Explainer

Our methodology

Discover how we collect, validate, and analyze water pricing data from municipalities across the United States to create the most comprehensive water cost database available.

Why a 100,000+ population threshold

We focus on municipalities with populations of 100,000 or more for several important reasons that ensure data quality and relevance.

Data reliability

Larger municipalities have standardized billing systems and publicly available rate structures

Population impact

These municipalities collectively serve the majority of Americans

Economic significance

Large municipalities often set pricing trends that smaller utilities follow

Resource efficiency

Provides comprehensive coverage while maintaining data quality

Data collection process

Our water pricing data collection follows a systematic approach with multiple validation steps.

1
Source identification
We identify water pricing sources through multiple channels:
- Municipal water utility websites
- Published rate schedules and tariffs
- Public utility commission filings
- Municipal budget documents
2
Web scraping
Our automated systems regularly scrape public websites to collect the latest rate information:
- Rate tables and pricing schedules
- Base fees and connection charges
- Tiered pricing structures
- Surcharges and special assessments
3
Data parsing and validation
Raw pricing data is processed through multiple validation steps:
Format standardization
Converting various rate formats into consistent units
Volume standardization
Converting all rates to per-1000-gallon basis for comparison

Normalization to per-1,000-gallons

Water utilities use various billing units, which we standardize for accurate comparison.

1,000

gallons

Standard unit

748

gal/CCF

100 cubic feet

264

gal/m³

Cubic meters

gallon

Individual

7.5

gal/ft³

Cubic feet

326k

gal/ac-ft

Acre-feet

Need to convert units?

Use our conversion tool to easily convert between different water billing units.

Try the conversion tool

Population weighting

Our state and national averages are weighted by population to ensure accuracy and represent the actual cost burden experienced by most residents.

1
Municipality level
Each municipality's rates are weighted by its population
2
State level
State averages reflect the population distribution within each state
3
National level
Country-wide averages account for population served at each price point

Volume calculations

Average US adult: 2,500 gal/month
Average US household: 7,000 gal/month
Head of beef cattle: 10,944 gal/month
Head of dairy cattle: 13,680 gal/month
Acre of alfalfa: 130,000 gal/month

Questions about our methodology?

We’re committed to transparency in our data collection and analysis. If you have questions about our methodology or notice data that seems incorrect, we’d love to hear from you.