How common are bed bugs?

19 comments

1. Your submission has been automatically removed due to the following reasons:

   Questions regarding where to move to are off topic for this subreddit. Please direct them to r/IWantOut or other appropriate subreddit.

   *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskAnAmerican) if you have any questions or concerns.*

2. Not all too common. I’ve never heard of anyone having bed bugs. Sure it can happen but I think it’s kinda rare.

3. Not very common but it can happen. Most people don’t encounter bed bugs but if they do it’s usually after a hotel visit, assuming you stayed at a dirty hotel that doesn’t clean or recently had guest who had them.

   Fun fact, bed bugs are found in the Americas, Europe and Australia mainly due to the increased number of people who stay in hotels, hostels, overnight trains, cruise ships, etc. They are also found in Asia and the Middle East but not nearly as much due to less people traveling domestically.

   But your likelihood of dealing with bed bugs in America is roughly the same in whatever country you’re from.

4. I wouldn’t say their uncommon. Found [this](https://www.mattressclarity.com/blog/bed-bugs-by-state-city-map-statistics/) bedbug heatmap of the US.

   My hometown had bedbugs at one point. Our local movie theater and schools seemed to be hit hard. They did eventually get them under control.

   When my kids school had it, and since I had to send them, I pretreated my house w a bed bug powder. They kept their coats in their backpacks while at school.

5. Up until the early 2000s or so they were extremely rare in the US. International travel over time has increased the infestation rate. They are still not super common, but there is a growing problem.

6. Wiki says bed bugs exist pretty much everywhere so it is not exactly some unique aspect of living in the US.

   I’ve never had an infestation but an apartment I was living in I had neighbors who did. Nasty shit and not something you want to deal with. Its also something landlords tend to want to know about if you are a potential tenant.

7. Not common at all. They are a pain to get rid of, but they don’t frequently show up.

8. Never seen one. Never heard of anyone I know having them.

   Curious why you think they’re so common here?

9. Would probably depend on how infested your house is.

10. I’ve never had them. I think I’ve only ever heard of someone having them once. And it wasn’t even someone I know, but someone who knows someone I know.

11. Personally never experienced them

12. Probably no more common than they are in your home country. According to Wikipedia they are a problem all over the developed world since they thrive in urban areas. Granted, I have never had them or heard of anyone who did, but they do exist. In general it is good advice to be weary of cheap hotels and free craigslist furniture.

13. In my house never.

    In some cities a little more common.

    They’re still really rare and people are vigilant against them. However, because it’s shocking you will see huge nasty infestations on YouTube and the internet generally. It just doesn’t reflect common reality.

14. Been alive for 20 years and I’ve never seen a single bed bug. Ever. Just be cautious of hotels and shit. That’s where they often spread.

15. They’re rare enough that people who get them find it upsetting, not just annoying.

    All the people over known who have had them live in cities, and I don’t know anyone who’s had them twice. The infestations were dealt with within a couple of moderately unpleasant months at most. Usually the first treatment was sufficient and the problem was gone within a week.

16. I’ve never seen a bed bug. I think it’s primarily a concern for households and hotels that practice poor domestic hygiene.

17. They aren’t terribly common.

18. I have never seen them or heard of anyone who has seen them. People are using Google and Wikipedia to answer your question, because they have never seen them. I don’t think any of us need to worry about bed bugs.

19. I saw them in a hotel once. They can be a problem in apartment buildings as well. You’re not likely to get them in a single family house unless you go to hotels and don’t check for them, thus bringing them home.

    I always pull back the sheets and check the seams of the mattress. The ones I actually found were actually out in the open on top of a pillow! My bags had been in the room for several hours, but thankfully I’d set them on a table instead of the bed or floor!