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Private wells in North Carolina: labs, drillers and who to call
One place for North Carolina well owners, buyers and the pros who work with them: the state's private well program, how to find a state-certified lab and a licensed well driller, and every North Carolina page on this site. Every fact links to its source.
North Carolina at a glance
- Who's on a well: USGS estimates about 2,408,000 people in North Carolina supplied their own household water in 2015, about 24% of the state's population. Most of them use private wells.1
- Who tests: EPA rules for public water systems don't apply to private wells, so testing is up to the owner. CDC says to test at least once a year for total coliform bacteria, nitrates, total dissolved solids and pH, use a state-certified lab, and ask your health department what else to test for where you live.2
- Selling or buying a home: we haven't reviewed North Carolina's home-sale testing or disclosure rules yet, so we don't say whether a test is required. Ask your agent or attorney and the state program below, and see the state table in our homebuyer's guide.
Who to contact
- State private well information: NCDHHS Division of Public Health: Private Wells.3
- Licensed well drillers and pump installers: NC Division of Public Health: Find a North Carolina Certified Well Contractor. Check a contractor's license before you hire.
- State-certified labs: the North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health certifies labs for drinking water testing. Find a certified drinking water lab (search, drinking water). Many certified labs are city or industry labs that only test their own samples, so call before you send a sample.4
- Local help: CDC says local or state health or environmental departments often test for nitrates and coliform bacteria, should have a list of certified labs, and can help you understand your results.2
- EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline: (800) 426-4791.2
County pages
- Well water testing in Union County, NCArsenic in Union County wells (Carolina Slate Belt), Union County Environmental Health's well testing and permits, the county's recommended testing schedule, and state data, with sources.
Find a pro in North Carolina
See the North Carolina directory: licensed well drillers, pump installers and certified labs taken only from official state lists, with the source for each entry.
Guides for North Carolina well owners
- Buying a home with a well (offer contingencies, which tests to order, and home-sale rules by state)
- Who regulates private wells?
- How often to test a private well
- Best way to test well water
- How to read your well water test results
- Arsenic in well water, nitrate, uranium and radon
- Getting a new well drilled
- Shock chlorinating a well
- For professionals: selling a home with a well (realtors) and homes with a well (home inspectors)
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Dieter, C.A., and others, 2018, Estimated Use of Water in the United States County-Level Data for 2015 (ver. 2.0), U.S. Geological Survey data release (state totals of the county self-supplied domestic population). https://doi.org/10.5066/F7TB15V5 ↩
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CDC, "Guidelines for Testing Well Water" (July 1, 2024). https://www.cdc.gov/drinking-water/safety/guidelines-for-testing-well-water.html ↩↩↩
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U.S. EPA, "Private Drinking Water Well Programs in Your State" (state links; we updated links that had moved). https://www.epa.gov/privatewells/private-drinking-water-well-programs-your-state ↩
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U.S. EPA, "State Certification Programs Certify Laboratories to Conduct Drinking Water Analyses" (August 2025). https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-03/state-cert-programs-certify-labs-to-conduct-drinking-water-analyses.pdf ↩