Are Birds Taking Over Your Home? Here's How Much It'll Cost to Remove Them in 2025
Removing a bird nest costs an average of $600.
The average bird nest removal cost is $600, with a range between $100 and $2,000.
Factors influencing cost include location, size, access difficulty, and preventative measures.
Removing nests prevents property damage, noise, and health risks from droppings.
Hiring a professional ensures safe, legal, and humane removal of birds and nests.
Preventative measures like spikes and netting can help deter future nesting.
This article was updated using automation technology and thoroughly reviewed for accuracy by HomeAdvisor Editor Ryan Noonan.
Having a bird nest removed from your property will cost around $600, with a typical range between $100 and $2,000. Factors like location, size, and access difficulty can influence the total price. Removing nests helps prevent property damage and health risks. Hiring a professional ensures safe and humane practices. Read on to learn what impacts the cost of bird nest removal and how you can budget for this service.
Bird and Nest Removal Cost Factors
The total cost for bird and nest removal depends on several factors unique to your situation. Here are some of the major influences that can affect your payment.
Bird Species
The type of bird nesting on your property can greatly impact the cost of removal. If you have pigeons, which roost in flocks, you'll usually need to remove the existing birds, clean up the mess from the large flock, and install preventative equipment to keep them from returning. This combination of services means the job will cost more—you can expect to pay between $1,000 and $3,000 for professional removal and prevention measures for a large flock of pigeons on a large house.
On the other hand, birds like swallows and robins commonly build small nests in eaves. Removing a robin’s nest typically costs between $100 and $350, while removing a barn swallow’s nest can cost between $100 and $650.
Location
Where you live and where the birds have built their nests can influence the price for removal. If you live in a rural, hard-to-reach area, you may have to pay more to hire a pro, and large cities like New York could also incur a premium. The nesting spot in your home also affects the cost. Accessing nests in hard-to-reach places, like attics and vents, makes removal more challenging and can increase the price. If a bird has set up home within a vent, a pro will need to locate the nest, remove it, clean the vent, and cover it to prevent future nesting. Sometimes nests occupy multiple vents, and you can expect to pay $200 to $500 per vent.
Additional cost details by location include:
Chimney: Removal and installation of preventative measures typically cost between $175 and $800.
Eaves (roof overhang): Costs range from $300 to $1,000.
Roof: Removal from the roof generally costs between $300 and $2,000, often including humane spike installation.
Attic: Expect to pay between $300 and $600 for attic nest removal.
Gutters: Removal and subsequent installation of gutter guards usually costs between $1,350 and $1,700 per 200 square feet.
Home Size and Complexity
The cost of setting up preventative measures varies depending on the size of your home and the amount of equipment required. Running a row of spikes along the guttering of a small, simple one-bedroom bungalow, for example, will cost considerably less than it would on a large, four-bedroom, three-story home with intricate architectural features.
Cleanup
Many bird control professionals offer cleanup services as part of the job. In addition to removing the birds and nests, they'll also remove any feathers and droppings left behind and sanitize the area to eliminate harmful bacteria. For larger-scale jobs, this could add anywhere from $50 to $300 to your total bird removal costs.
Preventative Measures
Preventative measures often increase the cost of bird removal services, but they are vital to prevent future problems, especially when you're dealing with large flocks of birds like pigeons. These measures include sealing up entry points (in places like attic spaces and vents) and using netting or spikes to prevent birds from roosting on your gutters, walls, or other house ledges.
To deter larger nuisance birds like pigeons, crows, or seagulls, you can install bird spikes along the edges of your house where they congregate. Plastic varieties are more affordable but not as long-lasting as stainless steel varieties. Prices start from around $20 for 10 feet of spiking. Expect to pay upward of $35 per 10 feet of stainless steel spiking. The height of the spikes also affects the cost, with taller spikes being more expensive. Spikes are considered a humane and environmentally friendly bird deterrent.
You can use netting just during nesting season or as a permanent fixture, and it’s relatively easy to install. However, you need to get the right netting size for the type of birds you're trying to prevent from accessing your property. For a 25-by-25-foot piece of netting, you could pay around $100, but this depends on the quality and size of the mesh grids. However, netting is not considered a humane option like spikes are. Birds, especially smaller birds, can get tangled in the netting and damage their extremities. It can also do the same to other wildlife like squirrels. Spikes are considered a humane and environmentally friendly bird deterrent you can use in place of nets.
The cost includes the materials themselves and the installation fees. Purchasing and installing nets or spikes can cost as much as $1,000 or more for large buildings.
DIY vs. Hire a Bird and Nest Removal Pro
Calling a bird nest removal professional ensures you aren't breaking any laws, and they'll carry out the job safely and effectively. Trapping and relocating birds and installing deterrents is complicated, and there are often legal restrictions to consider. It also often involves working on ladders and in hard-to-access parts of your home. That's why hiring a licensed and knowledgeable pro is best.
If you're on a limited budget but want to apply some preventative measures yourself, you could consult a professional for advice and then source and install the materials yourself. However, be aware of the risks of improper installation and purchasing the wrong materials.
If you don't install preventative equipment properly or don't remove all nesting or roosting birds, you may face more costly repairs in the future. Using a pro also means minimal stress for the birds; when you don't know what you're doing, you can cause unnecessary suffering or injuries to them.
How HomeAdvisor Gets Its Cost Data
No place is more important than your home, which is why HomeAdvisor connects homeowners with local pros to transform their houses into homes they love. To help homeowners prepare for their next project, HomeAdvisor provides readers with accurate cost data and follows strict editorial guidelines. After a project is complete, we survey real customers about the costs to develop the pricing data you see, so you can make the best decisions for you and your home. We pair this data with research from reputable sources, including the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, academic journals, market studies, and interviews with industry experts—all to ensure our prices reflect real-world projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
You're likely to find nesting birds in external areas such as your gutters, eaves, porches, and chimneys. Some birds also nest in less obvious spots, like attics or even in your ventilation systems if they gain access. A reputable pro will conduct an inspection before starting any work to check for evidence of where birds may have set up roosting or nesting sites in your home.
Leaving birds to roost and nest on your home creates significant risks that affect both your home's structure and your well-being. The constant droppings, aggressive swooping, and persistent noise can damage siding, allow moisture intrusion, and stain exterior finishes. In addition, the birds’ pecking and droppings can spread diseases and parasites, which can lead to escalating repair costs and health hazards.
Yes, humane removal is possible and ensures that birds remain unharmed during the extraction process. Experts use proven methods to safely capture and relocate both birds and their nests to secure environments. Professionals employ stainless steel spikes as a deterrent while avoiding harmful techniques such as poisons or glue traps. You can rely on trusted specialists who strictly use safe, noninjurious methods, thereby protecting the birds while resolving the nuisance.
Yes, there are legal considerations when removing birds and their nests. You must adhere to strict local and state regulations, which safeguard protected native species during nesting season. Special authorization is required to remove protected birds, their nests, or eggs under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Observing these legal mandates avoids violations and ensures safe, responsible removal.
To prevent birds from returning after nest removal, you can implement deterrent methods. Installing stainless steel spikes creates a secure barrier that prevents birds from roosting without causing injury. In contrast, loose nets may entangle birds and other wildlife, creating additional hazards. A trusted professional will choose and install the optimal method to keep your home bird-free.
A bird’s nest remains viable for a period that depends on the species. The construction phase concludes within 2 days to 3 weeks, followed by a rearing stage lasting 2 to 10 weeks. Most birds become fully independent within 2 to 6 weeks, while certain predatory species require up to 2 1/2 months. This timeline can guide you on when it's safe to intervene.
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