Tap water questions, answered
Short answers first, with the source behind each one. Longer explanations are in the guides, and numbers for your own utility are on its page.
Is my tap water safe to drink?
Public tap water in the United States is regulated and usually safe to drink, according to the CDC, but it depends on your utility and your plumbing, and no single number settles it. The Safe Drinking Water Act sets legal limits for contaminants, and utilities must notify customers when they violate them.
Check three things: your utility's annual water quality report (CCR), whether it has had health-based violations in the last five years, and its PFAS test results. Lead usually enters from service lines and household plumbing, so a utility-wide result cannot tell you about your own tap.
What is PFAS?
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a group of man-made chemicals widely used in industrial and consumer products, and EPA says they have been shown to cause health issues. In 2024 EPA set legal limits in public drinking water of 4 parts per trillion each for PFOA and PFOS, with a compliance date of 2029.
The CDC says current evidence suggests high levels may lead to higher cholesterol, changes in liver enzymes and other effects; researchers continue to study this. Whether PFAS matter for you depends on your utility's results.
Do whole-house filters remove PFAS?
Usually not. The Minnesota Department of Health says whole-house water softeners and iron filtration systems do not remove PFAS. Activated carbon, ion exchange and reverse osmosis can, and EPA says point-of-use systems it studied can greatly reduce PFAS.
For drinking and cooking water, look for a point-of-use filter or reverse osmosis system certified to NSF/ANSI 53 or 58 for PFAS reduction, and confirm the exact model on the certifier's listing.
How do I read my water quality report (CCR)?
Find the table of detected contaminants and compare each Level Detected with its MCL, the legal limit, then check the violation column. EPA requires community water systems to deliver the report by July 1 each year, and it must also describe your water source and any violations.
A CCR describes the utility's water, not your tap, and it does not show lead in your own plumbing.
What is UCMR 5?
UCMR 5 is EPA's Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule: national testing for 29 PFAS and lithium in public water systems between 2023 and 2025. Systems serving 3,300 or more people were required to test, along with a nationally representative sample of 800 smaller systems.
It is a screening dataset, not a compliance test. A result above a regulatory level is not by itself a violation.
What does an MCL violation mean?
An MCL violation means a regulated contaminant exceeded its maximum contaminant level, the legally enforceable limit, as measured under the rules for that contaminant. It is different from a monitoring or reporting violation, which means the utility failed to test or report on time.
EPA's Public Notification Rule requires the utility to tell you: within 24 hours for situations with immediate health risk, within 30 days for violations that do not pose an immediate risk, and up to a year for paperwork violations.
Is there lead in my tap water, and what should I do?
EPA says the most common sources of lead in drinking water are lead pipes, faucets and fixtures, and that a lead service line is typically the most significant source in homes that have one. You cannot see, taste or smell lead, so testing is the only sure way to know.
EPA's steps: test your water at a certified lab, flush the tap before drinking, use cold water for drinking and cooking, clean the faucet aerator, and use a filter certified to remove lead. EPA says boiling does not remove lead. There is no known safe level of lead in a child's blood.
How do I test my tap water?
Use a laboratory certified for drinking water analysis, either directly or through a mail-in kit that uses one. EPA lists state certification contacts so you can find certified labs. For lead, follow the lab's first-draw sampling instructions exactly.
For PFAS, ask which compounds and what reporting limit the lab uses, because EPA's PFOA and PFOS limits are 4 parts per trillion. If you have a private well, EPA recommends testing yearly for coliform bacteria, nitrates, total dissolved solids and pH.
What do NSF/ANSI 42, 53, 58, 401 and P473 mean?
NSF/ANSI 42 covers aesthetic effects such as chlorine, taste and odor. NSF/ANSI 53 covers health-related contaminants such as lead and, now, PFAS. NSF/ANSI 58 covers reverse osmosis systems. NSF/ANSI 401 covers trace emerging compounds such as some pesticides and medications. P473 is NSF's earlier protocol for PFOA and PFOS claims.
A product is certified only for the claims on its listing, for a specific model and cartridge. EPA and the CDC recommend looking for NSF/ANSI 53 or 58 certification for PFAS reduction.
Do Brita filters remove PFAS or lead?
Brita's Elite filter (model OB06) is certified for lead under NSF/ANSI 53 and for chlorine and particulates under NSF/ANSI 42, according to Brita's performance data sheet. The Standard filter (OB03) has no lead claim.
We found no PFAS reduction claim on Brita's U.S. data sheets, so do not rely on a Brita for PFAS. Check the data sheet for your exact filter and pitcher model.
Does boiling water remove lead or PFAS?
No. The CDC says boiling will not remove chemicals from water. EPA says boiling does not remove lead, and the Minnesota Department of Health says boiling will not remove PFAS. Boiling is for killing germs, for example during a boil-water advisory.
How do I find my water utility?
Look at your water bill: the agency that bills you for water is usually your utility. Your annual CCR also names it and lists its Public Water System ID, a two-character state prefix followed by seven digits. You can then look up its violations, lead results and PFAS results.
If you rent, ask the landlord who supplies the building. If you have a private well, you have no utility, and utility data does not apply to you.
Not medical or legal advice. These answers summarize EPA, CDC, NSF and state health agency documents, listed in the guides they link to, so you can ask better questions of your utility or a clinician. Data on this site is EPA screening data downloaded 2026-10-26.