Your county health department
Massachusetts doesn't run a statewide free testing program that we know of. Some county health departments test wells or sell kits, so call yours first.
Massachusetts's private well pageLead in Massachusetts well water, by county
Lead is rare in tested Massachusetts wells: in all 5 counties with enough tests, fewer than 5% of tested wells were over the limit. A county's share tells you how likely a problem is nearby. Only a test of your own well tells you what's in it.
These tests sample the groundwater, and lead rarely comes from the ground. In a home it mostly comes from plumbing: old solder, brass fittings and some older pumps. So a county's share can't tell you about your pipes. Test a first-draw sample, water that sat in the pipes overnight, from the tap you drink from.
How Massachusetts compares with the rest of the country
Across Massachusetts, 1 of 173 tested wells had lead over the EPA action level of 15 µg/L (1 of 173). Across all tested wells in the US it's under 1 in 50. That's less often than in the country as a whole. Counties still differ, so check yours below.
Why it matters: It harms children's growing brains. The CDC says no amount in a child's blood is known to be safe.
Lead in tested wells, county by county
Share of each county's tested wells with at least one result over the EPA action level of 15 µg/L. Counties need 10 or more tested wells to be listed. Widespread means 15% or more, worth checking 5 to 15%, rare under 5%.
| County | Wells tested | Wells over the limit | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Worcester County | 63 | Rare | |
| Barnstable County | 33 | Rare | |
| Middlesex County | 27 | Rare | |
| Plymouth County | 18 | Rare | |
| Hampden County | 10 | Rare |
5 more Massachusetts counties have 1 to 9 tested wells for lead, too few to rate.
Download this table (CSV) · Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0
Where to get your well tested for lead in Massachusetts
A lab Massachusetts certifies
Ask for lead by name. Results from a certified lab count for a home sale or a loan.
Labs certified by MassachusettsA mail-in kit
Fill the bottles at your kitchen tap and mail them back. We mark the kits that include lead.
Compare kitsKeep reading about wells in Massachusetts
- Well water testing in Massachusetts: how to get tested and what turns up statewide
- Lead in well water: where it comes from, what it does and how to remove it
- Arsenic in Massachusetts wells, by county
- Uranium in Massachusetts wells, by county
- Manganese in Massachusetts wells, by county
Questions people ask about lead in Massachusetts
Is there lead in Massachusetts well water?
Lead is rare in tested Massachusetts wells: in all 5 counties with enough tests, fewer than 5% of tested wells were over the limit. Across Massachusetts, 1 of 173 tested wells had lead over the EPA action level of 15 µg/L (1 of 173). Across all tested wells in the US it's under 1 in 50. That's less often than in the country as a whole. Counties still differ, so check yours below.
Where can I get my well tested for lead in Massachusetts?
Use a lab certified by Massachusetts for drinking water, or a mail-in kit that includes lead from a certified lab. Some county health departments test wells too, so call yours first.
See Massachusetts's list of certified labs, or compare mail-in kits.
Where these numbers come from
- Lab tests: Water Quality Portal (USGS and EPA), well samples since 2000. A well counts as over if any of its tests was over the EPA action level of 15 µg/L. Wells tested for studies and monitoring, not a random sample of homes.
- Likely overstated: our own check of who tested the wells, when and where. How we check.
- State programs and links: Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP).