Is Greensboro, NC tap water safe?
Supplied by City of Greensboro · serves 319,588 people (109,160 connections) · Surface water · EPA ID NC0241010
Data: U.S. EPA · How we read the data · How we check it
Most of Greensboro gets its water from City of Greensboro. Parts of the city are served by 28 smaller systems: Crown MHP (353 people), Huntington Woods MHP (300 people), Springdale S/D Water System (267 people), Huntcliff S/D Water System (262 people) and 24 more. Your water bill names your system.
Buys water from City of Winston-Salem, City of Burlington, City of High Point, City of Reidsville, Piedmont Triad Regional Water System. Treated water bought from another system can carry that system's contaminants.
Summary
PFAS above the 2024 federal limits. Systems have until 2029 to meet the PFAS limits.
Is it an emergency? No: PFAS limits are about years of exposure, not a glass of water, and nothing in EPA's data calls for you to stop drinking the water today. If your utility ever issues a boil-water or do-not-drink notice, follow it.
- PFAS
- Above limitPFOS above the federal limit in EPA's 2023–2025 testing (PFOS 27.4 ppt vs a limit of 4 ppt, where ppt = parts per trillion).
- Lead
- Below action level0 ppb (parts per billion) at the 90th percentile: 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below it. Action level 15 ppb, falling to 10 ppb in Nov 2027. Monitoring period ending Dec 2025. Your home's pipes can make yours higher.
- Violations
- None health-basedNo health-based violations since 2016.
- Pregnant, or mixing baby formula with tap water? Babies drink more water for their size, so PFAS exposure matters more for them. Consider bottled water or a filter certified for PFAS for formula, and ask your doctor. Health effects.
- To lower your PFAS exposure now, a home filter certified for PFAS reduction works (reverse osmosis, or activated carbon certified to NSF/ANSI 53 or 58). Filters for these results.
- Built before 1986, or not sure what your service line is made of? Check your service line and test your tap. Utility data can't show your pipes.
- Tested your own tap? Compare your result with these numbers. Moving? Compare this system with another.
- Read City of Greensboro's 2026 water quality report (PDF) (Consumer Confidence Report, from the utility). It lists every regulated contaminant tested, including ones not on this page. Questions: (336) 373-4601.
PFAS (“forever chemicals”)
EPA UCMR 5: 2 entry points tested Jul 2023 to Apr 2024. "Average" is the highest entry-point average (non-detects counted as zero), the way EPA compares UCMR 5 results to the limits. ppt = parts per trillion. These results do not determine compliance.
| Contaminant | Highest average |
|---|---|
| PFOA One sample above limit Limit 4 ppt | 3.65 ppt 91% of the limit |
| PFOS Above limit Limit 4 ppt | 27.4 ppt 6.84× the limit |
| PFHxS Rounds to the limit Limit 10 ppt | 13.3 ppt 1.32× the limit |
| PFNA Not detected Limit 10 ppt | – |
| HFPO-DA (GenX) Not detected Limit 10 ppt | – |
| Hazard Index (a combined score for PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and PFBS, where above 1 is over the limit) Rounds to the limit Limit 1 | 1.33 |
| PFBS Detected, below limit Guideline 2,000 ppt | 3.52 ppt |
| PFBA Detected, below limit Guideline 6,000 ppt | 4.15 ppt |
| PFHxA Detected, below limit Guideline 3,000 ppt | 7.5 ppt |
| PFPeA Detected, no limit | 6.8 ppt |
| PFHpA Detected, no limit | 1.88 ppt |
| 6:2 FTS Detected, no limit | 1.8 ppt |
Why "rounds to the limit"? the PFHxS average (13.3 ppt) and the Hazard Index (1.33) are slightly above the number on paper, but EPA compares results after rounding to the limit's precision (4.4 ppt rounds to 4), so they meet the limit as EPA applies it. Close enough to the limit to be worth watching.
For context: the PFOS average is higher than at 99% of the North Carolina systems EPA tested.
29 PFAS tested, 9 detected at least once. "Not detected" means below EPA's reporting limit (about 2 to 20 ppt depending on the chemical), not proven zero. PFAS not listed were not detected. The limits for PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and the Hazard Index were proposed for rescission in May 2026. That proposal is not final. Systems have until 2029 to meet the limits.
Lithium
Not detected in 8 samples (reporting limit 9 ppb). About lithium.
