Pest Control in NYC

New York has no official price schedule for pest control, so the usable figures come from published surveys. One updated in February 2026 by the cost site AskDoss gives these ranges for a New York apartment or co-op: $200 to $400 for an initial roach treatment, $400 to $800 for an initial rodent exclusion with $75 to $150 a month for monitoring, $500 to $1,200 for chemical bed bug treatment of a one-bedroom against $1,500 to $3,000 for heat treatment, and $100 to $200 a visit for a quarterly general service. National averages from Thumbtack, around $320 to $400 for bed bug work, and HomeAdvisor's $256 average for insect treatment in Long Island towns are not city prices and sit below what Manhattan quotes.

What Drives the Price

• Pest. Bed bugs are the most expensive because the work is thorough and repeated. Rats cost more than mice because the fix is sealing entry points and dealing with burrows outside.
• Scope. A single apartment is cheaper per visit than a whole building, but an apartment-only treatment in an infested building tends to fail. The surveys cite follow-up visits as the norm, not the exception.
• Method. Heat treatment for bed bugs costs several times a chemical program but is usually done in one day; chemical programs run two or three visits over several weeks.
• The hidden costs. A Manhattan tenant's bed bug account published in 2024 put laundry at over $1,100 and hotel stays at $700 on top of the treatment itself.

In a building with three or more apartments the owner is responsible for keeping it free of pests, and the city grades infestations as serious. HPD's fiscal 2025 report states that all violations for roaches, mice and rats are Class C, immediately hazardous, with 21 days to correct. Bed bugs are a Class B violation with 30 days. Since Local Law 55 of 2018 the owner of a multiple dwelling must also inspect every occupied apartment and the common areas for mold, mice, rats and roaches at least once a year and use integrated pest management, which means fixing the holes and the moisture rather than just spraying. HPD's bed bug page adds that owners must hire only pest professionals licensed by the state and must file an annual bed bug report with HPD each December.

The 311 Route

Report the problem to the landlord in writing first. If nothing happens, file a 311 complaint; an HPD inspector who finds roaches, mice or rats issues the violation and the 21-day clock starts, with daily penalties and the possibility of HPD's own emergency work if the owner ignores it. The building's complaint and violation record shows whether the same pests are already on file for other apartments, which strengthens your complaint. For the tenant-side detail, see who is responsible for pest control, whether a landlord must pay for bed bug treatment and whether a landlord can bill you for it. The one case where a tenant commonly pays is a one- or two-family house, where the lease usually assigns pest control to whoever lives there.

Anyone who applies pesticides commercially in New York must be certified by the State Department of Environmental Conservation, and the business must be registered with the DEC's Bureau of Pesticides Management. The DEC's applicator guidance describes the two tiers: a commercial applicator can use or supervise the use of general and restricted pesticides, and a commercial technician can use general-use products without supervision. Structural and rodent work falls under category 7A. HPD's own guidance for owners says the same thing from the other side: no license is needed to practice integrated pest management, but a state license is required to apply any pesticide.

How to Look One Up

Search the DEC's pesticide professional database by name, certification number or business. Ask for the technician's certification card on arrival as well, since the person who shows up is not always the person named on the quote. The state does enforce this: the DEC has penalized a company $121,000 for holding itself out as licensed while applying pesticides at apartment buildings and schools without registration or certification, and has fined uncertified applicators for apartment-building work. An unlicensed operator also leaves you with no one to complain to if a treatment fails or makes someone sick.

A pest company quotes tighter when it knows what it is walking into, and the most useful thing you can bring is evidence. Photograph droppings, shed skins, gnaw marks and the places you see activity, note the times of day, and check the building's own history. Roach and mouse complaints in other apartments mean an apartment-only treatment is a holding action, and that is worth saying to the landlord. Our guides on getting rid of roaches, mice in an apartment and checking a building's bed bug history cover the pest-specific steps.

Before You Request a Quote

• Name the pest, or describe what you have seen if you are not sure. Bed bug and roach treatments are different jobs.
• Say whether you rent or own, and whether the landlord has been notified. A written report from the exterminator supports a 311 complaint.
• List the rooms affected and whether neighbors have reported the same thing.
• Mention children, pets and anyone with asthma so the company plans products and ventilation accordingly.
• Ask what preparation is expected of you. Bed bug treatments require bagging clothes and washing on high heat; roach work needs cleared cabinets.
• Ask how many visits the price covers and what the re-treatment policy is if the pest returns.

The city's own numbers show the scale: HPD issued 39,480 roach violations, 30,787 mouse violations and 3,471 rat violations in fiscal 2025, the rat figure nearly double the year before. Citywide trash containerization, announced in April 2026 for six more community districts by the end of 2027 and the whole city by 2031, is the city's answer; your block's timing is on the neighborhood pest complaint rankings.