Licensed pest control
Flea & Tick Control Services
Flea and tick control means treating your home, your yard and your pets at the same time, and a one-time indoor flea visit costs $200 to $400. A yard tick spray runs $50 to $150 per visit. Fleas almost never clear in one visit, because pupae in their cocoons shrug off sprays and hatch later. Tell us what you’re dealing with and we’ll connect you with a licensed company near you for a free quote. You see the plan and the price first, then decide.
- Licensed & insured techs
- Free, no-pressure quotes
- Homes, apartments and businesses
What Do Fleas and Ticks Look Like?
Cat fleas, the species on most US dogs and cats, are no bigger than 1/8 inch, reddish brown and wingless, with bodies flattened side to side. They jump, and that’s the giveaway. Flea larvae look like tiny white worms and live in carpet, pet beds and cracks, eating dried blood that adult fleas leave behind.
Ticks aren’t insects. They’re arachnids with eight legs as adults, and they crawl rather than jump or fly. Blacklegged tick nymphs are about the size of a poppy seed, and adults are closer to a sesame seed. A tick that has fed swells into a gray or tan bean.
Pull an attached tick off with fine tweezers, close to the skin, and keep it in a sealed bag in case you get sick later.
Signs of Fleas and Ticks at Home
Pets Scratching and Biting
Dogs or cats chewing at their lower back, tail base or belly, sometimes with hair loss or scabs.
Flea Dirt on Bedding
Black specks in pet beds or fur that turn red when you press them on a wet paper towel. That’s digested blood.
Bites Around Your Ankles
Small, itchy red bumps clustered on lower legs, often after walking across carpet or a rug.
Ticks on Pets or Clothes
Ticks crawling on a dog after a walk, or attached behind ears, between toes and under the collar.
Common Flea and Tick Species in the US
One flea species and a handful of tick species cause most of the trouble in the states we cover. The tick species matters because each one carries different diseases.
| Species | Where in the US | What It Means for You |
|---|---|---|
| Cat flea | All 10 states we serve | Lives on dogs and cats and breeds in your carpet. Indoor treatment and pet treatment have to happen together. |
| Blacklegged (deer) tick | Eastern US, worst in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic and upper Midwest | The main Lyme disease carrier. Yard work focuses on leaf litter and wooded edges. |
| Lone star tick | The South, Midwest and Northeast, including Georgia, North Carolina and Texas | Aggressive biter linked to ehrlichiosis and alpha-gal syndrome, a red meat allergy. |
| American dog tick | East of the Rocky Mountains | Common on dogs in grassy areas and can spread Rocky Mountain spotted fever. |
| Brown dog tick | Worldwide, often indoors in kennels and homes | Can breed inside your house. Spreads Rocky Mountain spotted fever in the Southwest. |
How Flea and Tick Treatment Works
Flea treatment targets every stage of the life cycle. Eggs hatch in 2 to 5 days, larvae feed for 8 to 15 days, and then they spin cocoons. UC IPM notes adults can wait inside those cocoons for up to 12 months, and no spray reaches them. Pros pair an adulticide with an insect growth regulator like methoprene or pyriproxyfen, which stops eggs and larvae from growing up. New fleas keep hatching for about two weeks after treatment, so a second visit is normal.
Tick treatment happens outside. The tech sprays the lawn edges, shrub beds, leaf litter and the strip where grass meets woods, where ticks wait for a host.
What Happens on a Flea and Tick Job
- Inspection
- The tech checks pet beds, carpets, furniture and the yard to see how far fleas spread and where ticks are likely.
- Pet Treatment
- Your vet treats every dog and cat that week with a flea and tick product. The exterminator doesn’t treat animals.
- Home and Yard Treatment
- Carpets, rugs and pet areas get an adulticide plus a growth regulator. The yard gets a spray on shady, grassy edges.
- Follow-up
- A second flea visit about two weeks later catches the fleas that hatched from cocoons. Tick sprays repeat through the season.
How Much Does Flea and Tick Control Cost?
