Is Tap Water Safe to Drink? 12.2 Million US Households Say Theirs Is Not
The short answer
9.5 percent of US households, about 12.2 million, say the water from their main source is not safe to cook with and drink, according to the 2023 American Housing Survey. The share reaches 20.6 percent in the Los Angeles metro and 19.5 percent in Phoenix, against 4.0 percent in Seattle. Households below the poverty line say so at 13.9 percent, more than twice the rate of the highest-income group.
The short answer, expanded
The American Housing Survey asks households whether the water from their main source is used, or could be used, for cooking and drinking. It is a question about trust and experience, not a laboratory test: a household can answer no because of a boil notice, a known contaminant, an unpleasant taste or hardness, or simple distrust. That is what makes it useful. It measures how many Americans have given up on the water coming into their own home.
| Group | Say not safe to cook and drink | ± (90%) | Households (thousands) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public or private system | 9.8% | 0.4 | 11,267,000 |
| Individual well | 7.0% | 1.1 | 939,000 |
| Owners | 7.6% | 0.4 | 6,398,000 |
| Renters | 13.2% | 0.7 | 5,840,000 |
| Below poverty line | 13.9% | 1.3 | 2,369,000 |
| 100 to 199% of poverty | 11.8% | 1.0 | 2,356,000 |
| 200 to 399% | 10.8% | 0.8 | 4,016,000 |
| 400% or more | 6.4% | 0.5 | 3,497,000 |
| All households answering | 9.5% | 0.4 | 12,238,000 |
Source: Census Bureau, AHS 2023 (published national count 12,238,000 ±458,000); breakdowns calculated by The Plumbing Brief from the PUF using the half-sample weights. Excludes households whose main source is bottled water and households that did not answer.
The evidence
- Households saying their water is safe to cook and drink: 116,647,000 (±723,000); not safe: 12,238,000 (±458,000); not reported 4,295,000. Source: AHS 2023.
- Not safe, homes on a public or private water system: 9.8 percent; homes on their own well: 7.0 percent. Source: calculated from AHS 2023 PUF.
- Highest metro: Los Angeles, 20.6 percent (±2.3), then Phoenix 19.5, Houston 17.8, Riverside-San Bernardino 17.1. Source: calculated from AHS 2023 PUF.
- Lowest metros: Seattle 4.0 percent and Atlanta 4.1 percent. Source: calculated from AHS 2023 PUF.
- Highest Census division: Mountain, 13.2 percent; lowest: East North Central, 6.3 percent. Source: calculated from AHS 2023 PUF.
- Renters: 13.2 percent; owners: 7.6 percent. Source: calculated from AHS 2023 PUF.
- Below the poverty line: 13.9 percent; at 400 percent of the poverty line or more: 6.4 percent. Source: calculated from AHS 2023 PUF.
- Households that had an inside leak in the past year: 12.9 percent say not safe; households that lost running water in the past 3 months: 18.1 percent. Source: calculated from AHS 2023 PUF.
By region
| Census division | Not safe | ± |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain | 13.2% | 1.7 |
| West South Central | 11.7% | 1.1 |
| Pacific | 11.5% | 0.9 |
| South Atlantic | 9.3% | 1.0 |
| Middle Atlantic | 9.0% | 1.0 |
| East South Central | 8.5% | 1.5 |
| New England | 8.1% | 1.7 |
| West North Central | 7.4% | 1.5 |
| East North Central | 6.3% | 0.8 |
What the numbers imply
Low-income households distrust their water 2.2 times as often
Formula. Not-safe rate below the poverty line divided by the rate at 400 percent of the poverty line or more.
Calculation. 13.9 / 6.4 = 2.2. The rate falls at every step up the income ladder.
Finding. Distrust of tap water is concentrated among people least able to afford the alternative. Bottled water and filters are a recurring cost that scales with household size.
Limitations. Income is correlated with housing age, tenure and location. The gradient is not adjusted for those factors.
City water is distrusted more than well water
Formula. Not-safe rate for homes on a public or private system against homes on their own well.
Calculation. 9.8 percent against 7.0 percent; the margins do not overlap.
Finding. Well owners are more likely to treat, test or simply trust their own supply; city customers in some metros live with hardness, taste and high-profile contamination news. The metro pattern is distinctive: the four highest metros are all in the Southwest and Gulf Coast.
Limitations. The survey does not ask why a household considers its water unsafe, so hardness and taste cannot be separated from contamination concerns.
