Columbus, OH · Issue Report

Bed bugs in Columbus

The read computed from 138 reports · JAN 2025 – JUN 2026

Columbus logged about 140 bed bug reports in the last 18 months. That is a small slice of everything filed with code enforcement, which does not make any one of them small. Nearly every one is scored severe or critical. Inspectors treat these as habitability problems, not nuisances. Reports come in at the highest rates in Downtown (core). Reports come from more than a hundred different addresses and no block is immune. Check the specific address, not the neighborhood average.

138
reports on file
a small share of all complaints
Steady
2026 vs same months 2025
-9% so far this year
—
peak season
too few reports to call a season
Renting or buying

Renting or about to?

Bed bugs arrive with furniture, luggage, and turnover, not with weather or a bad block. The building’s treatment history matters more than its location.

Before you sign, ask whether any unit has had bed bugs and how it was treated. Check the mattress seams and outlet covers on the tour.

Check an address on the live map →
Right now

Dealing with it right now?

Report it to 311 with the address and unit. Every bed bug report in this data is scored severe, and inspectors treat them as a habitability problem.

Do not fog or self-treat blind. It scatters them into the walls and the next unit. Bag your bedding, document the bites and the bugs, and push for professional treatment.

Owners

Landlord or property manager?

Inspecting and professionally treating units between tenancies prevents the reports that recur most. One untreated unit reinfests its neighbors.

When it gets reported

Share of the year's reports landing in each month, corrected for how many times each month appears in the data window.
January · 10% of the year's reportsJFebruary · 6% of the year's reportsFMarch · 10% of the year's reportsMApril · 5% of the year's reportsAMay · 5% of the year's reportsMJune · 12% of the year's reportsJJuly · 14% of the year's reportsJAugust · 8% of the year's reportsASeptember · 13% of the year's reportsSOctober · 9% of the year's reportsONovember · 5% of the year's reportsNDecember · 3% of the year's reportsD

With about 140 reports on file, the month-to-month pattern is too thin to read as a season.

All bed bug reports by month latest month: 9
9 JAN '25 JUN '26

Where it's most reported

Rates compare each neighborhood's share of reports against the citywide share. This page describes where reports come from and skips ranked lists on purpose.

Reports come in at the highest rates in Downtown (core).

For contrast, rates run lowest in Milo-Grogan among the busiest areas.

Low Moderate Severe Critical
Open the live map filtered to bed bugs →
Each dot is one report, colored by severity. The live map adds search, filters, and the Block Report.

Often reported with

What else shows up at the same addresses. Address-level comparison, so this reads as a building-quality signal, not a coincidence of one phone call.
RoachesAddresses with bed bug reports are about six times as likely to also have roach reports on file.→ Mold & water damageAddresses with bed bug reports are about three times as likely to also have mold and water damage reports on file.→ Smoke detectors & fire hazardsAddresses with bed bug reports are about three times as likely to also have fire safety reports on file.→ Sewage backupsAddresses with bed bug reports are about twice as likely to also have sewage reports on file.→

What people describe

The words that come up most in these reports, from the complaint narratives. Counts are reports mentioning each phrase.
bed bugs77 bug infestation22 bedbugs14 bug issue8 bites8 treatment10 found15 management20

Common questions

How do I report bed bugs in Columbus?

Call 311 or file through the Columbus 311 app or columbus.gov. Give the address and unit, and say when the bites or sightings started. Keep evidence. Professional treatment is usually the landlord’s responsibility in a rental.

Are bed bug reports in Columbus going up?

They are steady. So far this year Columbus has logged about the same number of bed bug reports as the same months last year.

Who is responsible for fixing bed bugs?

In Columbus rentals the landlord is generally responsible for professional bed bug treatment. Tenants are expected to cooperate with preparation, but self-treatment alone rarely ends an infestation.

Looking at a specific address?

Get the full Block Report, covering what's been reported at that exact address, the same building, and chronic neighbors within a third of a mile.

Search an address →
Source & method

What counts here. Reports that describe bed bugs.

Data comes from official City of Columbus code enforcement records (Accela portal + ArcGIS REST API). Reports are categorized by keyword matching on complaint narratives and city record types, so counts are reports filed, not verified conditions, and automated matching can misfile individual records. The data window covers JAN 2025 – JUN 2026, so month-of-year patterns will sharpen as full years accrue.