What My First Summer Doing Door‑to‑Door Pest Control Really Looked Like (And How I Made $24,000)

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably heard two things about door‑to‑door pest control:

-“You can make crazy money in one summer.”

-“It’s a scam / pyramid scheme / you’ll hate your life.”

My first year, I made just over $24,000 in commissions in about three months.

It’s not “lambo” money, but it was more than I’d ever had in my account, and I earned it knocking on strangers’ doors in the heat, getting rejected nonstop.

Here’s what it was actually like.

Why I Signed Up:

I was a 3rd‑year student, broke, and honestly over making $12 an hour on campus.

David from Grit x Forge messaged me on Handshake and I ended up applying.

The stuff that hooked me wasn’t just the money:

-Real sales training

-Living and working with people my age

-A chance to see what I could actually do if I went all‑in for a summer

Before I said yes, I did what everyone does: Googled the company. I saw some MLM / “pyramid scheme” comments and it didn’t really line up with what they were telling me, so I asked straight up:

How do we get paid?

How does the business work?

What does a normal day actually look like?

Once we talked through it, it made sense pretty quickly: you get paid on actual pest control accounts you sell to homeowners. I think people here sales, commissions, and recruiting and they think 'bad.' But there is nothing about this that indicated that to me. No requirements to sign up other reps or anything weird like that.

So I went for it.

A Day In The Life (Not The Instagram Version)

Typical day for me:

-10:00–11:00 a.m. – Training, role play, meetings

-11:00–1:00 p.m. – Lunch, drive to area, mentally talk myself into knocking

-1:00–9:00 p.m. – Doors. Just doors. In the sun, in the rain, in the “go away”s

First week I closed 3 accounts.

I wanted to quit pretty much every day at the start. My feet hurt, my ego hurt, and it sucks having doors slammed in your face. The main reasons I stayed:

-The team I was with

-I’d already told everyone back home I was doing this and didn’t want to crawl back

-Pride was 100% part of it.

How The Money Actually Worked

My first year numbers:

-About 11 weeks selling

-123 accounts total

-Average commission per account: around $195

-Total commissions: just over $24,000 before taxes

I wasn’t the top rep. Our top guy did like 3x what I did. I was more middle of the pack.

The key part: every dollar I made came from homeowners paying for a real pest control service. No sign‑up fees, no getting paid to recruit friends, no weird structure. If I didn’t sell, I didn’t earn.

What Sucked (So You Don’t Romanticize It)

Stuff people don’t put on the flyer:

-Rejection: You’ll hear “not interested” 50+ times a day. Some people are rude just because they can be.

-Weather: I knocked in 100‑degree heat where my shirt was soaked by 2 p.m.

-Ego: Getting lectured by a random dad on his porch about your life choices does not feel great.

-Discipline: No one is babysitting you. You can sit in your car on your phone and pretend you’re working. If you’re lazy, this job exposes it fast.

-There were days I went 6 hours with zero sales. Those days feel like they never end.

What I Actually Got Out Of It (Besides The Money)

The money was awesome. But the bigger stuff was:

-I stopped being scared of talking to people. After 2,000+ doors, talking to strangers about anything feels normal.

-I learned how to work hard on command, not only when I was “motivated.”

-My resume suddenly had an actual result on it:
“Sold 123 annual pest control contracts in 11 weeks going door to door.”

That first summer is why I came back. Year 2 and 3 have been a lot bigger for me because the skill stacks.

Who This Is For

-You should seriously think about doing this if:

-You want to make more than a normal summer job

-You’re competitive and can handle being coached

-You’re willing to trade one hard summer for skills + money that actually move you forward

You probably shouldn’t do this if:

-You think you’ll get rich without actually working

-You completely fall apart at rejection

-Your parents still have to drag you out of bed

Final Thoughts

My first year in door‑to‑door pest control wasn’t glamorous. No Lambo, no private jet.

I did make about $24k, paid off debt, stacked savings, and proved to myself I could do something hard on purpose and not quit.

If you’re on the fence, talk to a few of us who’ve actually done it. Ask how we’re paid, ask to see real numbers, and then decide if you’re willing to do the work.

The opportunity is real. The question is whether you’ll actually show up for it.