Flea and tick control costs $200 to $400 for a one-time indoor flea visit, and $50 to $150 for a single yard tick spray. The final price follows the size of your home and yard, how bad the infestation is and how many follow-ups you need. A severe flea problem can pass $800.
Flea prices come from HomeGuide’s flea exterminator cost guide, and tick prices from Angi’s tick treatment guide. Ask if the two-week flea follow-up is in the quote, since add-on visits run $75 to $200.
| Job | Typical price |
|---|---|
| One-time flea visit | $200 to $400 with inspection and treatment |
| Flea follow-up visit | $75 to $200 more |
| Severe flea infestation | $400 to $800 or more |
| Tick yard spray | $50 to $150 per visit, $100 to $300 for a 1 acre lot |
| Moderate tick problem | $200 to $600 across 3 to 4 visits |
| Flea plan | $50 to $100 a month, or $300 to $600 a year |
Can You Handle Fleas and Ticks Yourself?
DIY flea control works for a small problem when you hit it hard. Vacuum carpets and furniture every day or two, wash pet bedding weekly in hot water, and use a carpet spray that lists methoprene or pyriproxyfen on the label. Vacuuming also helps because the vibration makes adult fleas leave their cocoons. Flea bombs don’t reach under furniture, so skip them.
Call a pro once fleas keep biting after two or three weeks of your own work, or when ticks keep turning up on pets from your own yard. Lyme risk runs highest in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic and upper Midwest, so yard tick work pays off most there.
So: a few fleas on a treated pet, vacuum and wait two weeks. Fleas biting people in every room, or ticks in the grass all summer, get a pro.
How to Prevent Fleas and Ticks
- Keep every pet on a vet-approved flea and tick product all year, not just summer.
- Rake leaf litter and mow often so ticks have less shade and humidity.
- Lay a 3-foot strip of wood chips or gravel between lawn and woods.
- Tumble dry hiking clothes on high heat for 10 minutes to kill any ticks.
- Shower within two hours of coming inside and check hair, ears and armpits for ticks.
Flea and Tick Control in Your State
Flea and tick pressure depends on climate and the tick species in your area. Pick your state for city pages and local prices.
How It Works
Tell Us The Problem
Tell us about the fleas or ticks, your pets and your yard size, plus your ZIP.
Get Matched With A Local Pro
We pass it on to a licensed flea and tick company that treats in your area.
Book Your Treatment
That company prices the home and yard work and you pick the dates.
Flea and Tick Control FAQs
Have a flea or tick question? Send it through the form and tell us about your pets too.
Why do I still see fleas after the exterminator came?
Seeing fleas for about two weeks after treatment is normal. Adults sealed in cocoons survive the spray and hatch later, then die when they hit the treated carpet.
Keep vacuuming, since it wakes them up faster. Still seeing fleas after the second visit, at $75 to $200, means a pet or the yard is likely bringing in new ones.
How many flea treatments does it take?
Most homes need two visits about two weeks apart. Pupae can stay dormant for months in cool weather, so heavy cases sometimes take a third visit.
Pets must be treated by your vet at the same time, or the house gets reinfested.
Can a yard spray stop Lyme disease?
A yard spray lowers tick numbers but won’t remove all risk. The CDC says a tick usually has to stay attached for more than 24 hours to pass on Lyme bacteria.
Pair yard sprays at $50 to $150 a visit with daily tick checks, and see a doctor about any fever or rash after a bite.
Do I need to leave the house during flea treatment?
Yes, for a few hours. People and pets stay out until sprayed carpets and furniture dry.
Ask the tech when you can vacuum again, since vacuuming speeds up the hatch.
When is tick season in the US?
Ticks are most active April through September, according to the CDC, but you can pick them up all year in warm states.
Blacklegged tick nymphs, the tiny ones that spread most Lyme cases, peak April through July. That’s when a yard treatment does the most good.
Get a Free Flea and Tick Control Quote
Fill out the form with your flea or tick problem and ZIP. A licensed company close to you sends a free price, and you can turn it down.
Along with flea and tick work, the companies we match you with handle Mosquito Control, Bed Bug Treatment and Spider Control, plus every other pest control service we list.