Bed bug treatment for homes

Heat or chemical treatment

There are two main methods, and a good firm will tell you which it is quoting.

Heat treatment raises the temperature of the room to 56°C or more, which kills every stage, including eggs. It takes a single visit, so the room is clear the same day.

Chemical treatment uses a residual spray, with two or three visits 10 to 14 days apart. The follow-ups catch bugs that hatch after the first visit. Expect it to take around four to six weeks from start to finish.

Some firms offer both, and the price differs, so see what bed bug treatment costs.

How to prepare for the visit

Preparation decides how well the treatment works. Strip the bed, wash bedding and clothing at 60°C at least, then tumble-dry on hot. Vacuum the mattress, bed frame and floor, and declutter the floors so the technician can reach the skirting and furniture. Items that cannot be washed can be frozen for two to three weeks, as the NHS suggests.

Washing and preparation are usually excluded from the quote, so budget for your own time. Do not move bedding or furniture to other rooms before the visit, because that spreads the bugs. Do not throw furniture out on the street.

After the treatment

After heat treatment the work is done in one visit, so the room can be used the same day. After chemical treatment, ask the firm how long to keep out of the room and what to do with bedding and pets. Between visits, keep a note of any new bites or bugs and tell the technician at the follow-up, because that shows whether the treatment is working. Bites usually clear within a week, so itching soon after treatment does not always mean it has failed.

What a good firm tells you

A firm should inspect before it quotes, if it can, find where the bugs are hiding, and explain the method and the number of visits. Bed bugs hide in bed frames, mattress seams, furniture, skirting and behind pictures, so a good technician looks beyond the bed.

Be cautious of a firm that quotes for the whole home by phone without asking how many rooms are affected. Ask for the guarantee in writing, including its length, and whether a return visit is free. Reputable firms offer follow-ups and often a guarantee. Ask whether the price covers all follow-up visits and whether it is per room or for the whole home.

When bed bugs are a problem

Bed bugs breed indoors all year, because homes are heated, so they are not seasonal in the way wasps are. Activity follows travel and student moves, and tends to peak in late summer and autumn. Rentokil reports confirmed activity up 44% a year from 2023 to 2025.

Bed bugs do not mean your home is dirty. They arrive on luggage, second-hand furniture and clothes. If you have bites but cannot find a bug, our guide to identifying bed bugs explains what to look for.

Is there a licence or legal rule?

There is no bed bug licence. Treatment uses professional insecticides applied by trained staff. BPCA and NPTA are trade associations: BPCA assesses member companies against BS EN 16636 and requires £2m public liability cover, and NPTA has a code of practice. BASIS PROMPT records an individual technician's qualifications and annual training, and RSPH Level 2 is the baseline technician award. None of them is a licence.

Ask whether the quote is for heat or chemical treatment and whether it covers follow-ups.

Does the council treat bed bugs?

Most councils treat bed bugs, usually for a fee that depends on the size of the property. Many offer a discount if you receive council tax support or certain benefits, so ask yours first. Test Valley, for example, takes 75% off for council-tax-exempt households. See council pest control for fees by council.

Bed bugs in a rented home

Councils and the housing health and safety rating system treat pests as a hazard. Since SI 2026/571 the hazard called domestic hygiene includes exposure to pests. The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 covers tenancies under seven years, and premises prejudicial to health can be a statutory nuisance.

Bed bugs are usually treated as the tenant's problem because they arrive on belongings, but that is a rule of thumb. The hazard duty does not depend on blame, so report in writing early. From 30 November 2026, Awaab's Law adds domestic hygiene for social landlords in England.

Bed bugs in the bed

Bed bugs shelter in the mattress seams, the bed frame, the headboard and the gaps in the base, and come out at night to feed. Itchy bites, small blood spots and dark specks on the sheets are the usual first signs.

Do not move to the sofa or another bed, because the bugs will follow you. Strip the bed and wash the bedding at 60°C. Because this is where the bugs live, treat the bed as part of the job. Call a professional as soon as you find a live bug, a shed skin or the specks, since DIY is unlikely to clear an established infestation.

Bugs in the bedroom

Bites in the night and small bugs in the bedroom are not always bed bugs. Fleas, carpet beetles and mosquitoes also bite or look similar. Bites on their own prove nothing, so find the bug before you spend money.

Check the mattress seams, the bed frame, behind pictures, behind the headboard and in the skirting. A torch and a card help you find eggs and shed skins. Once you have confirmed bed bugs, a professional can treat the room with heat in one visit, or with chemical treatment over two to three visits. See our identification guide for how to tell them from the lookalikes.

Bed bug treatment at home

The NHS advises contacting the council or a pest controller, because treating bed bugs yourself is unlikely to work. Shop-bought sprays are limited by pyrethroid resistance. What you can do is prepare: wash fabrics at 60°C, tumble-dry on hot, vacuum and declutter the floor.

A professional treats the whole affected area. Heat clears a room in one visit; chemical treatment takes two or three. Ask what is included, how long the guarantee runs, and whether you must leave the home for any period.

Carpet beetles or bed bugs?

Carpet beetles are 2 to 4 mm and their larvae are hairy, while bed bugs are about 5 mm, flat and reddish-brown. Carpet beetles eat fabric, carpet and wool, and do not bite. Bed bugs feed on blood and leave itchy bites.

If you see bites as well as bugs, it is more likely to be bed bugs. If you see only holes in fabric, it is more likely to be carpet beetles. A pest controller can identify the insect, so keep a sample in a sealed bag or a clear photo. Do not assume you have bed bugs until you have found one.

Bed bugs through the whole house

A bed bug problem can spread beyond one room, especially if people have moved furniture or slept in several beds. Check the other bedrooms, the sofa, and any furniture near the bed.

Whole-home treatment is a larger job, and the price depends on the number of rooms. A one-bed flat is £700 to £1,100 and a two-bed is £900 to £1,400 (Fantastic Services, 2026). Call a professional as soon as you find bugs in more than one room, and ask for a written quote for the whole home.