Contra Costa County tap water: hardness, PFAS and lead
Contra Costa County, California has about 1,172,607 residents (Census 2024 estimate) and 39 community water systems in EPA records. The largest local system is Contra Costa Water District, serving about 210,500 people from surface water.
✓ 0 of 6 largest systems with health-based violationsPFAS detected at 0 of 6 sampled systemsHardness 9.3 gpg (low confidence)
Public-record figures, not a test of your tap. Not 100% accurate or guaranteed. Confirm with a water test, your utility or a qualified pro before you buy or act.
How hard is Contra Costa County water?
Contra Costa Water DistrictEstimate: untreated local water, not your tap · Low confidence
9.3 gpg(160 mg/L), hard
Contra Costa County: median of 661 results from 99 monitoring sites (streams and wells). Utilities may blend or treat water, so your tap can differ.
County estimates: Hard Water Map (hardwatermap.com), CC BY 4.0, derived from the USGS/EPA Water Quality Portal; file generated 2026-07-22. License
Public-record figures, not a test of your tap. Not 100% accurate or guaranteed. Confirm with a water test, your utility or a qualified pro before you buy or act.
Softener size at 9.3 gpg
For a 3-person home using 57 gallons per person per day and regenerating weekly, you'd remove about 11,132 grains between regenerations. Suggested size: 24,000 grain. This uses a low-confidence county estimate, so confirm with a test first.
Estimate only. Not 100% accurate or guaranteed. Confirm with a water test, your utility or a qualified pro before you buy or act.
The 6 biggest of 39 community water systems on EPA records for this county. Service areas don't follow county lines; your water bill names your provider.
Contra Costa Water District
CA0710003 · serves about 210,500 people · Surface water
✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected
Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2026-01-01). Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
CA0710001 · serves about 116,781 people · Surface water
✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected
Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2022-01-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
CA0710004 · serves about 64,513 people · Surface water
✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected
Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2022-01-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
CA0710008 · serves about 62,500 people · Surface water
✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected
Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2022-01-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
CA0710006 · serves about 31,015 people · Surface water
✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected
Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2024-01-01). Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
Public-record figures, not a test of your tap. Not 100% accurate or guaranteed. Confirm with a water test, your utility or a qualified pro before you buy or act.
A PFAS detection is not a violation. Federal limits (4 ppt for PFOA and PFOS) apply to running annual averages, with compliance required by 2029. In May 2026 EPA proposed extending the PFOA/PFOS deadline to 2031 and removing other PFAS limits; not final as of 2026-10-21.
Test your own tap
These are public records for whole systems. Your home's pipes, fixtures and any private well can change what you drink. A certified lab test or a hardness test strip gives you your own numbers. Then use our PFAS and lead filter selector to see which certifications to look for.
Common questions about Contra Costa County water
Is tap water in Contra Costa County safe to drink?
None of the 6 largest systems here have a health-based violation in EPA records since October 2021. Contra Costa Water District's most recent lead 90th percentile was below the lab detection limit (2026), below the 15 ppb action level. Public records can't guarantee what comes out of your tap, especially with older plumbing, so a home test is the surest check.
How hard is the water in Contra Costa County?
There's no published utility figure in our data, but untreated local stream and well samples in Contra Costa County have a median of about 9.3 grains per gallon (160 mg/L, hard). That's a low-confidence estimate of source water, not your tap, so test before you buy equipment. For a 3-person home at 9.3 gpg, our softener calculator suggests a 24,000 grain unit as a starting point.
Is there PFAS in Contra Costa County water?
None of the 6 sampled systems listed here detected PFAS above EPA's reporting levels in UCMR 5 testing.
Which water system serves my address in Contra Costa County?
Most homes are served by Contra Costa Water District or one of the other systems listed on this page, but service areas don't follow county lines. Your water bill names your provider, and its annual Consumer Confidence Report has the full test results.
Data as of October 21, 2026. Figures are copied from public records and combined with our own calculations; they can be out of date or wrong. Tapped Out isn't affiliated with any utility or the EPA. Written and reviewed by the Tapped Out team. How we calculate · All sources.