Low-cost state testing
Missouri's state lab tests well water for bacteria for a $10 fee. Check which tests it includes before you count on it for manganese.
Missouri's private well pageManganese in Missouri well water, by county
Manganese is widespread, over the limit in 15% or more of tested wells, in 2 of the 7 Missouri counties with 10 or more tested wells. 3 more look high, but those results likely overstate it. 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.
How Missouri compares with the rest of the country
Across Missouri, about 3 in 10 tested wells had manganese over the EPA health advisory of 0.3 mg/L (92 of 314). Across all tested wells in the US it's about 1 in 7. So manganese turns up in Missouri wells about twice as often as in the country as a whole, and a test is worth adding even if your county isn't on the list below.
Why it matters: High levels over many years may affect the nervous system, and babies are more sensitive to it. It also leaves black stains.
Manganese dissolves out of rock and soil, especially in water with little oxygen.
Manganese in tested wells, county by county
Share of each county's tested wells with at least one result over the EPA health advisory of 0.3 mg/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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson County | 55 | Widespread | |
| Clay County | 11 | Widespread | |
| St. Charles County | 15 | Widespread | |
| Franklin County | 16 | Widespread | |
| Reynolds County | 26 | Widespread | |
| St. Francois County | 27 | Worth checking | |
| Pulaski County | 75 | Rare |
* Likely overstated. These shares come from a narrow set of wells, so they probably run high for the county as a whole:
- Jackson County: All of these tests come from the US Geological Survey in one small part of the county, so this likely overstates it.
- Clay County: All of these tests come from the US Geological Survey in one small part of the county, so this likely overstates it.
- Reynolds County: All of these tests come from the US Geological Survey between 2004 and 2006 in one small part of the county, so this likely overstates it.
- St. Francois County: All of these tests come from the US Geological Survey between 2004 and 2007 in one small part of the county, so this likely overstates it.
49 more Missouri counties have 1 to 9 tested wells for manganese, too few to rate.
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Where to get your well tested for manganese in Missouri
A lab Missouri certifies
Ask for manganese by name. Results from a certified lab count for a home sale or a loan.
Labs certified by MissouriA mail-in kit
Fill the bottles at your kitchen tap and mail them back. We mark the kits that include manganese.
Compare kitsKeep reading about wells in Missouri
- Well water testing in Missouri: how to get tested and what turns up statewide
- Manganese in well water: where it comes from, what it does and how to remove it
- Nitrate in Missouri wells, by county
- Arsenic in Missouri wells, by county
- Lead in Missouri wells, by county
Questions people ask about manganese in Missouri
Is there manganese in Missouri well water?
Manganese is widespread, over the limit in 15% or more of tested wells, in 2 of the 7 Missouri counties with 10 or more tested wells. 3 more look high, but those results likely overstate it. Across Missouri, about 3 in 10 tested wells had manganese over the EPA health advisory of 0.3 mg/L (92 of 314). Across all tested wells in the US it's about 1 in 7. So manganese turns up in Missouri wells about twice as often as in the country as a whole, and a test is worth adding even if your county isn't on the list below.
Where can I get my well tested for manganese in Missouri?
Missouri's state lab tests well water for bacteria for a $10 fee. If that doesn't cover you, use a lab certified by Missouri for drinking water, or a mail-in kit that includes manganese from a certified lab.
See Missouri'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 health advisory of 0.3 mg/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: Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.