How deep are water wells in Hempstead, Texas?
Home water wells in and around Hempstead, Texas are typically 220 to 290 feet deep (median 255 ft, 118 wells drilled in the last 10 years). Nearly all draw from the Evangeline Aquifer (97%), according to the state's northern Gulf Coast Aquifer model (TWDB). The split between the Chicot and the Evangeline is approximate. New wells run about 17% deeper than 20 years ago (median 218 ft in 2003 to 2007, 255 ft in 2021 to 2025). Estimated cost of a complete well at the median depth: $9,000 to $22,000.
Updated every day from Texas Water Development Board driller reports. Last update: November 11, 2026, using the state file of November 10, 2026.
Under Hempstead, Waller County
Layers at the center of Hempstead from TWDB's northern Gulf Coast Aquifer model (cells of about 0.62 mile (1 km)), at true depth scale. The well and the water are the median of 118 real wells.
Digging in…
Home wells in and around Hempstead
Each dot is a home well from a state driller report, colored by depth. Tap one for its details and official report. Tap an empty spot to see what is under that point.
Well depth (ft)
- <100
- 100
- 200
- 300
- 400
- 600
- 800+
Dashed line: Hempstead and about 2 miles around it
Green: aquifer mapped by the state
Key figures
- Typical depth (middle half)
- 220 to 290 feet
- Median depth
- 255 feet
- Deepest 10% are past
- 316 feet
- Water level (median)
- 100 feet
- 114 wells
- Yield (median)
- 45 gpm
- 106 wells, gallons per minute
- Wells used
- 118
- In the last 10 years
- Inside the city limits
- 17
- the rest within 2 miles
- All years on file
- 302
- median 250 ft, since 2000
- Confidence
- Standard (30 or more wells)
When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 100 feet below the surface (114 wells), well above the bottom: the typical well holds about 155 feet of water.
Which formation do wells in Hempstead draw from?
Nearly all draw from the Evangeline Aquifer (97%), according to the state's northern Gulf Coast Aquifer model (TWDB). The line between the Chicot and the Evangeline is drawn differently by different studies, so read that split as approximate: of the wells the state records in the Evangeline, our method finds the Evangeline for only about 51% and the Chicot for most of the rest.
| Layer (state's model) | Share | Wells | Typical depth (ft) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Evangeline | 97% | 114 | 225–294 |
| Chicot | 3% | 4 | — |
For 94% of these wells the report says where the water enters (the screen or the open hole), and we use the middle of that interval.
The layers under the center of Hempstead
From the state's model, at 253 feet above sea level. These are the model's depths at that one point, not those of any particular lot.
| Layer (state's model) | Top (ft) | Bottom (ft) | Thickness (ft) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicotsand, silt and clay | 0 | 119 | 119 |
| Evangelinesand and clay | 119 | 852 | 734 |
| Jasper, Catahoula and Burkevillesand, sandstone, clay and volcanic tuff | 852 | 3,099 | 2,246 |
Depth over time
New home wells in and around Hempstead are deeper than 20 years ago: the median went from 218 feet (2003 to 2007) to 255 feet (2021 to 2025), 17% more. Deeper wells do not always mean the water dropped: a driller may be going for another layer, better water or more reserve.
| Period | Median depth (ft) | Wells |
|---|---|---|
| 2001–2005 | 232 | 67 |
| 2006–2010 | 228 | 60 |
| 2011–2015 | 245 | 47 |
| 2016–2020 | 255 | 54 |
| 2021–2025 | 255 | 67 |
| 2026 | under 10 wells | 3 |
What a well costs in Hempstead
At the median depth for Hempstead (255 feet), a complete home well would cost roughly $9,000 to $22,000: $25 to $60 per foot for drilling, casing and seal, plus $2,500 to $6,500 for the pump, pressure tank, controls and hookup at the well. Across the whole middle half of depths (220 to 290 feet) the range runs from $8,000 to $24,000. This is TerraFunded's estimate from published Texas prices, not a quote, and it leaves out trenching and the line to the house. Get prices from at least two licensed drillers.
Where it sits
- Wells in Waller County
- Bluebonnet Groundwater Conservation District (groundwater district)
- City · 30.1007, -96.0777
Nearby places
Median depth of home wells in each place.
- Pine Island 240 ft
- Prairie View 244 ft
- Waller 240 ft
- Bellville 240 ft
- Todd Mission 250 ft
- Pinebrook 340 ft
Common questions
How deep do you have to drill a well in Hempstead, Texas?
Home water wells in and around Hempstead, Texas are typically 220 to 290 feet deep (median 255 ft, 118 wells drilled in the last 10 years). One in ten goes past 316 feet. The depth a given tract needs depends on where it sits and what layers the driller hits.
What aquifer or formation do wells in Hempstead draw from?
