Last updated: October 28, 2026. Sources checked: October 28, 2026 (rate sheets from Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin Water, SAWS and Rosenberg, the Texas Municipal League 2026 survey file and EPA WaterSense pages).
A typical Texas city charges about $91 a month for 5,000 gallons of water and sewer. That is the median we worked out from the Texas Municipal League’s 2026 survey, and it hides a wide spread: the same 5,000 gallons comes to $124.50 inside Houston and $49.52 inside Dallas.
Most of that gap is sewer, and how your city measures it. GridPenny is written from Rosenberg in Fort Bend County, where my family moved in 2025, and a lot of homes out here get water from a municipal utility district (MUD) instead of a city. MUDs and the local groundwater fee get their own section near the end.
Key takeaways
- $90.91 a month is the median water-plus-sewer charge for 5,000 gallons across the 130 Texas cities that answered both questions in the TML 2026 survey (GridPenny calculation from TML’s raw file).
- Houston’s bill for 5,000 gallons is $124.50, about 2.5 times the $49.52 we get for Dallas with a 4,000-gallon winter average (GridPenny calculation from each city’s rate sheet).
- A leak of 2,000 gallons a month (about 67 gallons a day) adds $52.03 a month to that Houston bill. In Dallas it adds $9.62 outside winter, plus $12.38 a month in sewer if it was running during the December to March averaging months (GridPenny calculation).
- Houston’s conservation credit stops after 3,000 gallons: 3,000 gallons costs $54.54 for water and sewer, 4,000 costs $100.21 (Houston rate sheet).
What Texas cities charge for 5,000 gallons
No agency publishes an official average Texas water bill. The closest thing is the Texas Municipal League’s yearly survey, which asks cities what a home pays for 5,000 gallons of water and of sewer service, base charges included. 269 cities took part in 2026 (TML). TML posts the answers as a raw spreadsheet without averages, so the medians below are our own math.
| Measure | Water | Sewer (wastewater) | Water + sewer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas cities, 2026 median at 5,000 gal (GridPenny calc. from TML data) | $48.88 | $39.62 | $90.91* |
| Texas cities, 2024 TML published average at 5,000 gal | $46.23 | $36.83 | $83.06 |
| Typical monthly use reported by Texas cities, 2026 (median) | 4,865 gallons | – | – |
| U.S. family, EPA WaterSense | – | – | more than $1,000 a year in water costs |
Read it with three caveats. Cities report their own numbers and TML “made no attempt to verify” them. Homes served by MUDs or private water companies aren’t in the survey at all (TML). And 5,000 gallons is a light month for a family: EPA’s rule of thumb for a family of four is about 10,000 gallons in 30 days (EPA). If you water a yard, expect to pay more than the median.
The lines on a Texas water bill
Most utilities charge a fixed monthly fee plus a price per 1,000 gallons, and with only one meter at the house they bill sewer from the water going in (EPA). After that, the lines vary a lot by city.
| Line on the bill | What it is | Real example |
|---|---|---|
| Meter or customer charge | Fixed monthly fee by meter size, even at zero use | Dallas: $5.93 water + $5.34 sewer |
| Water, tiered | Price per 1,000 gallons that rises as use rises (EPA calls these “increasing block rates”) | Dallas: $2.17 up to 4,000 gal, then $4.81 |
| Sewer | Fixed charge plus a volume charge, often based on your winter average | Fort Worth: $7.90 + $4.30 per CCF |
| Drainage or stormwater | Monthly fee tied to roof and paved area | Dallas: $5.79 to $22.59 |
| Trash | Some cities bill it on the same statement | Austin: $24.90 customer charge plus $4.90 or more per cart, from Nov 1, 2026 |
| Pass-through fees | State, aquifer or groundwater fees | Houston: $0.21 TCEQ fee. Rosenberg: $2.95 per 1,000 gal subsidence (GRP) fee |
Winter averaging: the months that set your sewer bill
Four of the five big cities below charge home sewer on what you used during a winter window, when few people water lawns. Whatever you use in those weeks sets your sewer volume until the next window. Houston doesn’t do this. Its rate sheet says the month’s “water consumption is used to determine the appropriate wastewater consumption charge” (Houston).