Lead and copper
Latest 90th percentile: 0 ppb lead (Jan 2023 – Dec 2025). Below action level
Highest since 2016: 2 ppb (Dec 2016).
| Monitoring period | Lead (90th pct.) |
|---|---|
| Jan 2023 – Dec 2025 | 0 ppb |
| Jan 2020 – Dec 2022 | 0 ppb |
| Jan 2017 – Dec 2019 | 0 ppb |
Earlier results (9)
| Jan 2014 – Dec 2016 | 2 ppb |
| Jan 2012 – Jun 2012 | 0 ppb |
| Jul 2011 – Dec 2011 | 0 ppb |
| Jan 2008 – Dec 2010 | 4 ppb |
| Jan 2005 – Dec 2007 | 0 ppb |
| Jul 2004 – Dec 2004 | 4 ppb |
| Jul 2001 – Dec 2001 | 3 ppb |
| Jan 2001 – Jun 2001 | 3 ppb |
| Jul 1992 – Dec 1992 | 3 ppb |
Lead service lines: City of Greensboro's inventory lists 0 lead, 17 galvanized lines that need replacing, 67,123 of unknown material out of 109,822 service lines (as of 2024-10-15). As published by the utility.
Look up your address · Source (the utility, collected by us on Nov 14, 2026, not EPA data) · Checking your own line
Lead comes from pipes and fixtures, not the source water, so it varies home to home. The 90th percentile means 9 in 10 sampled homes were at or below it. More on lead.
Violations
Health-based violations mean a contaminant exceeded a limit or a required treatment step was missed. Monitoring and reporting violations mean required tests or reports were late or missing, so the water's quality during that time is unknown. The total includes every violation in EPA's records, most of them paperwork.
Earlier EPA testing (2013–2020)
| Contaminant | Highest | Guideline |
|---|---|---|
| Manganese | 2.95 ppb | 300 ppb |
| Vanadium | 0.3 ppb | 21 ppb |
| Chlorate | 750 ppb | 210 ppb |
| Strontium | 0.13 ppm | 1.5 ppm |
| Chromium-6 | 0.17 ppb | – |
Where it serves
Greensboro
ZIP codes the system reported serving: 27214, 27301, 27377, 27401, 27402, 27406, 27407, 27408, 27409, 27410
Nearby utilities
- Town of Jamestown Jamestown · 9 mi · PFAS above limit
- City of High Point High Point · 12 mi · PFAS above limit
- City of Archdale Archdale · 15 mi · PFAS above limit
- Town of Gibsonville Gibsonville · 16 mi · PFAS above limit
- Town of Elon Elon · 18 mi · PFAS above limit
- City of Randleman Randleman · 19 mi · PFAS above limit
Questions
Is Greensboro tap water safe to drink?
Most of Greensboro gets its water from City of Greensboro. City of Greensboro has no health-based violations since 2016. EPA testing found PFAS above the 2024 federal limits, which systems must meet by 2029. Federal data can't tell you about your own pipes: lead comes from service lines and plumbing, so test your tap if your home was built before 1986. For the official word, read the utility's annual Consumer Confidence Report.
Does Greensboro water have PFAS?
Yes. EPA's 2023–2025 testing of City of Greensboro found 9 PFAS at least once. The highest entry-point averages were above the federal limit for PFOS: PFOS 27.4 ppt (limit 4 ppt for PFOA and PFOS, 10 ppt for the others).
What is the lead level in Greensboro water?
The most recent 90th-percentile lead result for City of Greensboro is 0 ppb, for the period ending Dec 2025. The federal action level is 15 ppb, falling to 10 ppb in November 2027. The 90th percentile means 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below this number. Individual homes can be higher.
Check these numbers yourself
Every figure on this page comes from public EPA records. You don't have to take our word for it:
- EPA's own report for NC0241010: violations, enforcement and inspections, straight from EPA.
- EPA UCMR 5 data: the PFAS and lithium results (search the file for PWSID NC0241010).
- EPA SDWIS download: the lead results, population and violation records we use.
- City of Greensboro's 2026 water quality report (PDF): the utility's own annual report, including contaminants EPA's national database doesn't carry (link checked Nov 14, 2026). Phone: (336) 373-4601.
- City of Greensboro website
Found something that doesn't match? Tell us and we'll check it against EPA's records. How we check our data.
Source: U.S. EPA drinking water records and PFAS testing (UCMR 5). How we read the data.