Lead Water Test

Who should test for lead

EPA says plainly that there is no safe level of lead exposure, and its health goal for lead in drinking water (the MCLG) is 0 mg/L^[1]. That is why the question is less "is there lead?" and more "how much, and where is it coming from?"

Lead rarely starts in the water source. It gets in on the way to your glass. EPA explains that lead can enter drinking water when plumbing materials that contain lead corrode, especially where the water has high acidity or low mineral content. The more time water sits in the pipes, the more lead it may contain. So the house you live in matters more than the river or aquifer your water comes from.

You have the most reason to test if any of these describe your home:

• You have, or may have, a lead service line. Where a lead service line (the pipe that connects the water main to your home) is present, EPA says it is typically the most significant source of lead in the water. If you don't know what your service line is made of, ask your utility what it knows about the line at your address.
• Your home was built before 1986^[5]. EPA says lead pipes are more likely to be found in older cities and in homes built before that year. CDC adds that household plumbing fixtures, welding solder and pipe fittings made before then may also contain lead.
• You have older brass or chrome-plated faucets or soldered copper pipes. In homes without a lead service line, EPA says the most common problem is brass or chrome-plated brass faucets and plumbing joined with lead solder.
• Your water has high acidity or low mineral content. EPA names both as conditions that make pipes and fixtures corrode, which is how lead gets into the water in the first place.

Private well owners should test too. Owning a well does not take lead off the list. EPA notes that heavy metals, lead among them, can leach into drinking water from household plumbing and service lines, not only from natural deposits. Your utility won't test a private well, and nobody tests it for you. EPA suggests checking with your health department, or with nearby utilities that use groundwater, about contaminants of concern in your area. If you're on a well and also want a broader baseline, build a test plan for your situation, or look up certified labs and programs in your state.

If you're on a public water system, your utility collects lead samples at homes across its service area under federal rules. Those results describe the system as a whole. They don't tell you what comes out of your own kitchen tap, because the faucets, fittings and pipes inside your home are different from anyone else's. Our tap water testing guide explains where your utility's testing stops and your own begins.

Certified lab or home kit

There are two broad ways to check your water for lead: send a sample to a state-certified laboratory, or use a kit you read at home. They answer different questions, and only one of them gives you a measured concentration.

A certified lab gives you a number. A state-certified drinking water lab measures how much lead is in your sample and reports it as a concentration. You can line that number up against the EPA action level and against your own earlier results. When you retest after a plumbing change, you can see whether the level went down. CDC notes that there are laboratories certified to test for lead in water, and that many public water systems will test drinking water for residents on request. Our directory of certified water testing labs lists state-certified labs in the states we cover, and our guide to well water testing cost shows verified lab prices.

A home kit gives you a quick read. Kits you read yourself are fast and cheap, and they can prompt a lab test if something shows up. But a quick read is not a measured concentration from a certified lab, and you can't compare it with a regulatory benchmark the same way. Treat a home kit as a screening step, and confirm anything that matters with a certified lab.

How you sample matters for both. CDC points out that water sampling results can vary with the time of day, the season, the method of sampling, the flow of water and other factors. Two samples from the same tap can differ. That is why the sampling steps below matter as much as who analyzes the water, and why one result is a snapshot rather than a final verdict.

When to choose a lab:

• You want a number to compare with the EPA action level.
• You plan to spend money on plumbing changes and want to know whether they worked.
• You have a young child or someone pregnant in the home and want a reliable baseline.
• Your home is on a private well and nobody else is testing it.

When to start with your utility: if your utility offers free lead testing, take it. CDC says your local water authority is always your first source for testing and identifying lead in your tap water, and that many public water systems will test drinking water for residents on request. Ask what the test reports and who analyzes the sample.

Free utility lead test kits. Some cities mail free kits to residents. Two examples we checked:

• DC Water offers annual free lead testing for its residential and commercial customers. The kit is mailed to your home and includes two sample bottles, detailed sampling instructions and a questionnaire about your plumbing materials. DC Water says these tests can indicate whether your service line or indoor plumbing has a significant lead source.
• Chicago's Department of Water Management lets residents register for a free water test kit if they are concerned about lead in their home's water. The kit has three bottles, a mailing box and instructions.

Programs like these change, and many utilities run their own. Ask your utility directly, or check your state's page in our water testing by state guide. Our guide to free water testing covers where to look for a free lead testing kit and other public testing programs.

