Fort Bend County tap water: hardness, PFAS and lead
Fort Bend County, Texas has about 958,434 residents (Census 2024 estimate) and 180 community water systems in EPA records. The largest local system is City of Sugar Land, serving about 80,381 people from surface water.
✓ 0 of 6 largest systems with health-based violationsPFAS detected at 5 of 6 sampled systemsHardness 11.1 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 Fort Bend County water?
City of Sugar LandEstimate: untreated local water, not your tap · Low confidence
11.1 gpg(190 mg/L), very hard
Fort Bend County: median of 1,264 results from 92 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 11.1 gpg
For a 3-person home using 57 gallons per person per day and regenerating weekly, you'd remove about 13,287 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 180 community water systems on EPA records for this county. Service areas don't follow county lines; your water bill names your provider.
City of Sugar Land
TX0790005 · serves about 80,381 people · Surface water
✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below action levelPFAS detected (8 types)
Lead 90th percentile: 1.5 ppb (period starting 2024-01-01). Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).
6:2 FTS: highest sample 672 ppt (2 of 22 samples); no federal limit
PFPeA: highest sample 358 ppt (16 of 22 samples); no federal limit
PFBA: highest sample 74.8 ppt (5 of 22 samples); no federal limit
PFHxA: highest sample 12.9 ppt (6 of 22 samples); no federal limit
PFBS: highest sample 5.8 ppt (5 of 22 samples); no individual limit; counted in EPA's PFAS mixture (hazard index) limit
PFOA: highest sample 4.1 ppt (2 of 22 samples); federal limit 4.0 ppt as a running annual average
PFHpA: highest sample 3.6 ppt (2 of 22 samples); no federal limit
ADONA: highest sample 3.4 ppt (2 of 22 samples); no federal limit
TX0790133 · serves about 34,000 people · Groundwater
✓ 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).
TX0790023 · serves about 25,326 people · Surface water
✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detectionPFAS detected (4 types)
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).
PFPeA: highest sample 82 ppt (4 of 14 samples); no federal limit
PFBA: highest sample 47.1 ppt (4 of 14 samples); no federal limit
PFBS: highest sample 3.9 ppt (3 of 14 samples); no individual limit; counted in EPA's PFAS mixture (hazard index) limit
PFHxA: highest sample 3.9 ppt (2 of 14 samples); no federal limit
TX0790146 · serves about 16,794 people · Surface water
✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detectionPFAS detected (3 types)
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).
PFBA: highest sample 7.1 ppt (4 of 8 samples); no federal limit
PFPeA: highest sample 4.7 ppt (5 of 8 samples); no federal limit
PFHxA: highest sample 4.3 ppt (5 of 8 samples); no federal limit
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 Fort Bend County water
Is tap water in Fort Bend County safe to drink?
None of the 6 largest systems here have a health-based violation in EPA records since October 2021. City of Sugar Land's most recent lead 90th percentile was 1.5 ppb (2024), 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 Fort Bend County?
There's no published utility figure in our data, but untreated local stream and well samples in Fort Bend County have a median of about 11.1 grains per gallon (190 mg/L, very 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 11.1 gpg, our softener calculator suggests a 24,000 grain unit as a starting point.
Is there PFAS in Fort Bend County water?
5 of the 6 sampled systems listed here detected at least one PFAS in EPA's UCMR 5 testing, and one result was above the level of a federal limit in at least one sample. A detection isn't a violation: federal PFAS limits apply to running annual averages starting in 2029.
Which water system serves my address in Fort Bend County?
Most homes are served by City of Sugar Land 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.