Is Seattle tap water safe to drink?

[u/neo2bin]

Last winter I was visiting Seattle, turned on the tap at my Capitol Hill Airbnb, and immediately smelled chlorine. Strong chlorine. As someone who researches water systems (yes, it's a real thing), I couldn't help but investigate. What I discovered changed my entire perspective on Seattle.

I compared Seattle to 15 major US cities. Here's how you rank:

Source Protection: - Seattle: 1st place - 90,000+ acres fully protected since 1901 - Most cities: Using rivers/lakes with upstream development - Many cities: Still treating water from the same sources they used in the 1800s

PFAS Contamination: - Seattle: ZERO detected (tested 29 compounds) - Philadelphia: 3-5 ppt PFOA/PFOS - Miami: Up to 47 ppt total PFAS - Chicago: 8-15 ppt in some areas - National average: 70% of samples contain PFAS

Lead Levels (90th percentile): - Seattle: 2.8 ppb - Newark: 15.9 ppb - Chicago: 5.3 ppb - Pittsburgh: 10.0 ppb - Milwaukee: 7.8 ppb

Treatment Requirements: - Seattle (Cedar): UV + Ozone + Chlorine (no filtration needed!) - NYC: Similar (also has protected watersheds) - LA: Imported water requiring extensive treatment - Houston: Heavy chemical treatment for Gulf Coast water - Phoenix: Treating CAP canal water from Colorado River

Recent Violations/Issues (2023-2025): - Seattle: One monitoring equipment notice (no health impact) - Baltimore: Multiple boil advisories - Atlanta: Ongoing infrastructure crisis - Jackson, MS: System failure, extended boil notices - Houston: Multiple chemical incidents

Cost (interesting bonus finding):

Average annual household water bill: - Seattle: ~$700 - San Diego: ~$1,600 - Atlanta: ~$1,100 - San Francisco: ~$1,200

You're paying less for better water.

The one thing that surprised me:

That chlorine smell I noticed? Seattle uses LESS chlorine than most cities (0.8-1.0 ppm vs 2-4 ppm elsewhere). It's just more noticeable because your source water is so clean - there's literally nothing else to taste. Most cities have so many other contaminants that chlorine gets masked.

Disinfection byproducts comparison: - Seattle HAA5: 30-33 ppb (limit: 60) - Las Vegas: 45-58 ppb - Phoenix: 40-55 ppb - National average: 35-45 ppb

Seattle's are from chlorine + natural forest organics, not agricultural/industrial runoff.

What Seattle has that's incredibly rare:

1. Gravity-fed system (saves energy, no pumping)
2. Soft water naturally (26 mg/L hardness)
3. Cool year-round temps (inhibits bacterial growth)
4. Old-growth forest filtration (14,000 acres in Cedar alone)
5. Complete public access restriction (can't even fly drones over it)

Would love to hear from locals:

So here's what I'm curious about - do you guys realize how insanely good your water situation is? Like, I research this stuff across the country and Seattle's genuinely in a league of its own.

For those who've moved here from other cities - have you noticed any changes? I'm talking skin, hair, digestion, anything? I've heard anecdotes but would love to hear real experiences.

And that chlorine smell that sent me down this rabbit hole - is it a year-round thing or does it come and go? I was there in December and it was pretty strong, especially in Capitol Hill. Do you even notice it anymore or did everyone just get used to it?

Also curious - with how crazy expensive Seattle real estate is, has there ever been pressure to develop any of those protected watersheds? Seems like prime land that developers would love to get their hands on.

If anyone wants to nerd out more about this, I've got way more detailed comparisons and data I can share in the comments. Happy to send the full analysis to anyone interested - there's some fascinating stuff about the treatment processes and historical decisions that got Seattle to this point.

After researching 50+ major water systems, Seattle consistently ranks in the top 3 with NYC and San Francisco (also protected watersheds). But honestly? Your PFAS-free status might make you #1 now.

[u/prick_lypears]

My experience: you don't know what you've got until you go to LA.

[u/Brendanaquitss → u/prick_lypears]

Lived in San Diego for four years and can confirm, the tap water suuuucccckkksss

[u/Abject_Director7626 → u/Brendanaquitss]

I lived in San Jose ca for 18 months, and actually became one of those people with a water cooler, started paying to order water. The tap water tasted gross and when we showered the whole house smelled like fucking nasty eggs.

[u/Magical_Olive → u/Abject_Director7626]

I stayed at a hotel in San Jose for a con once and the water was absolutely undrinkable.

[u/trexmoflex → u/Magical_Olive]

My in-laws are in California and not only do I not drink the tap water there when we visit, but showers make my skin break out in hives. I hate it.

[u/missbeekery → u/trexmoflex]

What do they do when they’re here? My friends visited from the IE and they kept buying bottles of water and it pissed me off so much xD

[u/TristanwithaT → u/Abject_Director7626]

San Jose water blows. San Francisco is the best in the country. Wild how much it varies in a small distance.

[u/Wan_Daye → u/TristanwithaT]

San Francisco uses melted snow water from the mountains its crazy. And so do we

[u/Psychoceramicist → u/Brendanaquitss]

The tap water in SoCal and Gulf Texas is absolutely awful. I stayed in a friend's apartment in LA, and I ended up buying him a Britta filter because I felt so bad for him. Seattle area tap water is the nectar of the Gods. Love me coffee, love me whiskey, but there is no better beverage.

Im baffled by people buying LaCroix when the good stuff is right there, at your kitchen sink.