Lab methods

• EPA 200.8 (ICP-mass spectrometry)
• EPA 200.9 (atomic absorption; platform)
• SM 3113 B (atomic absorption; furnace)

Source: ecfr.gov (source for lab methods) (opens in a new tab)

How to collect a lead sample

Lead tests are sensitive to how the sample is taken. Always follow the instructions that come with your lab's or your utility's kit; they are written for the bottles and method that lab uses. The steps below explain what those instructions are doing and why.

Take a first-draw sample

The standard approach is a first-draw sample: the first water out of the tap after it has sat unused in your pipes. That water has been in contact with your faucet and nearby plumbing the longest, so it shows the most lead those fixtures can add.

The federal rule that utilities follow, 40 CFR 141.86, requires tap samples for lead to be one liter in volume and to have stood motionless in the plumbing system for at least 6 hours^[4]. Your kit may use a different bottle size, but the idea is the same.

1. Pick the right tap. Use the tap you drink or cook from, usually the kitchen sink, and take the sample from the cold side unless your kit says otherwise.
2. Let the water sit. Don't use any water in the house for at least the stagnation time your kit states. Overnight is the easiest way to do this: collect the sample first thing in the morning, before anyone flushes a toilet, showers or runs the dishwasher.
3. Don't flush or clean first. Don't run the tap and don't remove or clean the aerator before you sample. Under the LCRI, utilities may no longer include pre-stagnation flushing or aerator cleaning or removal in their sampling instructions, because those steps lower the lead reading.
4. Fill the bottle from the cold tap. Place the open bottle under the faucet, turn on the cold water and fill it to the line. Cap it tightly.
5. Label and record. Write down the date, time and tap you used. Note how long the water sat.
6. Return it promptly. Send or drop off the sample within the time your lab or utility gives you.

Extra samples at homes with a lead service line

The LCRI adds a second sample at homes served by a lead service line. When a utility samples such a home, it must collect five consecutive one-liter bottles after the water has stood in the plumbing, including the service line, for at least six hours, without flushing the tap first. The first liter is the first sample collected and the fifth liter is the last, and both are analyzed for lead.

Some utility kits also use more than one bottle. DC Water's kit has two bottles and Chicago's has three. DC Water says its samples can indicate whether your service line or indoor plumbing has a significant lead source. If your kit includes more than one bottle, number them and fill them in the order the instructions give, without pausing between them unless the instructions tell you to.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Running the water "to clear the line" before filling the bottle.
• Removing or cleaning the aerator just before sampling.
• Letting the water sit for less time than your kit states.
• Filling the bottles out of order when the kit has more than one.
• Holding the sample past the return date your lab or utility gives.

What your lead level means

Your lab reports a number. Here is how to read it against federal benchmarks.

The EPA action level in force today is 0.015 mg/L^[1]. It is not a maximum contaminant level (MCL) and it is not a health line. It is a treatment-technique trigger for water systems: EPA explains that if more than 10%^[1] of a system's tap water samples exceed the action level, the system must take additional steps, such as controlling how corrosive its water is and informing the public.

The LCRI lowers the action level to 0.010 mg/L (effective Nov 1, 2027)^[2]. EPA's Lead and Copper Rule Improvements, published in the Federal Register in October 2024, also require water systems to identify and replace lead pipes within 10 years^[3] and bring more rigorous testing. Until the compliance date, the current action level is the one in force.

The health goal is zero. EPA's maximum contaminant level goal for lead is 0 mg/L^[1], and EPA says there is no safe level of lead exposure. So a result below the action level does not mean the water is free of lead. It means the result is under the trigger for utility action. For where lead comes from, its health effects and how to lower it, see our guide to lead in drinking water.

The rule is being challenged in court. The American Water Works Association has asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to review the LCRI, in a case called American Water Works Association v. EPA (No. 24-1376), and the court heard oral argument on September 30, 2026^[8]. We have not found a source saying the rule has been stayed or changed; the status box above shows what applies as of its date, and we recheck it monthly.

Putting your result in context

• No lead detected. No treatment needed based on this result. If the sample was taken correctly, keep the report and retest after any plumbing work or a change of service line.
• Lead detected, below the action level. Since the health goal is zero, it is worth finding the source. Keep in mind EPA's point that the longer water sits in the pipes, the more lead it may contain. Retest to confirm the result before you change anything.
• At or above the action level. Retest with a certified lab to confirm. Contact your utility too: CDC calls your local water authority your first source for testing and identifying lead in tap water. If you have health concerns, talk to a health professional.

Don't decide on treatment from a single kit reading. Any treatment choice should start from a confirmed certified-lab result, and it should be checked with a retest afterward.