The only mammal capable of flying, bats often invade homes, attics, and chimneys, making noise at night, damaging the structure of the home, and leaving hazardous waste in their path. While bats are an important part of the ecosystem, they belong outdoors, making bat removal and exclusion necessary services for homeowners.
Female bats are constantly on the prowl for a warm location to roost and eventually raise their young.They often occupy chimneys and attics. The cost of hiring a professional to remove bats varies based on a multitude of factors. Bat infestation removal cost ranges from $400 to $600, with the average cost of $500 for removing a small colony, including the initial inspection but excluding clean up after the removal. Larger colonies can end up costing $8,500, including inspection and guano cleanup costs. However, if instead of a colony, you only have one bat, that would be cheaper, at around $275 for the removal of a single bat.
Bat Pest Control | |
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National average cost | $500 |
Average range | $400-$600 |
Low-end | $275 |
High-end | $8,500 |
Bats can make a home in a number of areas within a house: the chimney, attic, or walls. In most cases, bats colonize in one area of the home. However, in some cases, bats may be in more than one location within a single house. As illustrated by the table below, bat removal costs are relatively consistent despite the location of the bats.
Location | Cost of removal |
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Soffit Porch Trees | $50 - $180 |
Barn Basement Chimney Attic Walls | $400 - $600 |
Getting rid of bats in soffits 1 starts with a thorough inspection to determine their most common roosting places and then identify potential solutions. In many cases, the best way to prevent bats from roosting outside of your home is to provide them with alternative housing in the form of a bat house. The initial inspection averages $75 to $250, and bat houses range from $50 to $180.
When the home is lacking points of entry, bats often get comfortable on the porch. For homeowners wondering who to call for bat removal when they’re outside, pest control services that handle indoor bat infestations can also assist with outdoor needs. The best removal method, in this case, is providing alternative housing by installing a bat house large enough to accommodate the maternal colony. The initial inspection averages $75 to $250, and bat houses range from $50 to $180. Keeping the porch light on at night helps deter bats until a professional can come.
Fruit trees can attract bats to the property. When bats roost in trees, the extermination involves making the trees less attractive for bats by covering fruit, installing noisy decorations, and providing alternative options for the colony. The costs associated with bats in trees include the cost of a bat house and range from $50 to $180.
Barns make excellent homes for bats. They’re dark, quiet, and often have lots of nooks and crannies for roosting. Professional bat removal is best for barn infestations because this involves identifying and remediating points of entry and then installing bat houses strategically to encourage roosting away from homes and outbuildings. For homeowners wondering how much it costs to get rid of bats in the barn, the cost averages $400 - $600.
In some cases, maternal colonies will settle in the basement. Calling a bat removal company is the best solution. These professionals can determine how the bats are entering the home, ensure they’re able to exit but not enter in the future, and provide better housing options for the colony. The average cost to remove bats from the basement is $400 - $600.
One of the most common points for bat entry into a home is the chimney. Bats can either enter through the chimney and then roost in other areas of the house or roost right in the chimney. Call a professional exterminator for bats in the chimney; they will likely use exclusion netting or install a bat-proof chimney cap. The average cost to remove bats from a chimney is $400 - $600.
You may be wondering about the cost of bat removal from the attic. Any pest control service that has experience with bat exclusion will be familiar and comfortable with an attic infestation. Removing bats from the attic involves installing exclusion netting on any entrance, sealing up unwanted holes, and then installing a bat house to prevent future roosting. The cost of bat removal from the attic averages around $400 - $600. In some cases, bats might roost in an attic vent. To remove bats from the attic vent, the bat removal company follows the same exclusion process.
First, call a professional pest control service that is well-versed in bat removal. Bat removal from the house and walls requires the same process as bat removal from the attic. The company will first inspect the property to identify entrance points and then begin the exclusion process using netting, bat-proof chimney caps, or other solutions. The average cost to remove bats from walls is $400 - $600.
Bat exclusion cost depends on the size of the colony. When there is a single bat, identifying and eliminating the point of entry is relatively easy. Conversely, a large colony may have many points of entry and will require larger bat houses and more extensive attic cleanup after removal.
Colony Size | Cost of Removal |
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Single Bat | $90 - $275 |
Small Colony | $150 - $300 |
Medium Colony | $405 - $600 |
Large Colony | $1,000 - $8,000 |
It’s important to note that inspection and guano cleanup prices aren’t included in these price ranges. Homeowners should expect to pay more depending on whether their pest control service waives the inspection and the extent of any guano 2 damage that has occurred to the home.
