Get your water tested in Nebraska.
The short answer
Nebraska’s list has 5 labs certified to test drinking water. One of the labs here is named for a water utility and may test only its own water, so it comes last.
Certification is test by test, so check that a lab is certified for what you want tested, and call first: it will say which bottles to use and how soon the sample has to arrive.
From the state
Nebraska Public Health Environmental Laboratory
Bacteria and nitrate sample kits for private wells, ordered online from the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. A bacteria kit is $17 and a nitrate kit $16.
Keeping Your Well Water Safe and Sound, Nebraska Department of Water, Energy, and Environment, checked Oct. 10, 2026
Labs in Nebraska
4 labs, by city.
| Lab | City | Certified for |
|---|---|---|
| Central District Health Department | Grand Island | Bacteria |
| American Agricultural Laboratory | McCook | Bacteria, nitrate |
| Midwest Laboratories, Inc. | Omaha | Bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, minerals and other inorganics, organic chemicals |
| Enviro Services Inc. | Scottsbluff | Bacteria |
Labs run by water utilities
1 lab named for a water utility or its plant. A utility’s lab may test only its own system’s water, so call before taking a sample there.
| Lab | City | Certified for |
|---|---|---|
| Metropolitan Utilities Districts | Omaha | Bacteria |
What to ask a lab to test
- On a private well: no one else tests it. What to test a well for, and how often.
- On city water: your utility tests what leaves the plant, not what your own pipes add. Testing your tap for lead.
- What it costs: fees vary by lab and by test, and some states test wells for free. What a water test costs.
- Anything your utility’s report flags: a lab certified for that contaminant can test your own tap. Nebraska utilities’ reports.
Source: Nebraska DHHS, certified drinking water laboratories, dated May 22, 2024, read Oct. 10, 2026. Labs are listed as the state lists them; what each is certified for is as far as the list says. Certifications change, so a lab’s own word is the latest.
A lab named for a water utility is listed apart. Distances on town pages are straight lines between ZIP code centers from the Census 2020 gazetteer. How labs are listed here.
Where to go next
- Testing a private wellWhat to test for every year, what else depends on where you live, and reading the results.How to test well water
- Nebraska utilitiesEvery utility with a full report: what its results show, and its violations.Nebraska tap water
- Labs in other statesEvery state TapBuff has read, and where to find the rest.Certified labs by state