Milwaukee County, Wisconsin has about 924,740 residents (Census 2024 estimate) and 18 community water systems in EPA records. The largest local system is Milwaukee Waterworks, serving about 626,000 people from surface water.
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.
Milwaukee Waterworks Measured (utility report, page read 2026-10-21 (utility FAQ)) · High confidence
8.0 gpg (137 mg/L), hard · range 112–142 mg/L
Source: MILWAUKEE WATERWORKS water quality report (utility FAQ page), page read 2026-10-21 (utility FAQ)
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.
For a 3-person home using 57 gallons per person per day and regenerating weekly, you'd remove about 9,576 grains between regenerations. Suggested size: 24,000 grain.
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 18 community water systems on EPA records for this county. Service areas don't follow county lines; your water bill names your provider.
WI2410100 · serves about 626,000 people · Surface water
Lead 90th percentile: 5.3 ppb (period starting 2023-06-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
WI2410595 · serves about 63,240 people · Surface water
Lead 90th percentile: 2.4 ppb (period starting 2023-06-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
WI2410596 · serves about 49,064 people · Surface water
Lead 90th percentile: 8.4 ppb (period starting 2023-06-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
WI2413515 · serves about 35,598 people · Surface water
Lead 90th percentile: 11 ppb (period starting 2018-06-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
WI2410172 · serves about 32,104 people · Surface water
Lead 90th percentile: 2 ppb (period starting 2023-06-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
WI2410563 · serves about 22,500 people · Surface water
Lead 90th percentile: 3 ppb (period starting 2023-06-01) Older result. 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.
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.
1 of the 6 largest systems here have at least one health-based violation in EPA records since October 2021 (see each system below for status). Milwaukee Waterworks's most recent lead 90th percentile was 5.3 ppb (2023), 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.
Milwaukee Waterworks reports about 8.0 grains per gallon (137 mg/L), which is hard. For a 3-person home at 8 gpg, our softener calculator suggests a 24,000 grain unit as a starting point.
None of the 6 sampled systems listed here detected PFAS above EPA's reporting levels in UCMR 5 testing.
Most homes are served by Milwaukee Waterworks 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.