Well water in New York
1in2
Testing strongly recommended
tested well samples in New York exceeded the EPA limit for PFOA (4 ng/L), based on public data from USGS Water Quality Portal.
180,176 test results across 15 contaminants from at least 6,063 wells, 1903 to 2025; chloride has the most at 37,718. Data refreshed September 15, 2026.
Compiled by Nick at Well Water Nerd from public records. How these pages are built
An estimated 2,499,435 people in New York get their drinking water from a private well, per USGS 2015 county water use.
Separately, the USGS national arsenic model estimates that 3% of the 2,499,435 people on private wells in New York draw water above 10 ug/L (the model's range is 2% to 4%), from geology and well depth rather than local tests.
What individual samples found
Each row summarizes every public sample for that contaminant inside New York. Above limit means above the EPA maximum contaminant level; where EPA has no enforceable limit, the row shows a health guideline or nuisance level instead.
| Contaminant | Above limit | Samples | Detected | Median | Highest | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PFOA 2018 to 2024 | 154 | 69% | 8.1 | 290 | 4 ng/L EPA limit | |
| PFOS 2018 to 2024 | 154 | 55% | 1.95 | 260 | 4 ng/L EPA limit | |
| Nitrate 1948 to 2024 | 7,920 | 81% | 1.4 | 999 | 10 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Lead 1970 to 2024 | 6,958 | 44% | 0 | 3,500 | 15 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Arsenic 1919 to 2024 | 5,099 | 44% | 0 | 161 | 10 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Radium (226 + 228) 1973 to 2022 | 155 | 75% | 0.18 | 61 | 5 pCi/L EPA limit | |
| E. coli 2001 to 2022 | 758 | <1% | 0 | 580 | 0 MPN/100mL EPA limit | |
| Copper 1919 to 2024 | 12,088 | 66% | 0.005 | 31.2 | 1.3 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Uranium 1993 to 2024 | 1,355 | 81% | 0.192 | 157 | 30 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Fluoride 1934 to 2025 | 14,013 | 54% | 0 | 48 | 4 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Chloride 1903 to 2025 | no limit | 37,718 | 100% | 10 | 200,000 | 250 mg/L nuisance level |
| Iron 1919 to 2025 | no limit | 34,190 | 81% | 99.0 | 2,300,000 | 300 ug/L nuisance level |
| Manganese 1919 to 2025 | no limit | 32,638 | 67% | 0 | 260,000 | 300 ug/L health guideline |
| Sodium 1919 to 2025 | no limit | 25,779 | 99% | 8.7 | 63,000 | 20 mg/L health guideline |
| Radon 1993 to 2022 | no limit | 1,197 | 99% | 380 | 32,000 | 2,000 pCi/L health guideline |
Over time
Share of samples above the limit by period. A cell needs ten samples to show; a comparison needs twenty in each period. Later periods sample fewer wells, and often the ones already known to have a problem.
| Contaminant | before 2000 | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fluoride | <1%11,660 samples | 0%1,100 samples | <1%1,029 samples | <1%224 samples |
| Copper | 1%9,888 samples | 0%1,036 samples | <1%995 samples | 0%169 samples |
| Nitrate | 11%5,769 samples | 10%1,112 samples | 6%866 samples | 4%173 samples |
| Lead | 3%4,860 samples | 3%1,035 samples | 2%894 samples | 0%169 samples |
| Arsenic | 1%3,030 samples | 3%997 samples | 3%899 samples | 3%173 samples |
| Uranium | 0%31 samples | <1%520 samples | <1%635 samples | <1%169 samples |
Fluoride, copper, nitrate, lead, arsenic, uranium have held within a few points between the two most recent periods with enough samples.
What this means
The contaminants most often above their limit here are pfoa (60% of 154 samples), pfos (44% of 154 samples), and nitrate (10% of 7,920 samples). A well next door can differ sharply from yours because bedrock fractures, well depth and plumbing all matter, so these rates describe the area, not your tap.
Chloride, Iron, and Manganese are widespread in local groundwater. They are mainly a staining and taste problem, but high manganese also carries a health advisory for infants.
What to test for in New York
- 1PFOA60% of 154 local samples were above the limit.
- 2PFOS44% of 154 local samples were above the limit.