| Utility | Winter window for 2026–27 | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas | Water billed in December, January, February and March | Sewer on that average or the actual month, whichever is less; 40,000-gallon cap |
| Fort Worth | December 1 through the end of February | New average starts on the April bill |
| Austin Water | About 90 days, set by billing cycle: the earliest starts Dec 1, 2026, the latest ends Mar 29, 2027 | Average or actual month, whichever is lower |
| SAWS (San Antonio) | 90 days over three billing periods, starting after Nov 15 and ending about Mar 15 | No winter record: sewer billed as if you used 5,985 gallons |
| Houston | None | Sewer charged on each month’s water use |
The SAWS default catches new arrivals, because a new account has no winter history. 5,985 gallons is 1,120 gallons more than the 4,865-gallon typical month Texas cities reported to TML. (Setting up a new home? Our new-home electricity checklist covers the power side.)
Current residential rates in five big Texas cities
Inside-city rates for the common 5/8-inch meter, from each utility’s current rate sheet. Fort Worth bills per CCF (100 cubic feet, or 748.1 gallons), so the brackets show our per-1,000-gallon conversion.
| Utility | Monthly fixed (water + sewer) | Water, per 1,000 gal | Sewer volume | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston Public Works | $8.23 + $16.88 + $0.21 TCEQ | $9.09 up to 6,000; $12.54 to 12,000; $15.82 to 20,000; $20.20 above ($1.97 if you use 3,000 or less) | $7.77 per 1,000 for the first 3,000, then $15.20 | April 1, 2026 |
| Dallas Water Utilities | $5.93 + $5.34 | $2.17 up to 4,000; $4.81; $7.98; $11.40; $13.20 above 30,000 | $6.19 per 1,000 (winter average) | Oct 1, 2026 |
| SAWS (San Antonio) | $9.00 + $10.00 (water charge +$2.00 above 4,000 gal) | $0.907 up to 4,000; $1.678; $3.039; $3.991; $5.669, plus supply and aquifer fees | $2.539 up to 4,000, then $4.444 (winter average) | Jan 1, 2026 |
| Austin Water | $7.75 + $11.26, plus $1.40 to $37.00 by total use | $3.57 up to 2,000; $6.09; $11.24; $18.06; $22.21, plus $0.50 in surcharges | $7.13 up to 2,000, then $14.93, plus $0.45 in surcharges (winter average) | Oct 1, 2026 |
| Fort Worth | $13.75 + $7.90 | $2.28/CCF first 6 CCF [$3.05], $3.19 [$4.26], $4.29 [$5.73], $5.37 [$7.18] | $4.30/CCF [$5.75] (winter average) | Jan 1, 2026 |
Rates are about to move in three of these cities. Fort Worth’s 2027 rates start January 1 and first appear on February 2027 bills: the water service charge goes to $14.45, the sewer service charge to $8.35, sewer volume to $4.33 per CCF, and the top two water tiers to $4.35 and $5.60. On our 5,000-gallon example that’s about $61.81 a month instead of about $60.50. SAWS’s online calculator already uses council-approved 2027 rates. Houston resets every April 1; the 2026 increase averaged 7.87% across customers, 1.37% for inflation plus 6.5% from the city’s rate study (Houston).
Example bills
These are example calculations, not real bills: 5,000 gallons of water in a month, with a 4,000-gallon winter average where one applies. Austin and SAWS publish their own averages at different volumes, so we quote those instead.
| Example | Water | Sewer | Total | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston, 5,000 gal | $53.91 | $70.59 | $124.50 | From the city’s total-bill tables; drainage fee extra |
| Houston, 7,000 gal | $75.54 | $100.99 | $176.53 | The city’s own worked example on its rate sheet |
| Dallas, 5,000 gal (4,000 winter avg.) | $19.42 | $30.10 | $49.52 | $58.75 with the $9.23 stormwater fee for 2,001 to 3,500 sq ft |
| Fort Worth, 5,000 gal (4,000 winter avg.) | $29.61 | $30.89 | $60.50 | Approximate; CCF converted at 748.1 gal |
| Austin Water, utility’s own average | $50.49 (5,800 gal) | $57.18 (4,000 gal) | $107.67 | Austin Water figure for bills from Oct 1, 2026 (was $99.91) |
| SAWS, utility’s own average | – | – | $65.17 | SAWS figure for the average bill under 2026 rates (2025: $60.41) |
Sewer is most of the Houston gap: $70.59 against $30.10 in Dallas. Houston also has a cliff. On the city’s own tables, 3,000 gallons costs $54.54 for water and sewer. At 4,000 gallons the conservation credit is gone and the total is $100.21 (Houston). That last 1,000 gallons is about 33 gallons a day. For a one- or two-person home that normally uses 2,000 gallons, a 2,000-gallon leak lifts the bill from $44.80 to $100.21, an extra $55.41 a month.
GridPenny analysis: what an extra 1,000 gallons, or a leak, really costs
One volume in one month doesn’t show how bills grow. So we ran Houston’s and Dallas’s rate sheets from zero to 15,000 gallons a month, using the same formulas as the estimator further down. Dallas assumes a 4,000-gallon winter average, which means the chart shows a month outside its December to March window.
Houston’s line jumps at 4,000 gallons and then keeps a steep slope, because every extra 1,000 gallons is billed twice: once as water, once as sewer at $15.20. Dallas’s sewer charge doesn’t move in summer, so its line stays flat until the $7.98 water tier starts above 10,000 gallons. At 10,000 gallons, about what EPA expects a family of four to use in a month (EPA), Houston comes to $259.75 and Dallas to $73.57.
| City (summer month) | Going from 5,000 to 6,000 gal | Going from 10,000 to 11,000 gal | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | $24.29 ($9.09 water + $15.20 sewer) | $27.74 ($12.54 + $15.20) | Sewer billed on the month’s water use |
| Dallas | $4.81 (water only) | $7.98 (water only) | Sewer fixed by the winter average |
| Fort Worth | about $4.26 (water only) | about $5.73 (water only) | Sewer fixed by the winter average; $3.19 and $4.29 per CCF converted |
What a running toilet costs in each city
EPA says household leaks waste 180 gallons a week in the average family, and that 9% of homes have leaks of 50 gallons a day or more (EPA, EPA). We priced a 2,000-gallon-a-month leak, about 67 gallons a day, on top of a 5,000-gallon month.
| City | Extra water | Extra sewer | Extra per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | $21.63 | $30.40 | $52.03 ($624.36 a year) |
| Dallas, leak starts after March | $9.62 | $0.00 | $9.62 |
| Dallas, leak ran through December to March | $9.62 | $12.38 for every month the higher average applies | $22.00 |
| Fort Worth, leak starts after February | about $8.53 | $0.00 | about $8.53 |
| Fort Worth, leak ran through December to February | about $8.53 | about $11.50 | about $20.03 |
In Houston, outdoor water and leaks are the expensive gallons, and the bill shows it the same month. In Dallas and Fort Worth a summer leak is cheap to ignore for a while, but a leak that’s still running in January follows you onto sewer bills for months afterward. Going from 5,000 to 10,000 gallons in a summer month adds $135.25 in Houston and $24.05 in Dallas.
Estimate your Houston or Dallas bill
Type in the gallons from a recent bill. For Dallas, add your winter average if your bill shows one; leave it blank and sewer is priced on the month’s actual use. The estimator uses the formulas above, and its Houston results match the city’s own total-bill table to the cent from 1,000 to 6,000 gallons.
Water bill estimator: Houston and Dallas
Inside-city single-family rates, 5/8-inch meter: Houston rates effective April 1, 2026; Dallas rates effective October 1, 2026. The numbers already filled in are examples. Enter your own from your bill.
| Water (meter charge, volume, TCEQ fee in Houston) | |
| Sewer | |
| Stormwater (Dallas only) | |
| Next 1,000 gallons would add |
Estimate only. Leaves out taxes, Houston's drainage fee, trash and any MUD charges. Houston's rate tables step in 1,000-gallon units, so the estimator rounds to the nearest 1,000. In Dallas, sewer is billed on your December to March average or the month's actual use, whichever is less, capped at 40,000 gallons.
If the estimator doesn’t load (it needs JavaScript), here’s the math. Houston at 5,000 gallons is $53.91 water plus $70.59 sewer, and each extra 1,000 gallons from 4,000 to 6,000 adds $9.09 water and $15.20 sewer. Dallas is $5.93 + $5.34 a month, plus $2.17 per 1,000 gallons up to 4,000 and $4.81 up to 10,000, with sewer at $6.19 per 1,000 gallons of your winter average.
Where the water goes, and what fixing it saves
EPA says the average American family uses more than 300 gallons a day at home, roughly 70% of it indoors (EPA). Over half of indoor use happens in the bathroom (EPA).
| Fixture or use | How much it uses | Standard vs WaterSense | EPA savings estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toilets | Nearly 30% of indoor use | 1.6 gal per flush federal standard (older models up to 6) vs 1.28 or less | Nearly 13,000 gal a year by replacing old toilets |
| Showers | Nearly 17% of indoor use, nearly 40 gal a day for the average family | 2.5 gal per minute vs 2.0 or less | 2,700 gal a year |
| Bathroom faucets | – | 2.2 gal per minute vs 1.5 or less | 700 gal a year; turning off the tap while brushing saves 8 gal a day |
| Leaks | 180 gal a week for the average family (9,400 a year) | – | EPA: fixing easy leaks saves about 10% on water bills |
| Outdoors | More than 30% of household use nationally, up to 60% in dry regions | A neglected sprinkler system can waste up to 25,000 gal a year | – |
Those savings are worth more in Houston than EPA’s national figure suggests. EPA puts the toilet swap at more than $170 a year in water costs. In Houston, where each 1,000 gallons between 4,000 and 6,000 costs $24.29 with sewer, 13,000 gallons a year (about 1,080 a month) is worth roughly $26.31 a month, or about $316 a year (GridPenny estimate, before the rounding Houston’s 1,000-gallon tables add). Hot water also costs electricity or gas, so a lower-flow showerhead trims two bills (see the average Texas electric bill and natural gas prices by state).
How to check for a leak with your meter
- Find the meter, usually in a box near the curb, and take a photo of the reading.
- Use no water for two hours, then read it again. EPA’s test: “If the meter changes at all, you probably have a leak” (EPA).
- If it moved, put a few drops of food coloring in each toilet tank. Color in the bowl after 10 minutes means the flapper leaks. EPA says flappers should be replaced at least every five years.
- Look at a January or February bill. EPA says a family of four using more than 12,000 gallons in a winter month could have serious leaks.
- Fort Worth’s digital meters light a flag icon when there may be a leak on your side, and the online account shows hourly use about a day later (Fort Worth). Ask your utility whether its meters do the same.
One Fort Worth detail is easy to miss: meters are read on business days by area, so “your reading will not be based on the calendar month” (Fort Worth). Compare bills by the number of days they cover, not by month name.
Example: in Dallas, a leak that lifts your December to March average from 4,000 to 6,000 gallons raises sewer from $30.10 to $42.48 a month for as long as that average applies, unless a month’s actual use is lower. Fix leaks before December and save the pool top-up for spring.
Fort Bend County: MUDs and the groundwater fee
In many suburbs, including large parts of Fort Bend County, water and sewer come from a municipal utility district rather than a city. TCEQ describes a water district as “a local, governmental entity that provides limited services to its customers and residents” (TCEQ). Commissioner Precinct 3’s page alone lists 49 MUDs (Fort Bend County).
From TCEQ’s Texas Water Districts: A General Guide (GI-043, revised October 2019) (TCEQ):
- MUDs provide water, sewer, drainage and other services, and a MUD can require you to use its trash service as a condition of the rest.
- Districts with voter-approved bonds levy a property tax on all property by appraised value, so part of what your water system costs may sit in your property tax bill instead of your water bill.
- Most districts must prepare a “notice to purchaser” showing the tax rate and bonds. Read it before you buy.
- Billing complaints go to the district’s staff or board first, then the Public Utility Commission (water@puc.texas.gov).
Some Fort Bend bills carry one more line: a groundwater reduction plan (GRP) or subsidence fee. The City of Rosenberg’s schedule of fees, dated October 2, 2026, lists it at $2.95 per 1,000 gallons, effective October 1, 2025 (Rosenberg; set by Ordinance 2025-21). That’s more than the city’s own $2.60 per 1,000 gallons for water between 2,000 and 10,000 gallons. At 5,000 gallons the GRP line alone is $14.75. Each MUD sets its own rates and fees, so ask your district for its current rate order and look for a similar line.
