Start with water, as DSHS does
DSHS says mosquitoes can breed in as little as a tablespoon of water. It advises emptying or removing water-holding containers at least weekly, changing bird bath and wading pool water several times a week, and using larvicide dunks where water cannot be emptied. It also lists EPA-registered repellents, with DEET proven safe and effective, and keeping screens and doors closed.
Only after that does DSHS mention treatment: if mosquito problems persist, it says to consider pesticide applications for vegetation around the home.
What mosquito control costs in Texas
Our estimate for a mosquito control visit in Texas is $95 to $180 per visit, and the table adds a per-season estimate. National ranges adjusted by Texas's wage ratio of 0.89 give both, and neither is a quote.
One Texas company publishes a price for this job, short of the five we need to set a range of our own. Ask whether the price is for one visit or a season, how many visits a season includes and whether a misting system is part of it.
| Item | Figure | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Estimated range, not a quote | $95 to $180 per visit | Built from 2 national published ranges, adjusted by the Texas pest control worker wage ratio (0.89). Four Texas pest control companies publish a price we could count on their own websites; where five or more price the same job, the range is the middle half of their prices, and where two to four do, the estimate is widened to take them in. Coupons, specials and figures a page gives as an average are not counted. Basis: no state company sample (one counted Texas company price for this job), national estimate only. |
| Estimated range per season, not a quote | $320 to $755 per season | Built from 2 national published ranges, adjusted by the Texas pest control worker wage ratio (0.89). Four Texas pest control companies publish a price we could count on their own websites; where five or more price the same job, the range is the middle half of their prices, and where two to four do, the estimate is widened to take them in. Coupons, specials and figures a page gives as an average are not counted. Basis: no state company sample (no counted Texas company price for this job), national estimate only. |
| Pest control worker wage, Texas mean | $19.90 an hour | BLS mean hourly pay in Texas, May 2025, for pest control workers, not a charge for a yard visit. |
| State fee, business license, each location | $300 to license, $300 to renew | What a company pays TDA per location, on fees effective January 1, 2016. |
| State fee, certified applicator license | $125 to license, $125 to renew | An individual's license fee; each category exam is $64 on TDA's schedule. |
Estimated range. Built from national published ranges (2 sources), adjusted by Texas's pest control worker wage ratio to the US (0.89, BLS May 2025), with no permit fee added because pest control has no city permit. Not a quote. Four Texas pest control companies publish a price we could count on their own websites; where five or more price the same job, the range is the middle half of their prices, and where two to four do, the estimate is widened to take them in. Coupons, specials and figures a page gives as an average are not counted. Only one Texas company publishes a price we could count for this job, so the range is our national estimate alone. Full method. Prices as of Oct 23, 2026.
This year's West Nile numbers, with their dates
DSHS's arbovirus report for week 41, ending October 17, 2026 and dated October 20, counts 1,406 West Nile positive mosquito pools in Texas, with 83 human cases (16 febrile illness and 67 neuroinvasive disease) and 4 deaths. It's a weekly preliminary snapshot. Its imported-case lines show 28 dengue and 4 chikungunya cases for 2026.
DSHS's table of human cases, provisional as of September 30, 2026, lists West Nile neuroinvasive cases at 363 in 2024, 127 in 2025 and 54 so far in 2026, and notes that actual incidence may be higher than reported cases. Austin Public Health says mosquitoes are present year-round in Central Texas, with peak activity from May through November.
What nine Texas cities say they do
Fort Worth's page, in its August 7, 2026 version, says the city monitors 40 trap locations weekly with Tarrant County Public Health. Arlington's posted 2026 plan has its contractor spray within a half-mile of a trap that tests positive three weeks in a row, between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. Mesquite sets 15 traps a week and applies an adulticide containing malathion where a pool tests positive. Plano sets up to 20 traps a week and asks residents to report water standing more than a week at 972-941-7143.
