German Cockroaches are small (1/2 an inch or so) and can range from tan through brown to almost black, and has two dark parallel streaks running from the head to the base of the wings. Though they have wings they cannot fly. The German cockroach is one of the most common household cockroaches and is particularly fond of inhabiting restaurants, kitchens, hotels, and nursing homes.
Brown Banded Cockroaches are light brown with two light-colored bands across the wings and abdomen. Because they need less moisture than the German cockroach they can be found distributed throughout the house, including bedrooms and restrooms. They avoid light so they are most commonly found at night, usually scattering when an unsuspecting homeowner turns a light on.
Oriental Cockroaches (also called Waterbugs) are a large species of cockroaches (about 1 inch in length) that prefer dark, moist places. They are one of the most challenging cockroaches to get rid of when they infest a home for a few reasons. The first is that they inhabit dark areas are not commonly seen until the infestation has reached a critical level. The second reason they are hard to eliminate is their sheer size. The larger the bug the more pesticide required to kill them. All of these factors in combination with their quick breeding habits, they tend to be quite challenging to rid a home of.