How hard is the water in Albany, NY?

Tap water hardness
75mg/L
4.4gpg
Moderately hard

Reported by Albany City · August 2025

NY typical
31 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Softener for 3 people
24k grain
Data
Utility report

The water in Albany carries roughly 75 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 4.4 grains per gallon. That is moderately hard water. The number comes from Albany City, dated August 2025.

Albany on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+NY typical 31Kingston: 19 mg/LKingston 19Troy: 59 mg/LTroy 59Westmere: 84 mg/LWestmere 84Saratoga Springs: 88 mg/LSaratoga Springs 88Poughkeepsie: 88 mg/LPoughkeepsie 88Utica: 100 mg/LUtica 100Wappingers Falls: 113 mg/LWappingers Falls 113Country Knolls: 123 mg/LCountry Knolls 123Schenectady: 190 mg/LSchenectady 190Niskayuna: 211 mg/LNiskayuna 211Albany 75mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+NY 31Troy: 59 mg/LTroy 59Westmere: 84 mg/LWestmere 84Saratoga Springs: 88 mg/LSaratoga S. 88Country Knolls: 123 mg/LCountry Kn. 123Schenectady: 190 mg/LSchenectady 190Niskayuna: 211 mg/LNiskayuna 21175 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Albany sits 44 mg/L above the typical New York figure of 31. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 2 have softer water and 8 have harder. The range nearby runs from 19 mg/L in Kingston to 211 in Niskayuna.

What 75 mg/L means at home

You may see faint white spots on glasses and shower doors after the water dries.

Scale builds up slowly. A kettle or coffee maker needs descaling now and then, maybe every few months.

Hardness is not a health problem, and EPA sets no limit for it. It is a matter of scale and soap.

What to do about it

Optional. Plenty of households at this level live with it and descale the kettle now and then.

Water softener

Worth a look if spots on glass bother you, or if your tankless water heater manual asks for softer water.

Carbon filter

Improves taste and removes chlorine. It leaves calcium and magnesium in place.

Softener size for Albany

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 4.4 gpg = 990 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 24 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for Albany's water system

Albany City · PWSID NY0100189

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 98,000 people from surface water.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
1
Open now
0

Health-based means a contaminant above its legal limit or a missed treatment step. Monitoring and reporting violations are late or missing tests and notices. Source: EPA ECHO, 2026Q3 export, violations with periods starting 2016 or later. Full EPA record.

Questions

Is Albany water hard?

Somewhat. It measures about 75 mg/L (4.4 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.

What is the water hardness in Albany in grains per gallon?

About 4.4 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 75 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 4.4.

What size water softener do I need in Albany?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 4.4 gpg works out to about 990 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 24 days.

Has the Albany water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Albany City since 2016. There were also 1 monitoring or reporting violation, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 149 cities in New York

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, August 26, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.