Bellevue, WA · Bellevue City of · data through September 2025
Is Bellevue tap water safe to drink?
Bellevue's tap water comes from Bellevue City of, which serves about 321,349 people. Its recent federal data shows no red flags on lead, PFAS or hardness. King County is EPA Radon Zone 3.
Chlorine or chloramine?
Looks fineBellevue City of uses free chlorine, according to its own water quality reporting. Free chlorine is the easy case: almost any carbon filter, from a basic pitcher to a shower filter, reduces the taste and smell.
How hard is the water?
Looks fineBellevue's water measures about 2.0 grains per gallon (35 mg/L as calcium carbonate), which is soft on the US Geological Survey scale: soft below 60 mg/L, moderately hard 60-120, hard 120-180, very hard above 180.
At this level a water softener is usually not worth the cost. Spend on filtration for taste or specific contaminants instead.
Hardness data: TapWaterData Water Hardness Dataset (tapwaterdata.com), licensed CC BY 4.0. Underlying source: Utility-reported water quality data — BELLEVUE CITY OF (PWSID WA5305575), 2025-09-22.
Lead and copper
No 90th-percentile lead result is on file for Bellevue in EPA's data. If your home was built before 1986, or you are not sure what your service line is made of, test your tap.
EPA's lead action level is 15 parts per billion (ppb) today and drops to 10 ppb in November 2027 under the Lead and Copper Rule Improvements. FDA's limit for bottled water is 5 ppb. EPA's health goal for lead is zero.
PFAS ("forever chemicals")
Looks fineBellevue City of was sampled in EPA's 2023-2025 nationwide survey, and none of the six regulated PFAS compounds were found above the lab reporting limits.
In April 2024 EPA set enforceable limits of 4 parts per trillion (ppt) for PFOA and PFOS, and 10 ppt for PFHxS, PFNA and HFPO-DA (GenX). In May 2025 EPA said it intends to keep the PFOA and PFOS limits, extend the compliance deadline to 2031, and rescind the other three. We compare results to the 2024 limits and label which ones may change.
Health-based violations since 2016
Looks fineBellevue City of has no health-based violations on file with EPA since 2016.
Radon
Looks fineBellevue is in King County, which EPA places in Radon Zone 3: the predicted average indoor level is below 2 pCi/L.
Zone describes a county average. Individual homes in every zone test high, so EPA recommends testing every home, especially basements and ground floors. Fix at 4 pCi/L or above.
EPA radon zones describe counties, not houses. Zone 1 counties have a predicted average indoor level above 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L), Zone 2 between 2 and 4, Zone 3 below 2. Homes with high levels are found in every zone, which is why EPA recommends that every home be tested, and fixed at 4 pCi/L or above. See every Washington county's radon zone.
What to do in Bellevue
Matched to the findings above, most important first.
We may earn a commission from links below, at no cost to you. Recommendations come from the data above, not from who pays. How we make money.
If you rent
No plumbing changes, takes it with you
Filter pitcher
Free chlorine is easy to remove with basic carbon.
The cheapest way to improve taste and odor from chlorine. No installation, renter friendly.
Radon test kit
King County is EPA Radon Zone 3; EPA still recommends testing every home.
A short-term charcoal kit costs about $15-25 and tells you whether you need to go further.
Home water test kit
See what is in your own tap, beyond the utility's averages.
Checks your own tap, which can differ from the utility's system-wide numbers.
If you own
Whole-home fixes that protect the house
Under-sink filter
Free chlorine is easy to remove with basic carbon.
Filters every glass at the kitchen tap, lasts 6-12 months per cartridge, installs in under an hour.
Radon test kit
King County is EPA Radon Zone 3; EPA still recommends testing every home.
A short-term charcoal kit costs about $15-25 and tells you whether you need to go further.
Home water test kit
See what is in your own tap, beyond the utility's averages.
Checks your own tap, which can differ from the utility's system-wide numbers.
Questions people ask about Bellevue water
Is Bellevue tap water safe to drink?+
Bellevue's tap water comes from Bellevue City of, which serves about 321,349 people. Its recent federal data shows no red flags on lead, PFAS or hardness. King County is EPA Radon Zone 3. For your own home, a tap test is the only reading that reflects your pipes.
Does Bellevue use chlorine or chloramine?+
Bellevue City of uses free chlorine, according to its own water quality reporting. Free chlorine is the easy case: almost any carbon filter, from a basic pitcher to a shower filter, reduces the taste and smell.
How hard is Bellevue water?+
Bellevue's water measures about 2.0 grains per gallon (35 mg/L as calcium carbonate), which is soft on the US Geological Survey scale: soft below 60 mg/L, moderately hard 60-120, hard 120-180, very hard above 180.
Is radon a problem in Bellevue?+
Bellevue is in King County, which EPA places in Radon Zone 3: the predicted average indoor level is below 2 pCi/L. EPA recommends testing every home regardless of zone.
Sources
- Utility: Bellevue City of, EPA public water system ID WA5305575, serving about 321,349 people. Look it up at EPA.
- Disinfectant: utility water quality reporting.
- Lead, copper, violations and treatment: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), via EPA ECHO, 2026 Q2 export.
- PFAS: EPA Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5), sampling 2023-2025, results released through August 2026.
- Radon: EPA Map of Radon Zones. County: US Census geocoder.
- Hardness data: TapWaterData Water Hardness Dataset (tapwaterdata.com), licensed CC BY 4.0.
- Population: US Census Bureau 2024 population estimates and 2024 Gazetteer (154,377 residents).
How we build these pages. Spot an error? Email us and we will fix it.