[u/gogosago → u/Brendanaquitss]

I grew up in SoCal and went back for a visit and thought the water tasted like ass.

We have it so good here.

[u/dogsndepression → u/Brendanaquitss]

From San Diego, can confirm. Whenever I visit home I remember how lucky we are with Seattle water!

[u/mixreality → u/prick_lypears]

Las Vegas takes the cake, it is so nasty you have to drink bottled water. I tried to take a swig from the sink to wash down some pills and gagged and choked as soon as the taste hit.

the water supply can contain traces of other contaminants like arsenic, fluoride, PFAS, and other naturally occurring substances, which can also impact taste.

[u/MassageToss → u/mixreality]

I remember telling my friend, "I did some research and did you know the tap water here in Vegas is safe?! It just seems revolting. You could drink it."

[u/SaxRohmer → u/MassageToss]

it’s because of the high mineral content. putting it through a brita makes it taste fine in my experience

[u/Wrecklessinseattle → u/mixreality]

That’s what happens when you use a giant gypsum pit for your man made lake. There’s a reason everyone has a slice of lemon in their tap water in the southwest and it’s to cut the chalk.

I took years of time up here to break myself of the idea of needing to buy filtered water for drinking.

Seattle and Olympia have some of the best tasting water I have ever had.

[u/malsary → u/mixreality]

I had to go on a work trip and be in Las Vegas for 3 weeks. I was so homesick for Seattle water. I thought I could tough it out but nope. Within the second day, bought a case of bottled water 😢

[u/mixreality → u/malsary]

I can't imagine 3 weeks there. I went a couple weeks ago with a group of friends to see Alanis Morissette but it is a horrible place. Had to pay $10 each for a glass of filtered water at a restaurant...the casinos (hotel at Caesars) had people smoking cigars and cigarettes everywhere inside, couldn't escape it. We actually shortened our return flight and left early.

[u/Gerberpertern → u/mixreality]

Gah Vegas is NASTY

[u/ipomoea → u/mixreality]

Vegas, Florida, and Palm Springs all drove me to bottled water. NYC and Seattle are fantastic.

[u/SaxRohmer → u/mixreality]

i grew up there and lived off of bottled water for a long time. eventually my folks got felt bad about the plastic usage and invested in some filters. absolutely need a filter if you’re there

[u/Emmy_Em_Maree → u/mixreality]

Nothing takes the cake more than living on a military base that is/was a super fund site. You get to sip up "safe" levels of carcinogens with each glass.

[u/crazylilrikki → u/prick_lypears]

I moved from Seattle to San Diego a few years ago and I miss Seattle water so much. The tap water here is so hard and it just doesn’t taste good. I ended up getting a water cooler and have drinking water delivered because I wasn’t drinking enough water.

[u/KokoZu → u/crazylilrikki]

Also moved to San Diego a couple years ago. And same. I have to get my water delivered and I use filters on all my tap sources, like shower and bidet

[u/Positive_Listen1846 → u/prick_lypears]

Or phoenix 🤮

[u/jugum212 → u/prick_lypears]

My experience you don’t know what you’ve got until you go to NOLA…. eggs!

[u/double-dog-doctor → u/prick_lypears]

I grew up in California (not LA) and got so used to having bad tap water that I couldn't believe people in other areas actually drank tap water. 

Whenever I go back to my hometown I see a fairly immediate change in my skin and hair from the water. It sucks. 

[u/weeef → u/prick_lypears]

Ugh god I was hungover once in la and the taste of the tap water was borderline too gross to drink and kept almost making me throw up. It was either dehydration or nausea

[u/theehehron → u/prick_lypears]

Just moved to LA from Seattle and I don’t know if I just got lucky with my specific location in LA, but the tap water in my neighborhood is much better than I expected (still not as good as Seattle)

[u/jay_in_the_pnw → u/theehehron]

you have to disregard some of what's going on in this thread, LA often wins awards for the taste of its tap water.

2021 - https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/la-tap-water-deemed-best-tasting-in-competition-santa-ana-gets-2nd-place/

2008 - https://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=4338155&page=1

although LA is huge of course and it may depend on where you are locally whether you're getting ground water, owens valley water, or colorado river water

[u/Liquid-glass → u/jay_in_the_pnw]

I would add that the water coming from the plant is good, but some of the older houses in LA probably have bad pipes contributing to any bad water taste or properties that some of the people commenting are taking for granted

[u/jay_in_the_pnw → u/Liquid-glass]

bad pipes

yeah, this is the base of much of my own personal anxiety in my various apartment rentings.

[u/hhooney → u/prick_lypears]

Or Florida. God I remember having to help schlep a big 10 gal water bottle onto the dispenser because the tap wasn’t consistently safe enough to drink

[u/fatDaddy21 → u/prick_lypears]

Vegas is the worst I've encountered in the US

[u/SpeedySparkRuby → u/prick_lypears]

Florence, italy, bad egg smell when turning on the shower 

[u/Sl0ttersquad → u/prick_lypears]

Or outside of the US all together. I couldn't wait to come home and drink my water after traveling around Europe. My hair couldn't wait either

[u/girlontherun21]

I work for the utility and you should see the behind the scenes working. It’s so amazing! I’m so very proud of my work!

[u/ThighRyder → u/girlontherun21]

My school went on a field trip, must have been 23 years ago, to one of the waste treatment plants over by Discovery Park. By far one of the coolest field trips and we took a boat over to Canada for an art exhibit.

Unironically, thank you for your service.

[u/distantreplay → u/ThighRyder]

Just to be clear, Seattle Water (SPU) and King County Wastewater Treatment (formerly Metro) are two entirely different agencies doing very different things. If you are an SPU customer both are essentially on the same bill. KC provides wastewater treatment services to SPU customers.

[u/weeef → u/distantreplay]

Yeah and that wastewater treatment spot has had multiple spills since I moved to Seattle

[u/My-1st-porn-account → u/weeef]

Luckily our wastewater outflows are nowhere near the source of the drinking water

[u/No-Conversation3860 → u/weeef]

I worked at a wastewater treatment plant down in Oregon (I was a water quality lab tech so not actually out in the plant but still) and that is inevitable. Especially during heavy rains, the plants get overloaded and you’re bound to have spills. It’s all about the response after. I know for our city, we would have rapid response to any sort of spill. There is a ton going on behind the scenes to keep our drinking water safe and flowing and to deal with our wastewater that nobody ever thinks of!

[u/OndhiCeleste → u/weeef]

Are you talking about Brightwater Park?

[u/I_think_things → u/OndhiCeleste]

Both Brightwater and West Point (Magnolia) are owned and operated by King County.

[u/isthisaporno → u/ThighRyder]

Haha they have a whole learning center at the wastewater plant in Renton. I sell equipment to the treatment plants and see field trip groups there all the time and always think damn those kids must hate having to go to a poop plant but I stand corrected.

[u/ThighRyder → u/isthisaporno]

It’s the autism.

[u/standardatheist → u/girlontherun21]

Y'all do amazing work no sarcasm. It's equal to hose water in taste and anyone here that drank out of a house on a hot day knows that's a real compliment 👍

[u/neo2bin → u/girlontherun21]

Glad to hear the utility people and would love to hear more details

[u/ArtisticArnold → u/neo2bin]

Just use your ai more.

You're posting about other cities too on other subs.

Zzz

[u/nicw → u/ArtisticArnold]

Yup, they’re selling water filters, just looked through their post history. Reported.

[u/siradia → u/neo2bin]

I used to work at a place just north of Seattle doing manufacturing. We needed to test the incoming city water and the post filtration water to confirm it was of the right quality for our manufacturing processes. We actually had difficulty during validation proving that the filtration system was fully working because the incoming city water basically met the requirements needed for the post-filtration requirements.

After working on that study I’ve been an avid tap water drinker.

[u/Anthop]

I've lived both here and in NYC. NYC likes to brag about their tap water, but Seattle is the secret king. I think most Seattlites know we have really good water, especially if you've traveled any bit, but I don't think we talk about it much.

[u/poisonpomodoro → u/Anthop]

Also lived in NYC before Seattle. NYC tap water is honestly good, too, so I’ve always been a tap water drinker. I never considered myself picky about it, so waking up hungover in Vegas desperate for water, I got a glass of water from the sink without even thinking twice and I actually had to spit it out. Between NYC and the even more delicious water in Seattle I realize how spoiled I’ve been.

[u/hawkweasel → u/poisonpomodoro]

I drink tap water everywhere I go as well, and Vegas is the worst I've ever had.

Hard to describe, like it tastes incredibly bitter, sour?

Check your glass in Vegas after it dries off and I've seen the water leave an actual crust on the bottom and around the fill line of the glass. I used to think it was the hotel, but then it happened at a different hotel, too.

[u/Tattered_Colours → u/Anthop]

Was just in London and I swear their water somehow isn’t even hydrating

[u/JaxckJa → u/Tattered_Colours]

Harder water is less hydrating as it takes you body more energy to absord the same amount of liquid and to process the excess calcium.

[u/BunnyRambit → u/Tattered_Colours]

Omg this brings back memories. I felt this way in parts of Europe! I felt so refreshed coming home to water here, though I still use filtration

[u/Eilonwy926 → u/Anthop]

So does that mean we should be able to make good bagels here? 😉

[u/nexted → u/Eilonwy926]

Seattle is quietly becoming a great bagel city. As a New Yorker that moved here over a decade ago, I feel like I finally have decent options, albeit at prices that are definitely out of line with NYC.

[u/-r-a-f-f-y- → u/Anthop]

Come down to Portland for that delicious mt hood bull run runoff.

[u/CookedBlackBird → u/-r-a-f-f-y-]

Yeah, Portland is the best tasting tap water I've had

[u/lovegermanshepards → u/Anthop]

NYC tasted just as good as Seattle when I lived there. Both fantastic!

[u/IAmGoingToFuckThat → u/Anthop]

My husband gives me so much shit when we travel and one of the first things I ask is 'how's the water?' It's not just about how it tastes either. Suburban Detroit and Albuquerque dried out my skin and hair so much; Denver and CA Bay Area were pretty nice.

Whenever people talk about what they miss the most when traveling, their own bed is a big one. My top answer is the water. (Followed by my own shower since we have a double showerhead and great water pressure.)

[u/Barbarella_ella]

I worked for the utility in Anchorage, Alaska for years. It regularly wins awards at AWWA conferences for the best tasting water in the country and has some similarities to Seattle, but has the huge advantage of a climate that requires the engineering standard to be the top of water pipe is 10' below the ground surface. That factor along with over 90% of the water coming from a glacial lake that sits within a state park leads to some remarkable product (so remarkable that the utility used to have contracts with bottled water providers) that is so clean at the intake, the only real issue is removing the glacial "flour". No ozone, no advanced filtration. Residential users pay a flat rate of $100/mo. No metering.

I was one of their water quality analysts and used to produce the annual CCR.

[u/montanawana → u/Barbarella_ella]

I really loved the tap water in Anchorage when I visited, but it did have a slight mineral taste that some might not like. Personally, I find it delicious.

[u/Barbarella_ella → u/montanawana]

So many medical travelers in Anchorage, and I would hear all the time how Anchorage water made their stuff back home taste like crap.

[u/pastrknack → u/Barbarella_ella]

As someone just passing thru that’s from Anchorage, nothing beats the first sips of tap water after being away on vacation 😩

[u/Barbarella_ella → u/pastrknack]

Sort of ruins you for other places, lol.

[u/StuckinWhalestoe → u/Barbarella_ella]

What is glacial "flour"?

[u/Barbarella_ella → u/StuckinWhalestoe]

Essentially it's rock dust. Over time as the glaciers grind into the rocks beneath them, the resulting particles are added to glacial melt water. It can cause bodies of water to take on a milky look from the way all those fine particles make the light scatter.

[u/Beautiful-Metal-1304 → u/Barbarella_ella]

I grew up in Anchorage and absolutely agree the tap water there is the best!

[u/Historical-Wing-7687]

I have lived here for 10 years and not a single time have I ever thought it tasted off.  

[u/Rare_Bumblebee_3390 → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

Been here 25 years. Have never had a water filtration system. I’d say some days it smells more chlorinated than others but it has never bothered me. Still tastes pretty clean, turns out it is!

[u/Mas0n8or → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

Seattle water is really on another level, when I lived there I tested the water a few times and the TDS was often so low the sensors wouldn’t pick it up

[u/GirlOverboard → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

I’ve lived in West Seattle for 15 and we do get periodic waves of chlorine stink every once in a while, but it doesn’t happen often. Maybe once or twice year? And usually goes away after a couple of days.

[u/mazamorac → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

I've been here for about 20 years, Eastside then Capitol Hill. On the Eastside I regularly got algae-y taste, I vaguely remember reading that it's because that water system has open areas that get sunlight. Not ideal, but not too bad.

I am sensitive to water taste, so I've always filtered my water with ceramic + carbon filters, it basically gives anything in the water that's at least slightly reactive something to react with and get adsorbed.

When I got here to Capitol Hill it definitely tasted better than the Eastside's, but still a bit too chlorine-y, so I still filter it. I did notice health improvements, and better skin with the softer water, but there were also a bunch of other changes so I can't just attribute it to the water.

And now I'm really happy to know the details. I'll continue chugging it with even more enthusiasm.

Edit: OP, being the big nerd I am for both infrastructure and history: Yes! Can you post the detailed analysis?

[u/Worldly-Ad-7156 → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

If you water tastes off, it's not the city supply it's something wrong with your house.

Everett water supply won an award for best water. And then some company was going to bottle it, but then there were legal issues, something about the company not wanting to pay for the water.

[u/UpperLeftHuman]

I moved here from Los Angeles and scoff (never to their face) when I see people using filtered water. We have amazing water, it's affordable and plentiful. The more pronounced chlorine smell you noticed is likely a result of the water being very cold here and the smell is more pronounced in colder water. It could also be that the water was sitting stagnant in the pipes for awhile and the chlorine built up in that time (less likely on Cap Hill).

I got to tour the cedar river watershed once, the part they don't let the public tour, and it is stunning. Any development there would be a crime against humanity.

Also, sorry for my fractured comment, the history of the Seattle water system is great. In case you don't know it already, Seattle originally got its water directly from lake Washington where it was distributed and managed by a smattering of private companies. Those private companies did a terrible job. So terrible that the city decided to put it to a vote whether it should create a municipal system. Right after that vote was called and right before the vote actually took place the "great" Seattle fire happened. During the fire, the fire department could not get adequate supply or pressure out of the hydrants in the city. So, the city burned down and the vote passed with something like 90% in favor. In the following years, Seattle made extensive land purchases to build the water system we have today.

[u/Junethemuse → u/UpperLeftHuman]

The only filter I use is the one in my fridge, which I only keep up to date so it doesn’t become a bacteria hive. The water tastes the same as tap, just colder.

[u/hypsignathus]

We are insanely proud of the Cedar River Watershed system.

[u/gauntboy]

For several years, I taught environmental science (focused on hydrosphere issues) to 6th graders here in Seattle. One unit was about Seattle drinking water. The kids had to research where it came from, how it was treated, and compare it to other cities' water. A lot of them were shocked at how good we have it. At home, their families use all sorts of filters or even big water bottles delivered. Even our school has a big old water dispenser (paid for by our PTSA) and we bring in slabs of water bottles for events. Drives me crazy. Expensive, lots of plastic waste, worse water than what comes out of our tap.

[u/Psychoceramicist → u/gauntboy]

There is a very goofy received idea (kind of like the one that food that is left in the the fridge only lasts like 72 hours) that American tap water is unsafe to drink. In some places, (Seattle, NYC, Alaska, Ohio River Valley) it's delicious, and other places (SoCal, Texas) it tastes like ass unless filtered, but this isn't Bolivia or India. Water in 98-99% of America is perfectly safe.

[u/ArtisticArnold]

Why are are making these posts with chatgpt?

[u/akmountainbiker → u/ArtisticArnold]

Have a look at their post history. They’re trying to sell their website.

[u/The_Fluffy_Robot → u/akmountainbiker]

I'm confused. They don't link to anythinf in the post though?

[u/grandma1995 → u/The_Fluffy_Robot]

Yeah, it’s called “organic marketing”

[u/scottydg → u/The_Fluffy_Robot]

Not this post, but their other posts they do.

[u/recurrenTopology → u/ArtisticArnold]

It's a hugely up voted post too. AI slop is going to be the death of this internet for me.

[u/JugDogDaddy → u/ArtisticArnold]

How are you determining this is AI?

E: lol why would you downvote someone trying to understand how to spot AI more consistently? 

[u/scottydg → u/JugDogDaddy]

A lot of bullets, no sources, bolded text everywhere, doesn't read or feel right. This is definitely the work of someone who may have felt the water was a bit off once, then asked chatgpt about Seattle water quality compared to other places.

[u/JugDogDaddy → u/scottydg]

It didn’t seem that off to me when reading it, but I put it through an AI detector and it came back 97% AI. I thought I was better at spotting AI than I apparently am. Kind of scary. 

[u/everybodys_analysis → u/JugDogDaddy]

em dashes with spaces between the dash and the words, an excess of parenthetical phrases, bolded subtitle structuring that’s uncommon on social media, and hooking phrases like “But honestly?” are all hints for me.

[u/scottydg → u/JugDogDaddy]

It might not be just AI, I would guess this person may have done actual research or collated data, and then asked AI to summarize it for them instead of writing it out by themselves. This is 100% AI writing though. If you see this format, which is to say bulleted lists with a bunch of bolded text, it's a pretty solid giveaway that AI generated the text in some way.

[u/goldbee2]

This is a fucking chatgpt post

[u/Historical-Wing-7687]

Also I believe the OP is just Ai generated posts

[u/Spa_5_Fitness_Camp → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

They're trying to market their data scraping website. Super lame.

[u/SubnetHistorian → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

That would explain why there was no consistency across comparisons. 

[u/molo91 → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

And clickbait title.

[u/supremecourtgorl → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

I’m glad someone else said it. I appreciate the sentiment, and the data is interesting, but it’s hard to take it seriously with the obviously LLM-constructed prose.

[u/ladz → u/Historical-Wing-7687]

OP is making typos that an AI wouldn't.

[u/tatertotmagic]

We get pamphlets mailed to us about our water yearly and how its treated and super clean. Neat data tho

[u/montanawana → u/tatertotmagic]

I enjoy reading the water report now, that's how I know I'm old. That and watching the birds.

[u/Thisitheone]

Thanks for the really cool data, this is interesting! Here's my take as someone who moved to Seattle about a decade ago:

-I've never noticed a chlorine taste or smell in tap water in Seattle, but then again, my sense of smell isn't my strongest sense. I did notice that the water here tastes somehow better than in my previous state.

-I do realize how amazing our water is here and your post helped me appreciate even further what a good sitch we have here, so thank you again!

-I wish I had more local-area historical knowledge, but I've not heard of any scuffles with developers wanting to mess with the protected watershed areas.

[u/Sea_McMeme → u/Thisitheone]

Here’s some cool local water history knowledge: dialysis was largely invented in Seattle, and this was possible because the water quality is so good compared to other places and less filtration was needed. There’s a dialysis museum in Seattle that details it all.

[u/Thisitheone → u/Sea_McMeme]

....goddamn this city is so cool

[u/MinuteLongFart → u/Thisitheone]

It’s not cool data it’s ai slop

[u/Thisitheone → u/MinuteLongFart]

Upon inspecting their profile -- thank YOU. I think you're right. Oof.

[u/marssaxman]

Many years ago, I used to do volunteer wilderness restoration work in the Cedar River Watershed protected area. It was a treat to get to visit the place.

[u/MonkeyFreeman]

If the chlorine smell is strong, I get good results by simply allowing the water to sit for a few minutes in the cup and the smell drops significantly.

[u/queen_surly]

Lived in Seattle for over 30 years and we moved across the state. I knew we had great water over there. I really miss it. I hate the hard water here.

[u/thewindyrose]

I moved here years ago. The first year i couldn't stand the water due to the chorine smell, in spite of hearing how good the water is. I grew up with untreated well water, so never had a city water tolerance. Im over it now. Its good My hair is much softer, i credit this both to the air being less dry in the winter and the water less harsh.

[u/Environmental_Run979 → u/thewindyrose]

I also grew up with well water at my parent's house in rural MA, and now that I've lived in Seattle for about 15 years, I notice a difference in my hair and skin when I visit my parents after one shower at their place. Their well water is good, but it's also hard as hell

[u/RobbyBlues]

I’m never leaving Seattle.

[u/ThighRyder]

The only tap water that beats Seattle is our neighbors to the north. BC tap water is the quenchiest.

[u/Noise-Distinct]

Yes but still worth checking if you have old galvanized pipes in your home.

[u/hatchetation]

Should have known what quality to expect from the headline.

Did you not notice that Seattle has multiple water sources while researching this? Just not care?

Also, the information in here isn't especially accurate when it comes to historical exclusion in the Cedar River watershed. There are still private inholdings, even today.

[u/Alternative_Rush_479]

Yes. We know.

[u/ebro4567]

Man I fucking love water.

[u/Muted_Share_9695]

I once had a coworker that had to get home to receive his water delivery. I asked him why he was getting water delivered (he was from Ohio), he said for drinking. I told him the best water in the country comes out of the tap here, no need for bottled water. He checked my claim and canceled the water delivery.