Amarillo treats over 100 sites and says it does not spray private residences or private property. Brownsville's posted vector control page divides the city into 33 spray zones. Corpus Christi's Vector Control sets traps in drains, ditches and flood channels and says residents can buy larvicides at home improvement stores. Austin takes standing-water reports through 3-1-1, and a Dallas release from August 19, 2021 describes overnight ground spraying after a positive sample.
Who may spray a yard for pay
TDA's guide to mosquito licenses says mosquito control for hire for private individuals or homeowners associations is nuisance mosquito control and needs a structural (SPCS) license in the Pest category. City, county and state employees, and contractors a city or county hires, need an agricultural license in the Public Health Pest Control category. Installing a misting system generally needs the SPCS Pest category; installing only, with no later filling, refilling or mixing of pesticides, needs no license.
Do mosquitoes need a same-day call?
- Anyone ill after a yard treatment can call the Texas Poison Center at 1-800-764-7661.
- A yard with mosquitoes where containers haven't been emptied yet, because DSHS puts that step first.
- Comparing bids for a season plan.
Steps before you hire
- Empty containers that hold water and do it weekly.
- Change bird bath and wading pool water several times a week.
- Use larvicide dunks where water cannot be emptied.
- Ask the company which license category it holds.
- Ask what product it applies and ask for the label.
License rules for yard mosquito control
A company treating a private yard for hire needs a TDA business license with the Pest category, and Occupations Code 1951.005 bars cities from adopting their own rules on pesticide use (a 2018 copy of the statute). Ask the company which category it holds, because a city contractor works under a different, agricultural license.
Ask for the company's TDA business license number and the applicator's name, and check both with TDA's Structural Pest Control Service before any work starts.
Questions people ask
When is mosquito season in Texas?
Year-round in Central Texas, with the peak from May through November, according to Austin Public Health. DSHS posts a weekly arbovirus report, and the latest report is week 41, ending October 17, 2026.
Does my city spray my yard for mosquitoes?
Not in Amarillo, which says it does not spray private residences or private property. Your own city's health or environmental page describes its program, if it runs one.
Does a mosquito control company need a license in Texas?
Yes: for private homeowners or homeowners associations it needs a TDA structural license in the Pest category. City or county employees and their contractors need a Public Health Pest Control agricultural license instead.
What are Texas's 2026 West Nile numbers so far?
DSHS counts 83 human cases through week 41, ending October 17, 2026, including 67 neuroinvasive cases and 4 deaths. That's a weekly preliminary snapshot, so the number moves.
What does mosquito control cost in Texas?
Our model puts one visit at $95 to $180 per visit, as an estimate. A season price is listed separately in the table. Ask how many visits it includes.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025: Pest Control Workers (SOC 37-2021), Texas, mean hourly wage Read Oct 23, 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025: Pest Control Workers (SOC 37-2021), United States, mean hourly wage Read Oct 23, 2026.
- PestControlMatch: how we estimate costs, Texas (editorial policy) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- TDA: SPCS Fees Read Oct 23, 2026.
- TDA: Structural Pest Control Business Read Oct 23, 2026.
- DSHS: Mosquito-Borne Diseases Read Oct 23, 2026.
- DSHS 2026 Arbovirus Activity Report, Week 41 Read Oct 23, 2026.
- DSHS: Human Cases 2000-2026 Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Austin Public Health: Environmental Vector Control; Mosquito Read Oct 23, 2026.
- City of Fort Worth: Mosquitoes Read Oct 28, 2026.
- City of Arlington: 2026 Mosquito Control and Ground Spraying Plans Read Oct 28, 2026.
- City of Mesquite: West Nile Virus & Mosquito Control Read Oct 23, 2026.
- City of Plano: Mosquito Abatement Read Oct 23, 2026.
- City of Amarillo: Mosquito Control Read Oct 23, 2026.
- City of Brownsville: Vector Control Read Oct 28, 2026.
- City of Corpus Christi: Vector Control Read Oct 23, 2026.
- City of Dallas Consumer Health: Mosquito Control Read Oct 28, 2026.
- TDA: Controlling Mosquitos in Texas: Which License Do You Need? (PDF) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Texas Occupations Code §1951.005: Municipal preemption and exceptions Read Oct 28, 2026.