A plumbing failure goes with lost trust
Formula. Not-safe rate among households that had an inside leak or a water stoppage, against those that did not.
Calculation. Leak in the past year 12.9 percent against 9.2; stoppage in the past 3 months 18.1 percent against 9.2.
Finding. Households that have experienced a plumbing or supply failure are markedly more likely to distrust what comes out of the tap. Boil-water notices after main breaks are one plausible link.
Limitations. This is an association in one survey year. It does not show that the failure caused the distrust.
Figures worth quoting
- 12.2 million US households say their tap water is not safe to cook with and drink (9.5 percent).
- In the Los Angeles metro the share is 20.6 percent; in Seattle, 4.0 percent.
- Households in poverty: 13.9 percent. Highest-income households: 6.4 percent.
- Renters 13.2 percent, owners 7.6 percent.
Download the data
Every rate with its margin of error. Published under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Attribution: The Plumbing Brief.
How this report was built
Methodology
Source. 2023 American Housing Survey National Public Use File v1.1, downloaded from the Census Bureau on 4 October 2026.
Universe. Occupied housing units in the AHS half-sample asked the water safety question (SP2WEIGHT greater than zero) that answered yes or no. Households whose main source is commercial bottled water are excluded by the survey.
Items used. WATSAFE (main water source used or could be used for cooking and drinking), WATSOURCE, OMB13CBSA, DIVISION, TENURE, PERPOVLVL (household income as a percent of the poverty line), YRBUILT, LEAKI, NOWAT.
Estimation. Weighted with the half-sample weight SP2WEIGHT and its 160 replicate weights (SP2REPWGT1 to 160). Margins of error are 90 percent, from successive difference replication (variance = 4/160 × Σ(replicate − full)²), the method that reproduces the Census Bureau’s published margins exactly. National totals quoted in this report match the Bureau’s published Table Creator estimates.
Derived figures. All breakdowns by metro, region, tenure, income and housing type are calculated by The Plumbing Brief from the public use file.
Retrieval date. 4 October 2026.
Data limitations
- Self-reported by households. Problems a household did not notice or recall are not counted.
- The 2023 AHS is one cross-section. It shows differences between places and groups, not change over time.
- Metro areas use 2013 OMB delineations as coded on the PUF, which differ slightly from current metro boundaries.
- Where two margins of error overlap, the difference between the groups should not be treated as established.
- The question measures the household’s judgment, not water quality. It should not be read as a count of unsafe water systems; EPA’s compliance data covers that, see our drinking water violations report.
- The question was asked of half the sample, so margins are wider than for full-sample items.
Source quality ranking
Tier 1. US Census Bureau and HUD, American Housing Survey 2023, National Public Use File v1.1; AHS 2023 Table Specifications and PUF Estimates for User Verification; AHS 2023 Definitions.
Tier 2. None used. Tier 3. None used.
Briefing note
About 12.2 million US households, 9.5 percent of those asked, say the water from their main source is not safe to cook with and drink, according to the 2023 American Housing Survey. An analysis of the survey’s public use file by The Plumbing Brief found the highest shares among the 15 largest metros in Los Angeles (20.6 percent), Phoenix (19.5) and Houston (17.8), and the lowest in Seattle (4.0). Households below the poverty line were 2.2 times as likely as the highest-income households to say their water was unsafe, and renters more likely than owners.
How reporters could frame this
- 12 million American households don’t trust their tap water
- One in five Los Angeles households won’t drink from the tap
- Distrust of tap water is a poverty issue
- Well owners trust their water more than city customers
- After a leak or outage, trust in tap water drops
Related questions
How many Americans think their tap water is unsafe? 12.2 million households, 9.5 percent, said their main water source is not safe to cook with and drink (AHS 2023).
Which city distrusts its tap water most? Among the 15 largest metros, Los Angeles, at 20.6 percent of households.
Do people with wells trust their water more? Yes. 7.0 percent of well households say not safe, against 9.8 percent on public systems.
Does income matter? Yes. 13.9 percent of households below the poverty line say not safe, against 6.4 percent at four times the poverty line or more.
Does this mean the water is actually unsafe? No. It records the household’s judgment. Water quality compliance is measured separately by EPA.
Is bottled water included? Households whose main source is commercial bottled water are excluded from the question.
How to cite this report
The Plumbing Brief, “Is Tap Water Safe to Drink? 12.2 Million US Households Say Theirs Is Not”, https://theplumbingbrief.com/is-tap-water-safe-to-drink/, accessed [date].
Last reviewed: 2026-10-04.
