Skip to content
TapBuff
ZIP

Is Portland, OR tap water safe?

5 utilities serve Portland, by EPA’s records. Here is what EPA’s and CDC’s records show for each, against the legal limits and the stricter health goals.

Matched to your utility using EPA records.

The short answer

2 of the 5 utilities serving Portland have a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and CDC’s records: Portland Water Bureau and Manna House Church.

Portland Water Bureau, which serves the most people here, has 1 result above the health goal. The worst: Lead at 5.0 ppb, above the health goal. Health goals are stricter than legal limits and are not enforced.

The water from Portland Water Bureau is soft to moderately hard depending on the source, 7 to 80 mg/L (0.4 to 4.7 grains per gallon). How it compares.

A town can be served by more than one utility, and some homes are on private wells. The name on your water bill tells you which is yours, and your ZIP code narrows it down. They are listed by how many people each serves in Portland’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.

What handles it

Each of these is certified, on a certifier’s listing, for a result above a line in Portland Water Bureau’s water, which serves the most people here. Another utility’s report names what handles its own results.

Disclosure: TapBuff earns a commission if you buy through some links on this page. It does not change which standard or filter we name. As an Amazon Associate, TapBuff earns from qualifying purchases. How TapBuff makes money

Every claim, and more filters, in the full report

Water testing near Portland

A utility tests the water it sends out. A test of your own tap shows what your pipes add, and on a private well it is the only test there is. It takes a lab Oregon certifies.

The 3 labs Oregon certifies closest to Portland, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • Rose City Laboratories

    Portland, OR · about 4 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, PFAS

    (503) 307-0096

  • OMIC USA Inc.

    Portland, OR · about 4 miles

    (503) 223-1497

  • Columbia Laboratories Inc.

    Portland, OR · about 7 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics

    (503) 254-1794

Oregon State University Extension Well Water Program: Nitrate screening of well water at many of its groundwater education events. The screening is free. Water Testing Guidance for Private Wells, OSU Well Water Program.

All 91 certified labs for Oregon

ZIP codes in Portland

Which ZIP codes are in Portland: Census 2020 relationship files. Which utilities serve them, and how many people: EPA SDWIS and EPA’s service area map. Each utility’s results: EPA UCMR 5, EPA SDWIS, and EPA’s and the state’s compliance monitoring, as its report lists them. How they are measured: methodology. Certified labs: Oregon Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program, drinking water labs, as listed in TNI LAMS; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer.

Near Portland

Other towns in Multnomah County with a page of their own.

What to do next