Do you live in one of the most rat-infested cities in America?
There are a handful of cities scattered throughout the U.S. that are home to a larger rat population than most.
Be it a sanitation or population issue, something about these large cities attract more rodents than anywhere else in the country.
According to a list compiled by Orkin, the most rat-infested cities in Illinois for 2024 are Chicago and Champaign. These cities were also named among the most rat-infested places in the entire country.
Other cities on the top 50 list include Seattle, Washington, Richmond, Virginia, and Honolulu, Hawaii, to name a few.
John Kane, Orkin's National Accounts Entomologist & Quality Manager, detailed the massive problem that rats present to property owners.
“Rodents can cause a lot of structural problems for property owners. They can get in around piping and even chew through walls. These tiny culprits tend to chew through wiring, which poses an increased risk of fires.”
Here's what Orkin had to say about compiling the data to discover the most rat-infested cities in America:
"This year’s data was collected by tracking new residential rodent treatments from September 1, 2023, to August 31, 2024. This data helps Orkin better understand how likely homeowners in each city are to have a rodent problem."
For a continued list of the most rat-infested cities across the country check out Orkin's full report.