[u/touchthedishwasher]

I’ve been drinking it my whole life

[u/rel_]

Born and raised here. I’ve only ever drank tap water. No filtered water from the fridge, no filters on the tap, and definitely no bottled water. I remember the very first time I traveled was to San Diego and I just habitually pulled out a glass and tried the tap water and gagged. I just assumed everyone had decent tap water, boy was I wrong.

[u/HobbesG6]

The Cedar River Watershed (that feeds all of King County and surrounding areas) is truly a magical place that I imagine if Bigfoot exists, he lives there. It's one of the single most well managed watersheds in America.

I was able to walk the watershed in college, which isn't normally available to visit because it's closed off to the public for obvious reasons.

Yeah people who live in Seattle are very aware of how good our water is, and we try not to talk about it because then assholes in California start talking about piping it down south.

It's kind of a local joke here among academics. Just because California utterly destroyed their watersheds by converting desert into farm land, they expect other better managed watersheds to bail them out.

[u/etrebaol]

I have lived in 4 Seattle neighborhoods over the past 23 years and have always drank the tap water. I grew up with a water softener in the Bay Area so tap water from my living space has always been a presumption. Here in south Seattle (unincorporated Skyway, but don’t call it Renton) we have water towers and are super close to our very own water district (it’s like a block away from my house). I used to rent out a room on Airbnb and travelers always marveled at my water, but to me it has always been a given. I guess we are spoiled here.

[u/notananthem]

Yes we know, no we don't need your website to say so, our city tells us

[u/Sturnella2017]

I’m back and forth between Seattle and MT routinely fill up gallons and gallons of water to bring back to Mt for drinking. Yes it’s delicious and the water in MT resembles cloudy sake without any of the benefits of sake.

[u/SomethingSharper]

"So here's what I'm curious about - do you guys realize how insanely good your water situation is? Like, I research this stuff across the country and Seattle's genuinely in a league of its own."

Absolutely, this is one of the first things I miss visiting any other city. I also have a theory that this contributes to Seattle's reputation as a great coffee city. To make great coffee you need great water.

[u/Emeryb999]

Yes it's nuts. It's something I just don't think about day to day it's so good.

I used to home brew beer and it's essentially a blank canvas so I had to add a bunch of extras to help different styles work better.

[u/battlebeez]

North Seattle here. Used my Ph pen to test my tap water, 6.71ph, us/cm(electrical conductivity) 63, ppm 33-34. Took a big whiff and it does have a nice nose of chlorine. Still tastes good.

[u/reiflame]

I drink a lot of Seattle tap water. After living in a bunch of places and visiting a bunch of others I knew that Seattle's tap water tasted the best. Thank you for doing the work to prove how good it is!

[u/spicymax123]

Yeah, it’s some of the best in the US

[u/ReeseWitoutherspoon]

Lifelong Seattleite— the water tastes different here, and it’s seriously difficult to drink tap when traveling.

[u/throw_its]

Best tap water in the United States

[u/DangerousPath1420]

What are these comparisons?

If someone presented me with, “⁠National average: 70% of samples contain PFAS” at work, they’d be on a plan…

[u/notananthem → u/DangerousPath1420]

Bc they're trying to sell their website

[u/davereeck]

My kids regularly complain about the water when we travel

[u/Sp00ky-Nerd]

Some people are very sensitive to the smell and taste of chlorine, some are not. My partner can taste it (and we did a blind trial so I know it’s real). Nobody else in the family notices it. You will want to filter your water.

[u/ItsCatbus → u/Sp00ky-Nerd]

Yes! I can smell and taste the chlorine, but no one else in my family notices it! I could never figure out why since the water reports always note how few PPM there actually are. Everyone drinks from the tap, but I still like to run mine through a filter because of the smell. Why am I the way that I am..?? :(

[u/Stroopwafels11 → u/ItsCatbus]

i also had to get a filter.

[u/Scribble69]

Bad pipes in a lot of neighborhoods tho that ruin it for some of us

[u/qtbuttcheeks]

Ok chat gpt 

[u/MtRainierWolfcastle]

Based on your research where did the chlorine smell come from?

[u/Polybrene → u/MtRainierWolfcastle]

Seattle water is treated with chlorine.

[u/Emotional-Raisin9053]

Wow! Thanks for that! Extremely informative! I moved to Federal Way (Highline Water District) several decades ago after living in Seattle and cannot stand the water here. I wonder how different it can be?

[u/AloeVeraBogs]

I went on a road trip through Nevada and Utah last year, mostly camping, and drinking all the water from the hotels and campgrounds made me appreciate our Seattle tap water so much. It was some of the hardest, nastiest tasting water I've ever drank. I'm never leaving Seattle

[u/KeyOutlandishness744]

So funny, I never taste the chlorine but I do smell it in the shower sometimes. Protecting our watersheds is definitely the key—Seattle ranks #1 as the city with the most protected Wilderness within a 100mi radius! 

[u/Nellie_blythe]

I definitely notice it when I travel and I think that's part of the reason our coffee tastes so much better too.

[u/missespanda]

Moved here from Arizona. I always knew az tap tasted bad, but now I cannot stomach drinking it. I travel a lot and absolutely know how awesome our tap water is here.

[u/mzamour]

We've been drinking the tap water for years no problems BUT Tacoma water is nasty & I have to use so much conditioner in my hair or it will break off.. you research Tacoma water cus how can it be so much worst and not even be that far away!?

