You'll usually find chiggers outside, not in your bed, and you can take precautions to avoid an itchy rash

• Chiggers are very small mites that thrive in humid grassy areas — they don't breed in homes or beds.
• An itchy rash that develops a few hours after you spend time outside may be from chigger bites.

If you've ever had an itchy rash on your skin a few hours after walking through the woods or tall grass, you might have encountered chiggers.

These pesky mites also go by a number of other names, including red bug, harvest mite, scrub mite, or bête rouge. They're related to spiders and ticks, and like spiders and adult ticks, adult chiggers also have eight legs.

Chiggers can be yellow or red, but they're very small — about 1/120 of an inch in diameter. That means you'll find it tough to see them with your naked eye. In fact, you usually won't know you've come into contact with chiggers until your skin breaks out into a rash.

They tend to live in overgrown grassy or wooded areas, often in damp, shady spots. They're most common in hot and humid areas, like the southern and midwestern United States. Typically, they sit near the top of grass stems, leaves, or other vegetation, where they may latch onto you when you pass by.

Usually, you won't find chiggers in your bed or anywhere else in your home. Read on to learn why, plus how to treat a chigger rash and what you can do to avoid them in the future.

Can chiggers live in your bed?

Only immature chiggers — also called larvae — bite humans and other animals. They need to feed for about three to four days before they can drop off their host and mature into nymphs and then adults.

Typically, when chiggers latch onto people they end up being brushed or washed away within a few hours.

Still, it's certainly possible you might bring chiggers home with you if they stay attached to your clothes. And if you come home with chiggers on you, they may then get onto your bed from your clothing — but they don't seek your bed out on purpose, says Megan Wede, co-owner of Done Right Pest Solutions.

What's more, chiggers won't survive for long in your home or bed. After they've fed on you, they need to be outdoors to continue their life cycle. They won't breed in your home, like other insects do.

If they can no longer feed off your skin, they should die within a couple of days, Wede says.

In short, you're more likely to get a rash from outdoor contact with chiggers than from contact in your bed.

What do chigger bites look like?

Chiggers don't suck blood or burrow into your skin. Instead, these mites inject enzymes that break down your skin so they can feed off it. It's your body's reaction to the digestive enzymes that causes the rash and intense itching that comes with it.

These bites often appear in clusters and look like small red or dark red bumps, much like pimples, blisters, or hives.

You won't feel a chigger bite right away, but within a couple of hours your skin will feel intensely itchy. The itch lasts for a few days, while the bumps on your skin can take up to two weeks to heal.

Note: If any chiggers remain on your skin by the time you have a rash, they will fall off when you scratch it.

Chigger bites tend to appear in skin folds or areas where your clothing is tight. For instance, around your ankles or at your waistband.

Common areas you might find chigger bites on your body include:

• Lower legs and ankles
• Waist
• Groin
• The backs of your knees

Chigger bites vs. bedbug bites

Chigger bites can resemble other types of bug bites — like those from bedbugs or fleas. These bites can all show up as itchy, discolored, and raised areas, but a few differences can help you tell them apart:

• Bedbug bites may show up as a zigzag, line, or random pattern on any exposed skin.
• Flea bites often appear in clusters, similar to chigger bites, but flea bites often have a distinctive halo or ring around each bite. You'll usually find flea bites on your legs, though rarely above your knees.
• If you spend time outdoors and develop a very itchy rash within a few hours, chiggers may be the culprit. If you haven't spent much time outside and wake up with a rash, fleas or bedbugs may be to blame.

Plus, you can often identify bedbugs by a few other tell-tale signs, such as:

• Reddish stains on sheets on mattresses due to bedbugs being crushed
• Bedbug excrement, which will look like small dark spots
• Visible, small bugs on your mattress or sheets

How to treat chigger bites

Chigger bites aren't dangerous to you, as they don't cause disease and the rash isn't contagious. Even so, the itching can be very uncomfortable.

To help ease the discomfort, you can use:

• Anti-itch creams, like calamine lotion
• Antihistamines, like Benadryl
• Hydrocortisone ointment
• Cold compresses

To help keep the bites from getting infected, wash the area with soap and water and try to avoid scratching once a bump has formed on your skin.

Check in with your doctor if you notice any of the following signs of infection:

• Your skin feels painful and warm to the touch.
• You have pus draining from your rash.
• You have a fever.

How to get rid of chiggers in your bed

Chiggers don't survive long indoors, but If you suspect they could be lingering in your bed or elsewhere in your home, Wede suggests trying these steps to quickly get rid of them:

• Wash your bedding in hot water and dry it on a high heat setting.
• Use household cleaners around the baseboards and on surfaces — anything that contains bleach or alcohol will kill them.

To prevent chigger bites and avoid bringing them into your home, you can take a few precautions when you're outdoors, such as:

• Wearing long-sleeved shirts and pants, as well as boots or closed-toe shoes.
• Tucking your pant legs inside your boots and buttoning your shirt cuffs and collar.
• Applying insect repellent containing DEET to exposed skin and at the edges of your clothing, such as your waistband and the top of your boots.
• Avoiding sitting directly on the ground.
• Removing your clothes and washing them in hot water after spending time outdoors.

If you know you've come into contact with chiggers:

• Take a hot shower or bath with a lot of soap within a few hours, as this can help reduce the severity of the itching.
• Scrub your skin with a washcloth to remove any remaining chiggers.

Insider's takeaway

Coming into contact with chiggers can leave you with a very uncomfortable, itchy rash. You'll usually encounter chiggers outdoors, but in some cases, they might hitch a ride into your home or even into your bed.

That said, chiggers likely won't survive more than a few days in your home — but you can get rid of them quickly by washing your bedding in hot water and cleaning household surfaces with bleach-based cleaners.

If you know you'll be in areas with chiggers, you can protect yourself by wearing clothing that fully covers your skin, using insect repellent, and washing your clothes and your body with hot water after being outdoors.