What Causes Bedbugs? Tips For Identifying And Dealing With Them

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Bedbugs: How They Infest Your Home and How to Get Rid of Them

Medically reviewed by Carissa Stephens, R.N., CCRN, CPN — Written by Tim Jewell — Updated on October 1, 2025

Causes
Where they live
Signs of bedbugs
How to get rid of them
When to get help
Avoiding infestations
Takeaway

Bedbugs typically get into your possessions when you travel, such as when staying in a hotel. Some remedies may help get rid of bedbugs in the home, but it may be necessary to contact an exterminator.

Knowing where bedbugs live and how to identify them can help minimize the risk of bringing them home.

If you notice bedbugs at home, it is important to take action to get rid of them as soon as possible. Home remedies may help with smaller infestations, but an exterminator may be necessary for larger infestations.

Read on to learn more about what causes bedbugs, how to recognize them, what remedies may help, and more.

What causes bedbugs in the house?

You are more likely to find bedbugs in the home if you have been traveling. Bedbugs are most common in places where many people come and go frequently, such as:

hotels, hostels, and motels
apartments
dorms
shelters
cruise ships
public transit, such as buses, trains, taxis, and ride share vehicles
outdoor campsites

They can even survive pesticides by simply moving away from sprayed or treated areas and finding new places to live nearby.

Where do bedbugs live?

You may find bedbugs in the following places:

mattresses and box springs
sheets and blankets
areas around your bed frame
headboards
areas of clutter that you don’t move often, such as piles of clothes
beneath peeling or cracking paint or loose wallpaper
underneath carpets on outer edges, such as near baseboards
seams of upholstered furniture
beneath plates covering electrical outlets or light switches
clothes
suitcases or other luggage items
cardboard boxes

Bedbugs typically stay within 8 feet of where people sleep. However, they can travel up to 100 feet at night.

Adult bedbugs can live for nearly a year without any food. This means that they can be present in the home even if there are no occupants there for some time.

How to identify bedbugs and bedbug bites

You may be able to tell if you have bedbugs by identifying them in the home or by marks on the skin.

Identifying bedbugs

Bedbugs are relatively large and easy to spot.

Here’s a checklist to help with identifying bedbugs and telling them apart from other bugs:

They’re about 5 to 7 millimeters (mm) in length.
They’re brown or reddish-brown, not black or dark-colored.
They’re flat and an overall rounded shape, not spherical or long.
They crawl but don’t fly or jump like fleas and ticks do.
They leave light-brown molted skin behind where they live.
They lay tiny white eggs that look like grains of rice.
They don’t stay on human or animal skin once they’re done feeding like lice or fleas do.

You may also notice tiny dark spots of fecal matter. These can show up on mattresses, bedding, carpet, or other upholstered surfaces.

Identifying bedbug bites

Bedbugs feed on blood by piercing through the skin with their mouthparts. They also numb the area with saliva full of anesthetic and anti-clotting chemicals to reduce pain while sucking the blood out.

Bite marks are the most common sign of bedbugs. You may notice multiple welts, which are often in a zigzag pattern.

The welts from the bedbug bites can also be incredibly itchy.

You may also notice small blood spots on the bed sheets from the bedbug bites.

Although not common, it is possible to experience a serious allergic reaction to bedbug bites. Seek immediate medical help if there are symptoms of an allergic reaction or anaphylaxis. These can include, but are not limited to, the following:

breathing difficulties
swelling of the tongue
irregular heartbeat
fever
feeling sick
blisters

How to get rid of bedbugs

Various tips can help get rid of bedbugs if the infestation isn’t widespread.

Here are a few ways to keep bedbugs from breeding and infesting your home if you’ve noticed some indoors.

