Bellevue, WA water hardness

Tap water hardness
34mg/L
2.0gpg
Soft

Reported by Bellevue City of · September 2025

WA typical
36 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Data
Utility report

The water in Bellevue carries roughly 34 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 2.0 grains per gallon. That is soft water. The number comes from Bellevue City of, dated September 2025.

Bellevue on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+WA typical 36Newcastle: 27 mg/LNewcastle 27East Renton Highlands: 30 mg/LEast Renton Highlands 30Kirkland: 34 mg/LKirkland 34Bryn Mawr-Skyway: 35 mg/LBryn Mawr-Skyway 35Mercer Island: 39 mg/LMercer Island 39Redmond: 39 mg/LRedmond 39Issaquah: 41 mg/LIssaquah 41Renton: 49 mg/LRenton 49Union Hill-Novelty Hill: 50 mg/LUnion Hill-Novelty Hill 50Sammamish: 62 mg/LSammamish 62Bellevue 34mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+WA 36Newcastle: 27 mg/LNewcastle 27Kirkland: 34 mg/LKirkland 34Mercer Island: 39 mg/LMercer Isl. 39Redmond: 39 mg/LRedmond 39Issaquah: 41 mg/LIssaquah 41Sammamish: 62 mg/LSammamish 6234 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

At 34 mg/L, Bellevue is close to the typical Washington figure of 36 mg/L. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 2 have softer water and 7 have harder. The range nearby runs from 27 mg/L in Newcastle to 62 in Sammamish.

What 34 mg/L means at home

Soap and shampoo lather with very little product. Kettles and showerheads stay mostly free of white crust.

Some people notice that soap feels slow to rinse off in soft water. That slippery feel is normal and harmless.

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

Nothing, as far as hardness goes. At 34 mg/L a softener would have almost nothing to remove.

Carbon filter

If the water tastes of chlorine, a pitcher or faucet carbon filter takes care of that. It does not change hardness.

EPA record for Bellevue's water system

Bellevue City of · PWSID WA5305575

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 321,349 people from surface water.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
0
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 Bellevue water hard?

No. It measures about 34 mg/L (2.0 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 2.0 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 34 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 2.0.

Has the Bellevue water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Bellevue City of since 2016.

Nearby cities

All 145 cities in Washington

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, September 22, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.