Columbus, OH · Issue Report

Roaches in Columbus

The read computed from 461 reports · JAN 2025 – JUN 2026

Columbus logged about 450 roach 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. Roach reports peak in July at about one and a half times the volume of a typical month. No neighborhood is spared, but rates run highest in Tamarack / Red Robin and Lincoln Village. Reports come from hundreds of different addresses and no block is immune. Check the specific address, not the neighborhood average.

461
reports on file
a small share of all complaints
Steady
2026 vs same months 2025
+9% so far this year
July
peak reporting month
about 1.7× a typical month
Renting or buying

Renting or about to?

Roaches travel between units, so one clean apartment in a treated building can still get them back. Ask what was treated, when, and whether the whole building was done.

Ask specifically about treatment between tenants. A unit that sat empty untreated is the common handoff.

Check an address on the live map →
Right now

Dealing with it right now?

Report it to 311 with the address and unit. In multi-unit buildings the landlord is responsible for treatment, and spot-spraying one unit rarely ends it.

Keep the report on record even if you treat it yourself. The public record is how the next tenant finds out.

Owners

Landlord or property manager?

Whole-building treatment between tenancies prevents the reports that recur most. Unit-by-unit spraying moves roaches, it does not remove them.

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 · 5% of the year's reportsJFebruary · 6% of the year's reportsFMarch · 7% of the year's reportsMApril · 6% of the year's reportsAMay · 4% of the year's reportsMJune · 12% of the year's reportsJJuly · 14% of the year's reportsJAugust · 9% of the year's reportsASeptember · 14% of the year's reportsSOctober · 9% of the year's reportsONovember · 8% of the year's reportsNDecember · 6% of the year's reportsD

Reports peak in July at about one and a half times the volume of a typical month. The quietest month is May.

All roach reports by month latest month: 48
48 JAN '25 JUN '26

Where it's most reported

Neighborhoods ranked by rate, meaning each category's share of the neighborhood's reports against its citywide share, so big neighborhoods don't win just for being big. Only rates with enough reports behind them are listed.
#1Tamarack / Red Robin2.4×20 reports #2Lincoln Village2.3×24 reports #3Far East / Eastland1.8×52 reports #4North Linden1.5×27 reports

For contrast, rates run lowest in OSU / University District among the busiest areas.

Low Moderate Severe Critical
Open the live map filtered to roaches →
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.
Mold & water damageAddresses with roach reports are about five times as likely to also have mold and water damage reports on file.→ Smoke detectors & fire hazardsAddresses with roach reports are about four times as likely to also have fire safety reports on file.→ Landlord & management negligenceAddresses with roach reports are about three times as likely to also have landlord negligence reports on file.→ No heat & shut-off utilitiesAddresses with roach reports are about three times as likely to also have heat and utility 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.
roaches237 roach infestation126 cockroach infestation35 cockroaches62 infested63 cockroach48 pest49 issue107

Common questions

How do I report roaches in Columbus?

Call 311 or file through the Columbus 311 app or columbus.gov. Include the address and unit number. In multi-unit buildings the landlord is responsible for treatment.

Are roach reports in Columbus going up?

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

Where are roach reports most common in Columbus?

Rates run highest in Tamarack / Red Robin, Lincoln Village and Far East / Eastland, comparing each neighborhood's share of reports against the citywide share. No neighborhood is entirely without them.

Who is responsible for fixing roaches?

In Columbus rentals, treating a roach infestation is the landlord’s responsibility, and in multi-unit buildings effective treatment usually has to cover more than one unit.

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 roaches or cockroach infestations.

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.