Pick up any clutter: If bedbugs are hiding underneath spots in your bedroom or home, they’ll quickly move to a new location where you may be able to get rid of them more easily.
Vacuum regularly: Focus on areas where they can hide or live, such as cracks near your carpet or flooring and crevices around your mattress, box spring, or bed frame. Dump out your vacuum contents when you’re done to keep them from getting back out again.
Wash and dry your clothes and bedding on high heat: High temperatures of at least 140ºF (60ºC) are deadly to bedbugs. First, wash your clothes and bedding with detergent and hot water. Then, dry them on the highest possible heat setting on your dryer.
Freeze clothes or bedding: Bedbugs can also freeze to death, so you can also try putting your clothes or bedding in the freezer for a few days or leaving them outside when the temperature drops below freezing.
Scrub the seams of mattresses or upholstery with a stiff brush: This can scrape away any eggs or bugs that might be hiding in the crevices of your furniture.
Fix or seal cracks in your paint or wallpaper: This will give the bedbugs one less place to hide.

»Learn more:How to Get Rid of Bedbugs at Home

Professional exterminators

For more widespread infestations, professional exterminators are able to use a combination of chemicals, pesticides, and steam or heat treatments to get rid of infestations that have grown out of control.

You likely have several local exterminators in your area. Call around for estimates and read reviews closely to make sure that a pest control company is trustworthy.

When to get professional help for bedbugs

You should consider calling a pro if you’ve tried some or all of the strategies listed but are still seeing signs of bedbugs.

It can be challenging to locate all the sources of bedbugs around your home yourself, but a professional may know exactly where to look and how to isolate the infestation.

If you live in an apartment complex or shared living space, you may need to work with your landlord or property owner to properly address the infestation in the entire complex.

Hiring a bedbug elimination pro can vary in cost. The following factors may affect the price:

the size of your home or property
the extent of the infestation
the size or reputation of the extermination company
the techniques needed to eliminate the infestation

Tips to avoid bringing bedbugs home

Here are some tips to help reduce the likelihood of bringing bedbugs into the home:

Keep your belongings off the floors of hotels, motels, hostels, or shelters. It may be best to place them in the bathroom if possible
Check bedding and furniture in a room where you’re staying for the first time for any signs of bedbugs. Let the property owner know right away if you find anything.
Check any secondhand bedding or furniture that you get from a friend, relative, or thrift/antique store closely for signs of bedbugs before you bring it indoors.
Check your luggage for signs of bedbugs before you travel back home and again once you arrive home, ideally before you bring it into the house if possible.
Clear your home of clutter where bedbugs can thrive.

Learn more about bedbugs

Are Bedbugs Big Enough to See?
Can Bedbugs Get into or Live in Your Hair?
How to Tell if Your Bites Are From Bedbugs, Other Bugs, or a Rash
Is It a Bedbug or a Chigger Bite?
Scabies vs. Bedbugs: How to Tell the Difference
What’s the Difference Between Flea Bites and Bedbug Bites

The bottom line

Bedbugs live on or around the bed and other items of furniture. They can also live behind wallpaper and amongst clutter.

There is a risk of bringing bedbugs back home if you stay at a hotel or in shared accommodation. Always check around the bed when you first arrive for signs of bedbugs, and make sure to check your luggage before you leave.

Vacuuming regularly, washing clothes and bedding on a high heat, and freezing clothing and bedding can help to get rid of bedbugs. For more widespread infestations, an exterminator can help.

How we reviewed this article:

SourcesHistoryHealthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical journals and associations. We only use quality, credible sources to ensure content accuracy and integrity. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.

About bed bugs. (2024).https://www.cdc.gov/bed-bugs/about/index.html
Bed bugs appearance and life cycle. (2025).https://www.epa.gov/bedbugs/bed-bugs-appearance-and-life-cycle
Bedbugs. (2022).https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/bedbugs/
Bedbugs: Overview. (n.d.).https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/a-z/bed-bugs-overview
Miller DM, et al. (n.d.). Bed bug biology and behavior.https://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/pdf/bb-biology1.pdf

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Medically reviewed by Carissa Stephens, R.N., CCRN, CPN — Written by Tim Jewell — Updated on October 1, 2025

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