Well Water Nerd

Uranium in Missouri well water

In Missouri, <1% of 7,056 private wells tested between 2010 and 2023 had uranium above the EPA limit (30 ug/L), according to Missouri DHSS.

Uranium in well water comes from granite bedrock. Its main health effect is chemical toxicity to the kidneys rather than radiation. It is common in the same areas where radon and arsenic occur.

Check your uranium number

Type the value from your lab report. It is compared to the EPA limit and the EPA limit, the same way the full interpretation does it.

Test your Missouri well for uranium

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 uranium

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.

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 uranium

Under-sink reverse osmosis system

under-sink or countertop, about $300

Look for NSF/ANSI 58 certification listing the contaminant you need removed.

For uranium

Whole-house arsenic and uranium filter

whole-house, at the point of entry, about $2,500

Adsorptive iron-based media; sized to your well yield.

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 uranium in Missouri: certified labs, state programs and prices.

By county, from homeowner tests

Share of private wells above the state guidance level (30 ug/L) in tests homeowners sent to the state lab, 2010 to 2023.

CountyAbove state levelWells testedHighest
Ste. Genevieve41
Jefferson212
Newton1,165
Howell635
Webster525
Christian410
Madison390
Jasper382
Lawrence208
Cooper208
McDonald169
Cole134
Texas123
Cape Girardeau119
St. Clair111

By county, from individual samples

Public monitoring samples against the EPA limit (30 ug/L); counties with at least 30 samples.

CountyAbove EPA limitSamplesDetectedMedianHighest
St. Charles27772%1.314,000 ug/L
Jackson36289%0.14638.8 ug/L
Clay9166%0.03512.9 ug/L

Sources

  • Missouri DHSS private well sampling summaries: County summaries of private well samples analyzed by the Missouri State Public Health Laboratory, 2010 to 2023, published by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. Counts are samples, not distinct wells. Shares are against the EPA maximum contaminant level, or the EPA secondary standard for chloride and iron. Counties with fewer than 20 samples are flagged unreliable by DHSS and are kept here with their counts so the threshold rule can judge them. Barium, sulfate and zinc layers exist but have no contaminant page yet. Retrieved September 15, 2026.
  • Individual samples from the USGS Water Quality Portal and state monitoring, summarized per geography. uranium counts and shares are listed on each county and town page with their sources.