- 3Nitrate10% of 7,920 local samples were above the limit.
- 4Lead3% of 6,958 local samples were above the limit.
- 5Arsenic2% of 5,099 local samples were above the limit.
- 6Radium (226 + 228)1% of 155 local samples were above the limit.
- 7E. coli<1% of 758 local samples were above the limit.
- 8Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)2,993 hazardous waste sites on record locally.
- 9Metals panel2,993 hazardous waste sites on record locally.
Test your New York well for PFOA, PFOS and nitrate
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
Just want bacteria checked first? Tap Score coliform and E. coli test, $99. Coliform and E. coli are the tests every well needs every year.
Want a quick look before paying for a lab? Home well water test strips on Amazon check hardness, iron, pH and nitrate in minutes. They are a screen, not a result: arsenic, bacteria, uranium and PFAS need a certified lab.
Affiliate links: the merchant pays us a commission and the price is the same for you. It does not change what the data above says. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Where to get a well tested in New York: certified labs, state programs and prices.
Already have results back? Get your lab report read against the New York numbers, $29. Every line explained, ranked by what matters, with the fix for each.
Free, one email
Send me the New York report
The numbers above, which tests to order and where, and the treatment that fits the local profile, in one email.
Wells in New York
130,078 domestic wells in New York are on record with the state. the typical well is 173 feet deep (one in ten goes past 450 feet).
Find your own well's report
The state keeps the driller's report for most wells drilled since 1984. It tells you how deep your well is, where bedrock starts, and how much water it makes, which decides what treatment can work.
- Open NYSDEC water well completion reports and choose Water Well.
- The report lists depth, depth to bedrock, cased depth, yield and the driller.
Drillers have filed reports with the state since April 2000; a well drilled before then usually has no record.
The rock under New York
Not a principal aquifer
The USGS map places this area outside any principal aquifer, which usually means wells here draw from fractured bedrock or thin local deposits rather than a large regional aquifer. Bedrock wells of that kind are where arsenic, radon and uranium turn up, and yields vary from well to well.
Classification from the USGS Principal Aquifers of the United States (national map, 2003 edition, GIS release 2015), read at the state centroid. A single well can sit in a different unit, especially near a boundary.
Official help in New York
Two places to start that are not selling anything: the state program that answers private well questions, and its list of labs certified to run drinking water tests. A certified lab is the difference between a result you can act on and a number.
- Private Wells, NYSDOH
- Environmental Laboratory Approval Program, NYSDOH
Contamination sources on record in New York
NYSDEC remediation sites records 2,993 hazardous waste sites and 9 reported spills and releases in New York, among 5,906 regulated sites in total. Groundwater does not follow property lines, so a well within a few hundred feet of one of these is worth testing for what that site could release.
- 2,993
- hazardous waste sitesSolvents, degreasers and metals from industrial sites can travel far in fractured bedrock.
- 9
- reported spills and releasesMost spills are fuel; a few are solvents or chemicals that reach the water table.
- 2,904
- other remediation projects
Treatment that fits the local profile
PFOA
Granular activated carbon whole-house; Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Anion exchange
PFOS
Granular activated carbon whole-house; Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Anion exchange
Nitrate
Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Anion exchange; Distillation
Lead
Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Certified lead-removal carbon filter; Neutralizing filter to raise pH and stop leaching
Arsenic
Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Adsorptive media (iron-based) whole-house; Anion exchange
Systems we would look at first
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 PFOA
Under-sink reverse osmosis system
under-sink or countertop, about $300
Look for NSF/ANSI 58 certification listing the contaminant you need removed.
For PFOA
Whole-house PFAS carbon system
whole-house, at the point of entry, about $3,000
Granular activated carbon certified to NSF/ANSI 53 for PFOA and PFOS; replace media on schedule.
For PFOA
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.
For PFOS
Aquasana Claryum 3-Stage under-sink filter
under-sink or countertop, about $175
Certified to NSF/ANSI 53 to reduce 99% of lead and 99.7% of PFOA and PFOS at the tap. Not a fix for arsenic, nitrate or bacteria.
For PFOS
Aquasana HealthShield whole-house filter
whole-house, at the point of entry, about $2,099
Whole-house carbon system the maker certifies to reduce PFAS (PFOA and PFOS) and VOCs at every tap; a UV option adds bacteria protection.