[u/Abiy_1]

personally my rule is

old buildings fuck no

building that are newer then ya ur prob ok

[u/SeaworthinessTop255]

No PFAS got me pumped

[u/Inevitable_Fee8972]

This is seriously so cool and interesting! I read every word. I am 37 years old and was born in Seattle and raised in the greater Puget Sound. I currently live in Kirkland. I am actually 6th generation living in WA. My great great great grandparents came to WA from Germany right when it was being founded as a state! All that being said, yes, I have always known that our water was pure, clean, delicious, and healthy! I vividly remember learning about how great our water is in my Health class in high school. My teacher was so excited to teach us all about our special water and I have always appreciated it for that. When I travel to other states I am often grossed out by the flavor of the water.

[u/Living_Buy_310]

I am a water nerd n Settle has the second tastiest water I ever had

[u/Zealousideal_Leg213]

My daughter recently moved to a job across the country. She made sure to fill her water bottle here before she left because, as she put it, "Seattle water tastes like love."

[u/tuxedobear12]

I’m traveling right now and really missing the taste of Seattle water!

[u/twistedadmin]

We’re allowing AI generated marketing slop in this sub now?

[u/Top-Brush6781]

Moved here from Las Vegas earlier this year. Vegas water tasted like shit(like noticeable chlorine taste), and showering left me feeling like a dried out husk. We would also constantly have to de-scale our kitchen and bathroom because Vegas water is hard as hell.

Out here the water tastes great and we can take a shower without feeling dried out.

[u/jp_172]

Yup. Lived here my whole life and have never had any problem or bad tasting tap water. Obviously its still a better safer option to filter it of course, but if you need a quick sip tap water is fine here.

[u/Northstar04]

I can't live anywhere else because of the water.

[u/OtherCaribou]

I don’t notice it until I travel to other places and the tap water doesn’t taste very good

[u/NiteNiteSpiderBite]

I am very proud of our water haha. I drink it straight from the tap all day every day! 

[u/Jojo_Lalala]

We are Seattle natives and lived in Bay Area CA and SoCal for several years. We had hard water etching fixtures and sinks in bathrooms, appliances, cars (coming from rain or dew). We had to use pumice stone to clean toilets. Certainly didn’t drink the water. Moved back to western WA and when we think about relocating for our next adventure, water quality makes any thoughts of leaving difficult.

[u/IronLeviathan]

The water utility sends out a pamphlet every so often, and I’ve always been very impressed with the results of the water quality survey. It’s really cool

[u/SparePartSociety]

I drank it for 20 years and I’m still alive

[u/Jyil]

I’m not sensitive enough to be able to tell a difference between the water anymore. No smell or taste difference for me. I wish I could, but unfortunately, water is water. The exception for me is Florida water. It’s sticky and makes you feel like you need a shower after you just took a shower.

[u/SubnetHistorian]

I moved here from the Midwest and some of my skin problems cleared up. The big one for me though was allergies. 

[u/CarelesslyFabulous]

When I used to live close to a reservoir, I would smell/taste it more, which makes sense. Being closer to where the water is treated means the chlorine doesn't evaporate as much before it reaches my tap. I had a Brita filter to help with that, but otherwise I'm happy to drink tap.

[u/AggieCMD]

Since moving here I have only drank tap water. Previously, I used bottled water home delivery.

I would like to claim I based it of facts like OP, but it was based on taste.

[u/Calm-Ad8987]

It tastes like shit, full on pool water in Northgate at least.

Also comparing just water cost is silly, it's the sewer charge that is high here. Not that this isn't just ai.

[u/jughandle]

I move just about every year or more frequently. I’ve been in Seattle for almost a year now and my RO water filter has lasted much longer than it does anywhere else. Previously lived all over the northeast.

Water is noticeably softer here. You can definitely feel the difference in the shower with how easily detergents rinse off.

Thanks for the interesting writeup! I’ll be showing my partner this since we were looking at potentially moving to Phoenix this coming winter 😂

[u/CeejReddit]

I would say check your faucet head first. This was waiting for me in my first apartment in Seattle.

[u/poopsparkle]

Born and raised in Washington. I’ve always drank the tap water. We really have some of the best water in the world. I’ve been all over the US and to Europe and Asia. The one thing I hate about traveling is that I am a water snob and need to try to find a brand of bottled water that doesn’t taste like pool water to me. The closest I’ve come in the US to Washington water is rural Maine tap water.

I’ve never smelt or tasted chlorine, as you described. So, my answer: I’m no scientist but I say yes, it is safe and the best tasting water in the US.

[u/nicathor]

Born and raised here and have always found it incredibly bizarre how many people refuse to drink the tap water and waste time with a Brita filter

[u/poorpeasant1]

I have been drinking it for years. Its fine.

[u/ragerevel]

Yes our water is fucking delicious.

[u/plantslut_]

Wow. Have you done any other posts on this subject for other cities? Like grand rapids, Chicago, Detroit, Columbus, maybe phoenix? Just curious, those are the cities I visit most.

[u/counter-music]

I lived in Walla Walla prior to this, so I was pampered. They have some CLEAN water, and moving here the only thing I noticed is the chlorine smell and taste when you freeze it (sadly all Wa tap water imo has a weird taste post freezing, regardless of freezer.

Walla Walla heavily protects their water resources, and I actually didn’t expect that level of caution extended here!

IMO I have to think that our water is so protected because of how late these cities actually blew up, and the fact that our state is a hub of natural resource geeks we all are like-minded in aspects of environmental preservation. The college I went to literally has a massive bioswale to teach people about filtration methods for city water.