Nearly all draw from the Evangeline Aquifer (97%), according to the state's northern Gulf Coast Aquifer model (TWDB). The line between the Chicot and the Evangeline is drawn differently by different studies, so read that split as approximate: of the wells the state records in the Evangeline, our method finds the Evangeline for only about 51% and the Chicot for most of the rest. This is an estimate from the state's regional model, not a survey of the lot.
How much does a water well cost in Hempstead?
At the median depth (255 feet), a complete well would cost roughly $9,000 to $22,000, by TerraFunded's estimate from published Texas driller prices. The real price comes from a licensed driller's quote.
How deep is the water in Hempstead?
When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 100 feet below the surface (114 wells), well above the bottom: the typical well holds about 155 feet of water. The level moves with drought and from one well to the next.
Do I need a permit to drill a well in Hempstead?
Hempstead is inside the Bluebonnet Groundwater Conservation District. Groundwater conservation districts in Texas can require registering or permitting a new well, keeping set distances from property lines and other wells, and paying fees. Rules differ from district to district: ask the district before drilling.
How these numbers are made
We count new and replacement domestic (home) wells whose coordinates fall inside the place boundary or within 2 miles of it. We use the last 10 years when there are at least 30 wells; otherwise all since 2001. The median is the middle well and the middle half runs from the 25th to the 75th percentile.
To tell which layer a well draws from, we take the ground elevation at its location, subtract the depth of the interval where water enters (or the bottom of the hole when the report does not give one) and see which layer of the state's model that point falls in.
For 94% of these wells the report says where the water enters (the screen or the open hole), and we use the middle of that interval.
How well it works: In 14,333 wells in the area of the state's northern Gulf Coast Aquifer model (Houston and Southeast Texas) where the State of Texas recorded the aquifer, the formation our method says the well draws from (as grouped on these pages) is the one the state recorded in about 83% of them, and that formation or the one next to it in at least 99%; of the 3,578 of those wells that the state records in the Evangeline, it names the Evangeline for about 51% and the Chicot for most of the rest.
- The layers come from the Texas Water Development Board's northern Gulf Coast Aquifer model, with cells of about 0.62 mile (1 km). It is a regional model, not a survey of any lot.
- The state's model has cells of about 3,277 ft (1 km, 0.62 mile); we read it on a grid of about 0.6 by 0.7 miles. It is not a survey of any lot, so we give ranges.
- Figures go by three groups: Chicot, Evangeline, and Jasper and Catahoula with the Burkeville. The state's records cannot tell the Burkeville, the Jasper and the Catahoula apart at a well (alone, the Burkeville matched 33% and the Catahoula 50%), so they are never named one by one as the formation of a well or a place.
- The line between the Chicot and the Evangeline is drawn differently by different studies. The state's records put about half of their Evangeline wells in what the model draws as the Chicot, mostly deeper wells in Harris, Montgomery, Waller, Liberty and Austin counties. Where both appear, the split is approximate.
- "Near or below the base" means the well ends near or below the base of the Gulf Coast Aquifer (under the Catahoula: Jackson Group, Yegua and older). It is 1.3% of home wells; half of them end within about 85 ft of the base. That is not an error: the model simply ends there.
- The model's top layer is a uniform 49 ft slab for the water table zone, not a rock unit; we merge it into the unit beneath. The model also covers Colorado, Lavaca, Fayette, Wharton and Matagorda counties (outside Groundwater Management Area 14), with the same framework. Texas part only.
- We never use the model's water levels. The water level on this page is the one each driller measured when the well was finished.
These are depths of real wells drilled nearby, not a promise about any property. Groundwater can change over short distances and with drought. A licensed water well driller can tell you what to expect on a specific tract.
Read the full methodology · Download the data (CSV, CC BY 4.0)
How to cite
TerraFunded (2026). Texas Well Atlas: Underground. From Texas Water Development Board driller reports and groundwater availability models (data as of November 10, 2026). https://terrafunded.com/wells/places/hempstead-tx. License CC BY 4.0. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.24126380.
Sources
- Submitted Driller's Reports database, Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) (file of November 10, 2026)
- Northern Portion of the Gulf Coast Aquifer System Groundwater Availability Model for Groundwater Management Area 14 Joint Planning (GMA 14 Model). Keester, M.R., Webster, P., Beach, J., Drabek, C., and Chen, Y.H. (KT Groundwater and Advanced Groundwater Solutions), for Groundwater Management Area 14, in cooperation with Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District; layer elevations from GULF-2023 (Ellis and others, 2023, U.S. Geological Survey), 2025, GAM v4.1. TWDB groundwater availability model.
- Texas place boundaries, U.S. Census Bureau (2023 cartographic boundary file)
- Ground elevation: Terrain Tiles (Mapzen), Registry of Open Data on AWS
- TWDB well report viewer (each well's official report)