Bats can be challenging to exclude from a home without hiring a professional. Professionals can remove bats without killing them and can help identify how they are getting into the house so you can prevent the problem from recurring.
Most professionals charge by the project, divided into services. You can expect to pay at least $75 for an initial inspection. The actual bat exclusion and removal will cost at least an additional $90, depending on the size of the bat colony. Sealing up entryways is yet another part of the process. You can expect to pay at least $100 per gable vent to prevent bats from returning and an additional $20 to $50 to seal any other holes through which bats may enter. The cleanup process can often cost significantly more than the removal, as it involves both cleaning bat droppings and replacing insulation.
Bat removal is only one part of the process; bat cleanup is often required once the exclusion is complete. Bats leave behind guano, which poses health risks. Guano 2 or bat poop removal is a separate service, but it’s often provided alongside exclusion services. The price for guano removal varies significantly depending on how severe the problem is. If you have an unchecked bat colony with hundreds of members, that adds up to a lot of guano. The work is hazardous and may take several days, depending on the severity.
Guano is commonly used as fertilizer. However, when it builds up in an enclosed space, it develops a significant odor and can cause a respiratory disease known as histoplasmosis. If you notice some bat droppings in the attic, please be aware that it needs to be removed by a professional equipped with all of the appropriate biohazard gear. In many cases, the attic or wall insulation will need to be replaced, which adds to your overall costs. Bat droppings on the porch could also mean that you need to make more repairs and, thus, increase the project’s price. It’s difficult to give a price estimate for guano 2 removal or attic cleanup cost, as the problem could be contained to only a few square feet or could be as large as the entire attic. The average bat poop removal cost ranges from $500 to as much as $8,400.
Aside from the size of the colony and the extent of the guano left behind, a myriad of other factors influence the cost of bat exclusion services. Some of those factors include:
Most pest control companies provide the homeowner with an estimate after the inspection to make it easier to plan for expenses.
Prior to bat exclusion, an inspection is required. During the inspection, a pest control expert determines whether the infestation is bats as suspected or another rodent, like mice. Then, the exterminator determines how they’re getting into and out of the home. The cost of a bat inspection ranges from $75 to $250. If no infestation exists, the homeowner pays the full cost of the inspection. If one or more bats are found and the homeowner uses the bat exclusion services of the company that conducted the inspection, some pest control companies waive the cost of the inspection.
Dozens of species of bats live in the United States, but three main culprits contribute to indoor infestations: the little brown bat, the big brown bat, and the Mexican free-tailed bat.
These bats hibernate during the winter. In late spring, the females start to look for places to roost and raise their babies, leading them to explore homes, businesses, and other buildings. Chimneys and attics are warm and safe from predators, making them particularly attractive places to settle. Bat pups develop to maturity during the summer and eventually leave home in autumn.
Bats are active at night. They make the most noise and commotion beginning at dusk and continue with their disturbance throughout the night. Bats are extremely beneficial to the environment; in fact, some can eat their weight in insects every night!
However, when they get near humans, they can become a problem. Bats can sometimes carry diseases including rabies, but the bigger issue lies in their droppings or guano. Human exposure to guano can lead to a respiratory disease known as histoplasmosis. For this reason, bat colonies inside a home require professional removal and cleanup.
Many bats in the United States are very small and can fit into tight spaces. Occasionally, a bat will accidentally wander into a home and get stuck. As the weather starts to get warmer in late spring, female bats begin seeking out safe, indoor places to roost.
Due to regulations against harming bats, homeowners often have to live with a bat colony until a professional can help with removing the bats or until the juveniles have aged enough to fly on their own, usually late summer or early fall.
Bats pose two primary health risks to the inhabitants of a home in which they colonize: rabies and histoplasmosis. Rabies can be spread if a person or pet in the home is bitten or scratched by a rabid bat. Approximately 5% of bats are infected with rabies. Any person who has been bitten or scratched by a bat should capture the bat without touching it if at all possible and seek immediate medical attention. Waiting until symptoms appear almost always results in a fatality.
Histoplasmosis is most common following bat infestations that leave behind a large amount of guano. This fungal lung infection, presents with fever, fatigue, and cough. Most people recover from histoplasmosis without medical intervention. However, the infection can be much more severe for those who are immunocompromised.
