NYC is the third rattiest city in the U.S., a new study says

Even though New York City is seen as the rat capital of the world, it actually isn’t the city with the most rats! That distinction goes to Chicago, according to a new study.

Orkin, the pest control company, released a new report, “Top 50 Rattiest Cities List,” that places Chicago at the top, followed by Los Angeles and New York. 

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It’s also worth mentioning that Albany, our state capital, made the list at no. 31, Buffalo is no. 41, Rochester is no. 43 and Syracuse is no. 48 rattiest, making New York the most represented state on the list.

The top 50 rattiest cities:

1. Chicago

2. Los Angeles

3. New York

4. San Francisco

5. Washington, D.C.

6. Denver

7. Philadelphia

8. Detroit.

9. Baltimore

10. Cleveland

11. Minneapolis

12. Boston

13. Hartford

14. Seattle

15. Indianapolis

16. Atlanta

17. Columbus, Ohio

18. San Diego

19. Milwaukee

20. Sacramento

21. Pittsburgh

22. Dallas

23. Miami

24. Norfolk

25. Houston

26. Charlotte

27. Grand Rapids

28. Raleigh

29. Honolulu

30. Albuquerque

31. Albany

32. Phoenix

33. Greenville

34. Cincinnati

35. Tampa

36. Nashville

37. Richmond

38. Portland

39. Orlando

40. New Orleans

41. Buffalo

42. Flint

43. Rochester

44. Champaign

45. Kansas City

46. Burlington

47. Oklahoma City

48. Syracuse

49. Charleston, West Virginia

50. Greensboro

How did Orkin come to this ranking? It looked at new residential rodent treatments from September 1, 2023, to August 31, 2024.

“Chicago’s abundance of alleys provides rodents with hidden havens, offering plenty of space to hide while feasting on trash,” the report says. “Rodents also love to burrow, finding shelter beneath subway tracks or around underground pipes. In these hidden spots, the rodent population can grow if left unchecked.”

That sounds like the case here in NYC, doesn’t it?

Perhaps all the new actions the city has taken in recent years, from hiring a rat czar to changing how we put out our trash, is making an impact—after all, we’re not no. 1!

In January, the city announced that rat sightings had decreased. The Department of Sanitation said that sightings were down 68% in the 10-block area in Hamilton Heights where the city set up special containers as part of a pilot program to deal with the issue, which was exacerbated during the pandemic. In the spring of 2023, the city identified several neighborhoods as “rat mitigation zones” and gave them extra help to eliminate the rat population. And finally in March this year, all commercial trash (apparently, 20 million pounds a day) was ordered to be placed in a secure, lidded container.

Yeah, we’re ratty, but we’re working on it!