For lead
Acid neutralizing filter
whole-house, at the point of entry, about $1,200
Raises pH so plumbing stops leaching lead and copper.
Common questions
How deep are wells in New York?
The typical domestic well in New York is 173 feet deep, based on 130,078 wells reported to the state. One in ten is deeper than 450 feet.
Is there arsenic in well water in New York?
Arsenic was detected in 44% of 5,099 public well samples in New York, and 2% were above the EPA limit of 10 ug/L. Arsenic has no taste or smell; a lab test is the only way to know your level.
How high is radon in well water in New York?
The median radon level across 1,197 public samples in New York was 380 pCi/L, with a high of 32,000 pCi/L. New Hampshire recommends treatment above 2,000 pCi/L.
How often should I test a private well in New York?
Test for bacteria and nitrate every year. Test once for arsenic, uranium, radon, fluoride, manganese and PFAS, then again every three to five years or after any change in taste, color, or plumbing.
Counties in New York
- Albany0% arsenic
- Allegany13% arsenic
- Broome7% arsenic
- Cattaraugus0% arsenic
- Cayuga3% fluoride
- Chautauqua0% fluoride
- Chemung0% fluoride
- ChenangoUSGS estimate
- Clinton0% fluoride
- ColumbiaUSGS estimate
- Cortland2% lead
- Delaware0% arsenic
- Dutchess0% arsenic
- Erie14% nitrate
- Essex0% uranium
- Franklin0% fluoride
- FultonUSGS estimate
- Genesee43 samples
- Greene0% fluoride
- Hamilton8% nitrate
- Herkimer4% fluoride
- Jefferson0% uranium
- Kings31% nitrate
- Lewis3% fluoride
- LivingstonUSGS estimate
- Madison0% nitrate
- Monroe0% fluoride
- Montgomery8% nitrate
- Nassau16% nitrate
- New York3% nitrate
- Niagara2% copper
- Oneida10% arsenic
- Onondaga0% fluoride
- Ontario0% fluoride
- Orange<1% copper
- OrleansUSGS estimate
- Oswego3% arsenic
- Otsego0% fluoride
- Putnam2% fluoride
- Queens8% lead
- RensselaerUSGS estimate
- Richmond7% nitrate
- RocklandUSGS estimate
- Saratoga5% arsenic
- Schenectady0% lead
- SchoharieUSGS estimate
- SchuylerUSGS estimate
- Seneca45 samples
- Steuben0% uranium
- St. Lawrence2% uranium
- Suffolk7% nitrate
- Sullivan3% arsenic
- Tioga30 samples
- Tompkins4% arsenic
- Ulster6% arsenic
- Warren0% arsenic
- WashingtonUSGS estimate
- Wayne0% fluoride
- Westchester24% lead
- Wyoming68 samples
- Yates291 samples
1 counties have fewer than 30 public samples and are included in the New York totals above rather than shown separately: Bronx.
Want the numbers themselves? Download the New York dataset as CSV, every county and town, with the sources named.
Sources
- USGS Water Quality Portal: 180,176 samples in New York. Data from the Water Quality Portal, a service of USGS, EPA and USDA; groundwater samples collected by USGS and cooperators. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
- USGS national arsenic model (Ayotte 2017): estimated share of 2,499,435 people on private wells in New York above 10 ug/L of arsenic, from geology, well depth and land use. County estimates of domestic well users with arsenic above 10 ug/L from the USGS national logistic regression model (Ayotte, Medalie and Qi, 2017), with private well population from the USGS 2015 county water-use compilation (Dieter and others, 2018). Retrieved September 15, 2026.
- NYSDEC water well completion reports: 144,470 well records in New York, 130,078 domestic. Water well completion reports filed with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Water Well Contractor Program since 2000. Only aggregates are shown; owner names and addresses are never stored. Retrieved September 16, 2026.
- NYSDEC remediation sites: 5,906 regulated sites located in New York. State Superfund, brownfield, voluntary cleanup, RCRA and spill remediation sites from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Environmental Remediation Sites database. Retrieved September 16, 2026.
Non-detects count as samples and are treated as zero when computing medians. Exactly at the limit counts as not above it. A sample belongs to the town containing the well's reported coordinates.