Seeking professional help to manage a bat colony inside the home is critical for preventing serious and sometimes life-threatening health risks.
No foolproof way exists to prevent bats from entering a home, but steps can be taken to reduce the likelihood of this happening. Placing a bat house large enough to house the maternal colony helps prevent them from seeking shelter in a home or building. Sealing up any holes or cracks greater than ¼” that can allow bats in is important, too. Remember, bats can fit in small spaces! Managing the mosquito population in the yard near the home can reduce the food source for bats and make the property less attractive for them.
When the yard attracts bats, the home is at a higher risk for bat colonization. Fruit trees can attract bats, so learning how to prevent bats from getting to your fruit trees can be beneficial for both the trees and the home. Consider draping fruit trees with plastic netting, covering individual fruits with paper bags, or hanging noisy, distracting objects from the trees to deter bats.
Another common homeowner question involves how to prevent bats from roosting on the porch. Preventing bats from roosting on the porch requires the same steps as preventing them from roosting in the home: reduce the mosquito population and place a bat house on the property to provide alternate living quarters.
The only way to ensure that bats don’t come back is to seal all of the possible entryways. Each gable vent needs to be screened, and all holes need to be sealed. The cost for bat proofing is added to the cost of an inspection. The average price for screening a gable vent is $100 per vent, and the average price to seal holes ranges from $20 to $50 per hole. Bat proof chimney caps range in price from $47 to $300 depending on brand and size. Bat houses range from $50 to $180.
Bats play an instrumental role in our ecosystem. They manage entire insect populations, eating as many as 3,000 mosquitos every day. They inadvertently play a crucial role in pollination by transferring pollen from one plant to another while drinking nectar from flowers. Some bats assist with germination by excreting fruit seeds in their feces and leading to the growth of new trees, sometimes many miles from the original tree or plant.
Because of the extensive benefits bats provide to the ecosystem, and because several species are endangered, it’s important not to exterminate bats but to remove them from the structure and take measures to prevent them from returning. Six bat species are protected by the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and/or the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act of 1956: The Ozark Big-Eared Bat, the Grey Bat, the Indiana Bat, the Florida Bonneted Bat, the Northern Long-Eared Bat, and the Virginia Big-Eared Bat. Other species may be protected by state law.
Homeowners often wonder about the difference between bat exclusion cost and bat exterminator cost. Professional pest control services typically only offer bat exclusion and prevention, also called bat abatement. The cost for this service ranges from $405 to $600 on average for a medium colony. First, an on-site inspection costing $75 to $250 is conducted at or after dusk to identify points of entry. Then, an exclusion door is built that allows the bats to exit the premises but not re-enter.
Attic restoration and guano 2 removal are often billed as a single service because it’s virtually impossible to remove guano without replacing at least some of the attic insulation. Depending on the severity of the situation, this could potentially require replacing all of the insulation in the attic. The cost of attic insulation varies based on the square footage that needs to be covered and the type of insulation used. These materials can cost anywhere from $0.44 to $1.45 per square foot, and labor can cost about $0.95 per square foot.
In most cases, bat removal is covered by homeowner’s insurance, but you will need to consult your specific policy to verify.
The best way to deter bats from coming into your home is to seal off any possible entryways. That means screening vents and chimneys and sealing any holes. Insect control can also deter bats. If they don’t have a good food source, they will look elsewhere.
The simple answer is that you wait for it to leave and then seal up the building while it’s gone. This process is called exclusion.
Bats become active during the twilight hours. You may hear fluttering and other noises from your attic from dusk until dawn, as bats come and go during the night to feed. Bats also produce guano , or droppings, which can quickly develop an unpleasant odor. Outside of actually seeing a bat, those are some of the signs to look for.
There are many different types of bat repellents on the market, but the bad news is that none of them are guaranteed to work. The best way to keep bats from entering your home is to seal holes and screen attics and chimneys, and insect control.
The cost varies based on your location and the severity of the problem, but the average price for a professional inspection and bat removal is $500, not including attic restoration and home repairs.
Mosquito control is one way to make your yard less enticing to bats. Bats are small and can come in through vents and chimneys. The best way to keep them out is by sealing off any potential entryways.
Cost to hire a bat removal service varies greatly by region (and even by zip code). To get free estimates from local contractors, please indicate yours.