What to do next
- Check who sends your water bill: a city, a MUD or a private company. If it’s a MUD, ask the district for its current rate order and check the bill for a GRP or subsidence line, since city averages won’t tell you much.
- Run the two-hour meter test before December 1 (EPA), then the food-coloring test in each toilet tank. In Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin and San Antonio, a leak that runs through the winter window raises sewer for months afterward.
- In Houston, look at the sprinkler timer first. Between 7,000 and 12,000 gallons, each extra 1,000 gallons costs $27.74 with sewer.
FAQ
What is the average water bill in Texas?
For Texas cities in TML’s 2026 survey, the median water-plus-sewer charge for 5,000 gallons is $90.91 a month (GridPenny calculation). Yards, pools, drainage and trash fees push real bills higher, and MUD customers aren’t in the survey.
Why is my sewer charge higher than my water charge?
In some cities sewer simply costs more per gallon. In Houston, sewer is $70.59 of a $124.50 bill at 5,000 gallons. In winter-average cities it depends on what you used last winter, so a leak in January can keep it high for months.
Does lawn watering raise my sewer bill?
Not in Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin or San Antonio outside the winter window, because sewer uses the winter average. It does in Houston, where sewer is charged on each month’s water use.
How much does an extra 1,000 gallons cost?
In a summer month at around 5,000 gallons: about $24.29 in Houston, $4.81 in Dallas and $4.26 in Fort Worth, by our math from each city’s rate sheet. Houston charges sewer on every gallon; Dallas and Fort Worth use your winter average.
What is the GRP or subsidence fee on my bill?
It’s a per-gallon charge that pays for a groundwater reduction plan (GRP). Rosenberg’s ordinance calls it a water subsidence fee (GRP fee), charges it on all water used and sets it at $2.95 per 1,000 gallons (Ordinance 2025-21; the city’s schedule of fees lists the same rate). Amounts differ by city and district, so check your own bill or rate order.
How we got these numbers
Texas median: we downloaded TML’s 2026 survey spreadsheet and took the median of the numeric answers (145 cities for water, 140 for sewer, 130 with both). Text answers and blanks were left out, and a median keeps a few odd entries from skewing the result. TML doesn’t verify city answers and doesn’t cover MUDs.
City bills: we priced each city’s current inside-city, single-family rates for a 5/8-inch meter and checked our formulas against the cities’ own examples. Houston’s published totals, including its 7,000-gallon example, match to the cent. Dallas and Fort Worth use a 4,000-gallon winter average, and Fort Worth’s CCF rates are converted at 748.1 gallons, so its figures are approximate. The leak rows add 2,000 gallons to a 5,000-gallon month. The toilet estimate spreads EPA’s 13,000 gallons evenly over 12 months at Houston’s 4,000 to 6,000 gallon rate. Austin and San Antonio are quoted from their own published averages.
Every bill leaves out taxes, drainage, stormwater (unless noted), trash, GRP fees and MUD charges. All rates were re-checked on October 28, 2026; Fort Worth’s site blocks automated downloads, so it was read through a browser-style fetch.
Sources
- Texas Municipal League: survey results, 2026 data (XLSX), 2024 summary. Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- EPA WaterSense: Statistics and Facts, Understanding Your Water Bill, How We Use Water, Fix a Leak Week, Toilets, Showerheads, Bathroom Faucets, Start Saving. Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Houston: 2026 water and wastewater rates (effective April 1, 2026), charge calculator. Dallas: rates effective Oct 1, 2026. Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- SAWS: residential rates, water supply fee, EAA fee, stormwater fee, 2026 fact sheet. Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Austin: rates and fees, 2026–2027 residential rates, 2027 fact sheet, wastewater averaging, FY 2026–27 utility schedule. Fort Worth: water and wastewater rates. Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Rosenberg: schedule of fees (Oct 2, 2026), Ordinance 2025-21. TCEQ: Water Districts, GI-043. Fort Bend County: Precinct 3 LIDs and MUDs. Checked Oct 28, 2026.