To find bed bugs, strip the bed and use a bright flashlight to check mattress seams, the box spring, the bed frame joints, and the headboard, then work outward to nightstands, the couch, outlets, and baseboards. You're looking for live bugs, tiny dark fecal spots, rust-colored stains, shed skins, and pale eggs about the size of a pinhead.
Most people start looking because of bites. Bites alone don't prove anything, though, and plenty of New Yorkers spend weeks treating "bed bugs" that turn out to be something else, or miss a real infestation because they don't react to bites at all. This guide walks you through how to check for bed bugs properly, room by room, and how to tell what you've found.
What do bed bugs actually look like?
An adult bed bug is flat, oval, reddish-brown, and about the size of an apple seed, roughly 5 millimeters long. After feeding it swells and turns a darker red. Bed bugs don't fly and don't jump. They crawl, and they're faster than most people expect.
The younger stages are harder to spot. Nymphs start out nearly clear and about the size of a poppy seed, and they only turn tan as they grow. Eggs are white, glued in place, and about 1 millimeter long, small enough that you'll want a magnifying glass to confirm them. If you only ever look for the apple-seed adult, you'll miss most of an early infestation.
What do you need to check for bed bugs?
Nothing special. A thorough check takes about 30 to 45 minutes per bedroom and these household items:
- A bright flashlight. Your phone light works, but a dedicated LED flashlight held at a low angle makes bugs and eggs cast shadows you'll actually notice.
- A magnifying glass. Essential for eggs and young nymphs.
- A credit card or putty knife. Slide it along seams and cracks to push hiding bugs into the open.
- Baby wipes or alcohol wipes. For the stain test described below.
- A zip-top bag or small jar. To keep anything you find for identification.
- A screwdriver. For outlet covers and switch plates near the bed.
How to find bed bugs in bed: where should you look first?
Start with the bed, because that's where most of them live. Bed bugs feed while you sleep and want to stay within a short crawl of you, so the closer something is to your pillow, the more likely it is to hide them.
The mattress
Pull off every sheet, pillowcase, and mattress protector, and look at the bedding first before it goes in the laundry. Then shine your light along the full length of the mattress piping, the raised seam around the edges. Check every tuft and button, the corners, and especially the area around the manufacturer's tag, which creates a pocket bed bugs love. Flip the mattress and repeat on the other side.
The signs of bed bugs on a mattress are usually clustered rather than scattered. A line of small black dots along one stretch of piping near the head of the bed is a much stronger signal than a single speck in the middle.
The box spring and bed frame
The box spring is the most overlooked hiding spot in the room. Stand it on its side and check the underside, especially where the thin fabric dust cover is stapled to the wooden frame. If the fabric is torn, look inside with your flashlight. Then check every joint of the bed frame, the screw holes, the slats, and the back of the headboard, including where it touches the wall.
Where else do bed bugs hide in an apartment?
Once a population grows, bed bugs spread outward from the bed into anywhere that's dark, tight, and close to where people rest. Work in widening circles around the bed, then move to other rooms where people sit for long periods.
- Nightstands and dressers. Pull each drawer all the way out and check the runners, inside corners, and underside.
- Couches and armchairs. Remove the cushions and check seams, zippers, the crease where the back meets the seat, and the underside of the frame. If you've been sleeping on the couch, check it as closely as the bed.
- Outlets and switch plates. Unscrew the covers near the bed and look around the box. Turn the breaker off first if you're unsure.
- Baseboards and carpet edges. Run your card along the gap where the floor meets the wall, especially behind the bed.
- Curtains, picture frames, and wall hangings. Check folds, hooks, and the back of anything hung within a few feet of the bed.
- Clutter. Piles of clothes, books, and boxes under or beside the bed give bed bugs endless hiding places.
What's different about checking a NYC apartment?
Shared walls. In a brownstone, a walk-up, or a large co-op, bed bugs travel between units through wall voids, along heating pipes, and through gaps around radiator and plumbing lines. If you share a wall with a neighbor, give extra attention to the outlets, baseboards, and pipe penetrations on that wall. Finding activity concentrated there, rather than in the bed, can mean the bugs are coming from next door.
Furniture is the other NYC risk. Couches and mattresses left on the curb for bulk trash pickup are one of the most common ways bed bugs move between buildings. If you've brought home anything secondhand in the last few months, inspect it as closely as your own bed.
Which signs actually confirm bed bugs?
Live bugs and eggs confirm an infestation. Fecal spots and shed skins are strong evidence. Bites and smells are weak evidence on their own. Here's how each sign stacks up.
How do you test a dark spot to see if it's a bed bug stain?
Wipe it with a damp baby wipe or alcohol wipe. Bed bug fecal spots are digested blood, so they smear into a reddish-brown streak. Dirt, lint, and mold usually don't. Michigan State University Extension lists wipes among the basic tools to use when inspecting for bed bugs for exactly this reason: they help separate real droppings from ordinary debris.
Why aren't bites enough to know you have bed bugs?
Because people react very differently. Some develop welts within hours, others days later, and some never react at all, which means two people can share a bed and only one sees bites. Flea bites, mosquito bites, and several skin conditions also look similar. Treat bites as the reason to start looking, not as the answer.
What can be mistaken for bed bugs?
Several common household insects. Carpet beetle larvae are fuzzy and striped, and leave shed skins that people confuse with bed bug casings. Bat bugs look almost identical but usually point to bats in the attic or walls. Young German cockroaches are small and brown but have long antennae and move much faster. Booklice are tiny and pale and show up in damp, humid spots like bathrooms.
That's why keeping a specimen matters. Seal anything you find in a zip-top bag or tape it flat onto an index card, so a professional can confirm the identification before you spend money on treatment.
Do bed bug traps help you find them?
Yes, and they're one of the best tools for early detection. Interceptor traps are small dishes that sit under each bed leg. Bed bugs climbing up to feed fall into the outer well and can't climb back out. Check them every few days. Even one bed bug in an interceptor answers the question, and the traps keep working while you sleep, which a single daytime inspection can't do.
For interceptors to work, pull the bed a few inches away from the wall and keep blankets off the floor, so the legs are the only path up.
How do you check for bed bugs before signing a NYC lease?
Ask for the paper trail before you look. NYC landlords must give new tenants the building's bed bug history for the previous year before a lease is signed, and owners of multiple dwellings also file an annual bed bug report with HPD each December under Local Law 69. Ask for both. A clean report doesn't guarantee a clean unit, but a recent infestation in the building is worth knowing about.
Then inspect the empty apartment the way you would your own bedroom: outlets, baseboards, the edges of the floor, closet corners, and any furniture left behind. Empty units are actually easier to check, because there's nothing for bed bugs to hide in except the structure itself.
What should you do if you find bed bugs?
Don't panic, and don't start spraying. Here's the order that saves the most time and money:
- Keep a specimen in a sealed bag for identification.
- Stay in your bed. Moving to the couch spreads them to a second room.
- Don't spray. Store-bought sprays scatter bed bugs and the evidence a technician needs. Our post on whether spray for bed bugs works explains why.
- Bag and hot-dry your bedding and clothes for at least 30 minutes on high heat.
- Tell your landlord in writing if you rent. In NYC, bed bugs are the owner's responsibility, and the process works much like the one in our guide to whether landlords are responsible for mice in NYC.
- Book a professional inspection to confirm the problem and map how far it has spread.
Property managers who find bed bugs in one unit should check the units on either side and above and below. Our commercial pest control team handles multi-unit buildings across Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island.
When should you get a professional bed bug inspection?
Get a professional bed bug inspection when you've found evidence but can't confirm it, when bites continue but you can't find anything, or as soon as you confirm bed bugs in a multi-unit building. A trained technician checks the places people miss, including wall voids, furniture joints, and adjoining rooms, and tells you how far the infestation has spread before treatment starts.
At OnGuard, every bed bug inspection in Brooklyn is the first step of our detect, eliminate, prevent process, with same-day and next-day appointments available. We serve homes and apartments through our residential pest control service and follow up with pest-proofing to close the gaps bed bugs use to move between units.
Frequently Asked Questions
What time of day is best to look for bed bugs?
Bed bugs are most active in the hours before dawn, so a flashlight check around 3 or 4 a.m. is the best chance to catch live bugs. You can find fecal spots, skins, and eggs at any time of day.
Can you see bed bugs with the naked eye?
Adults, yes. They're about the size of an apple seed. Eggs and newly hatched nymphs are much harder to see without a magnifying glass, which is why early infestations often go unnoticed.
How long can bed bugs hide without feeding?
Adults can survive for months without a blood meal, especially in cooler rooms. An apartment that has been empty for a while is not automatically free of bed bugs.
Is one bed bug a sign of an infestation?
Not always, but it's a serious warning. A single bug can hitchhike in on luggage or a bag. Check thoroughly, set interceptor traps, and watch for more over the next two weeks.
How do you check for bed bugs in a hotel room?
Before unpacking, keep your luggage in the bathroom, pull back the sheets, and check the mattress corners, the seams near the headboard, and the headboard itself. If you find anything, ask for a different room that isn't next door or directly above or below.
Need help confirming what you found?
If you're in Williamsburg, Bushwick, or anywhere else in Brooklyn and found something that looks like bed bugs, don't wait for it to spread. See our Williamsburg bed bug service and Bushwick bed bug service, read what our customers say on our reviews page, or schedule a bed bug inspection with OnGuard, the family-owned, eco-friendly pest control company that has been protecting Brooklyn homes for years.
