Lead in North Carolina well water
In North Carolina, 3% of 110,409 private wells tested between 1998 and 2019 had lead above the North Carolina groundwater standard (15 ug/L), according to the NC State Laboratory of Public Health (NCWELL).
Lead in well water almost always comes from household plumbing and older fixtures, not the aquifer, and corrosive (low pH) well water makes it worse. There is no safe level for children; it harms brain development.
Check your lead number
Type the value from your lab report. It is compared to the North Carolina groundwater standard and the EPA limit, the same way the full interpretation does it.
Test your North Carolina well for lead
Certified lab analysis of your own tap water, bottles and prepaid return shipping included. The Essential well panel covers arsenic, uranium, nitrate, lead, copper, manganese, iron, sodium and bacteria; radon and PFAS are add-ons.
Order the Tap Score well water test kit, from $209Already tested? Upload the report
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Systems that remove lead
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Some links below are affiliate links. If you buy through one, the merchant pays us a commission at no extra cost to you. It does not change which products we list or what the data says.
For lead
Under-sink reverse osmosis system
under-sink or countertop, about $300
Look for NSF/ANSI 58 certification listing the contaminant you need removed.
For lead
Acid neutralizing filter
whole-house, at the point of entry, about $1,200
Raises pH so plumbing stops leaching lead and copper.
For lead
Aquasana SmartFlow reverse osmosis
under-sink or countertop, about $225
Certified to NSF/ANSI 58 and 53 to reduce arsenic (96%, pentavalent), fluoride (90%), lead (99%), nitrate, nitrite and PFOA/PFOS at the kitchen tap, with a remineralizer.
Rather have it installed and sized for your well? Book a free in-home water test with a licensed local company.
Where to get a well tested for lead in North Carolina: certified labs, state programs and prices.
By county, from homeowner tests
Share of private wells above the state guidance level (15 ug/L) in tests homeowners sent to the state lab, 1998 to 2019.
| County | Above state level | Wells tested | Highest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hoke | 306 | 191 ug/L | |
| Montgomery | 576 | 329 ug/L | |
| Richmond | 523 | 1,500 ug/L | |
| Alleghany | 347 | 707 ug/L | |
| Cumberland | 1,970 | 725 ug/L | |
| Moore | 1,289 | 205 ug/L | |
| Madison | 1,190 | 701 ug/L | |
| Scotland | 266 | 761 ug/L | |
| Macon | 2,424 | 2,540 ug/L | |
| Anson | 131 | 260 ug/L | |
| Wayne | 548 | 130 ug/L | |
| Harnett | 367 | 146 ug/L | |
| Henderson | 1,497 | 355 ug/L | |
| Avery | 640 | 147 ug/L | |
| Greene | 64 | 69 ug/L |
By county, from individual samples
Public monitoring samples against the EPA limit (15 ug/L); counties with at least 30 samples.
| County | Above EPA limit | Samples | Detected | Median | Highest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Craven | 67 | 51% | 0 | 400 ug/L | |
| Mecklenburg | 994 | 71% | 0 | 1,000 ug/L | |
| Iredell | 34 | 38% | 0 | 0.713 ug/L | |
| Orange | 33 | 30% | 0 | 4 ug/L | |
| Guilford | 33 | 9% | 0 | 0.08 ug/L |
Sources
- NCWELL private well summaries: County summaries of private well tests run by the NC State Laboratory of Public Health, 1998 to 2019, compiled by the UNC Superfund Research Program (NCWELL database). Counts are tests, not distinct wells; since 2008 every new well is tested once, so most tests are unique wells. Shares are against the NC 2L groundwater standard where one exists (manganese 50 ug/L, lead 15, iron 300) and otherwise the EPA limit. Medians are not used because more than half of results sit at the reporting limit for most analytes. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
- Individual samples from the USGS Water Quality Portal and state monitoring, summarized per geography. lead counts and shares are listed on each county and town page with their sources.