro areas listed above required the most Orkin treatments for bed bugs in 2016, Orkin has treated for bed bugs in all 50 states and around the world.