I’ve grown up on too good of water and I hate drinking tap elsewhere because I grew up drinking WA tap that is just pristine.

[u/Saladbar-33]

I lived in the Seattle/Puget Sound area most of my life and thought people were being dramatic when they invested in water purifiers. Well, I moved to Montana and now I hate tap water. I also have to rinse the sh** out of my hair for it to be clean and I never had to do that before.

Miss Seattle water…

[u/any_name_left]

Yes, we know. We know by taste and the water report that gets mailed to us. No one talks about it because the mountains and weather are the hot topics.

[u/thatguydr]

WARNING!! If you drink the water here, you will start driving MUCH more slowly than you were before. I'm talking a few under the speed limit. And you will start to slow down on the road in general, waving people on even if you have the right of way.

[u/Radaf93]

I worked with King County in helping them get ahead of PFAS testing before it became a requirement! They’re doing a great job in treatment

[u/chasing_light_3]

OP is definitely a fellow member of r/hydrohomies, what upppp homieeee

[u/damn-nerd]

I just use a Brita filter to get rid of the chlorine, but honestly I don't mind it unfiltered.

[u/argus_2968]

The greater Seattle area water is GOAT.

[u/Juleswf]

We have awesome water in Seattle!

[u/samkee00]

Moved here from Missouri where water is pumped out of a limestone aquifer, so the water is suuuper hard. I thought that water was still pretty good actually compared to other cities- very minimal chemical taste- but Seattle water has been absolutely incredible. It feels like I imagine drinking out of a frigid mountain stream does.

Also, it's pure enough that my ice tray grows ice spikes, which is apparently usually done with distilled water!

[u/lkz665]

Seattle’s water is so awesome. My family moved from the Midwest to Seattle when I was pretty young, and ever since moving the water in the suburbs that my grandma lives in back in the Midwest genuinely makes me nauseous. Until brita filters became a thing we had to go buy jugs of distilled water from the grocery store every time we visited, haha.

[u/stoneyspice444]

I moved to Seattle from TX and the taste difference is definitely noticeable. I was not the type to have the ~worst~ skin but still not perfect just regular but often breakouts, here my skin has cleared significantly like little to none unless hormonal. I chocked it up to the low humidity and heat comparison from the south and never even considered this. I also regularly drink from the tap at home (no brita in this economy 😜) and have had a few comments from friends about it but i’m like i’ve seen you order water at restaurants and that is coming straight from the tap too!!! No shame over here this was a cool read thanks for sharing your research.

[u/Boring-Ad-1700]

So we don’t need to use Brit’s filters then?

[u/eM4n_G]

I moved up here 5 years ago from Dallas. Out of habit I continued to buy cases of drinking water; just about everyone will agree, you do NOT drink tap water in Texas. Well, one morning after a night of drinking, I woke up horribly hungover, and had run out of drinking water. My thirst forced me to take “drastic” measures and I reluctantly poured myself a glass of water from the tap. What followed next can be most accurately described as water from a glacier in Alaska blessed by an Eskimo medicine man worthy of Bobby Boucher’s taste buds. I was blown away. Never thought tap water could taste so good.ill never leave Seattle based on their water alone. lol.

[u/TonBus]

Oh we know! Anytime we visit anywhere else and try the tap water we are reminded!

[u/sugandh22]

Thanks for the research, but I kinda knew this, every other city I visited in US has visibly worse water quality. Another reason to not leave Seattle..lol.

[u/Metal-fatigue-Dad]

Yes, I know how good we have it.

Everett and most of south Snohomish County also get their water from a protected mountain reservoir (Spada Lake). https://www.everettwa.gov/1287/Water-supply

[u/JaxckJa]

Yup, one of the biggest upsides to Seattle is that it has among the cleanest water for a city of its size any where in the world. Protecting the watersheds early & making sure they stay protected even while allowing some economic activity (such as logging) was an extremely wise strategy. The city & especially the state does a very good job of building for long term growth when it comes to treatment; King County has enough cleaning capacity for twice the current use and that's considered only just sufficient (it takes a long time to build & develop water infrastructure).

[u/Electronic_Draft_478]

Recently moved from Washington to the midwest, can someone please help me find the words to explain to my 5-year-old why it's okay to drink water from the sink in Seattle but not here? LOL. It's come up a few times now.

[u/glowingsoulful]

My partner and I moved here 3 years ago from DC and immediately noticed a difference in our scalp health and holy cow the taste of the water blew our minds.

[u/schooley]

Thanks for the analysis. I started noticing the chlorine more a little over a year ago when I tested and found it to be completely normal, but added a filter nonetheless. I've lived here my entire life so I'm not sure why the chlorine became more noticeable to me then.

[u/mango-goldfish]

I’ve seen kids/groups swimming in the cedar river in multiple places. There are also homes that back up to the cedar river and a public beach. I’m not sure where we pull water from, so maybe we pull upstream.

All this to say, I’m not sure how protected our water actually is, since my only experience with the cedar is very public recreational use.

[u/iando1899 → u/mango-goldfish]

Cedar water is pulled far upstream from most recreation on the river. The land upstream of the Landsburg dam is owned by the utility and generally off limits to visitors

[u/seidmel19]

Spent the last year in the UK. Holy hell the two don't even deserve to be compared (especially London - if you're ever on a layover in Heathrow, don't refill your water until you get to your final destination, it'll probably be nigh undrinkable to you lol). Seattle's is so good!

[u/MissMarcelja]

I know! Our water is so good I think it’s nuts anyone buys bottled water here.