How deep are water wells in Levelland, Texas?
Home water wells in and around Levelland, Texas are typically 159 to 214 feet deep (median 183 ft, 55 wells drilled in the last 10 years). Most draw from the Ogallala Aquifer (80%), and 20% draw from the Edwards-Trinity (High Plains) Aquifer, according to the state's High Plains Aquifer System model (TWDB). New wells run about 17% shallower than 20 years ago (median 205 ft in 2003 to 2007, 171 ft in 2021 to 2025). Estimated cost of a complete well at the median depth: $7,000 to $17,500.
Updated every day from Texas Water Development Board driller reports. Last update: November 11, 2026, using the state file of November 10, 2026.
Under Levelland, Hockley County
Layers at the center of Levelland from TWDB's High Plains Aquifer System model (half mile cells, read here on a grid of about 1.2 by 1.4 miles), at true depth scale. The well and the water are the median of 55 real wells.
Digging in…
Home wells in and around Levelland
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: Levelland and about 2 miles around it
Green: aquifer mapped by the state
Key figures
- Typical depth (middle half)
- 159 to 214 feet
- Median depth
- 183 feet
- Deepest 10% are past
- 244 feet
- Wells used
- 55
- In the last 10 years
- Inside the city limits
- 13
- the rest within 2 miles
- All years on file
- 160
- median 195 ft, since 2002
- Confidence
- Standard (30 or more wells)
Which formation do wells in Levelland draw from?
Most draw from the Ogallala Aquifer (80%), and 20% draw from the Edwards-Trinity (High Plains) Aquifer, according to the state's High Plains Aquifer System model (TWDB).
The bottom of the hole tells a different story: 78% reach the Edwards-Trinity (High Plains) Aquifer, although only 20% take their water from it. Many drillers go past the producing layer to leave a reserve.
| Layer (state's model) | Share | Wells | Typical depth (ft) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ogallala | 80% | 44 | 154–205 |
| Edwards-Trinity (High Plains) | 20% | 11 | 188–236 |
For 96% 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 Levelland
From the state's model, at 3,509 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ogallalasand, gravel, silt and caliche | 0 | 224 | 224 |
| Edwards-Trinity (High Plains)sand, sandstone and limestone | 224 | 352 | 128 |
| Dockumred mudstone, sandstone and conglomerate | 352 | 2,000 | 1,648 |
Depth over time
New home wells in and around Levelland are shallower than 20 years ago: the median went from 205 feet (2003 to 2007) to 171 feet (2021 to 2025), 17% less. That usually happens when new homes go up in a different area or drillers switch layers.
| Period | Median depth (ft) | Wells |
|---|---|---|
| 2001–2005 | 195 | 22 |
| 2006–2010 | 212 | 44 |
| 2011–2015 | 202 | 36 |
| 2016–2020 | 206 | 16 |
| 2021–2025 | 171 | 40 |
| 2026 | under 10 wells | 2 |
What a well costs in Levelland
At the median depth for Levelland (183 feet), a complete home well would cost roughly $7,000 to $17,500: $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 (159 to 214 feet) the range runs from $6,500 to $19,500. 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 Hockley County
- High Plains Underground Water Conservation District No. 1 (groundwater district)
- City · 33.5806, -102.3636
Nearby places
Median depth of home wells in each place.
- Opdyke West 160 ft
- Whitharral 130 ft
- Sundown 186 ft
- Smyer 130 ft
- Whiteface 218 ft
- Ropesville 164 ft
Common questions
How deep do you have to drill a well in Levelland, Texas?
Home water wells in and around Levelland, Texas are typically 159 to 214 feet deep (median 183 ft, 55 wells drilled in the last 10 years). One in ten goes past 244 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 Levelland draw from?
Most draw from the Ogallala Aquifer (80%), and 20% draw from the Edwards-Trinity (High Plains) Aquifer, according to the state's High Plains Aquifer System model (TWDB). This is an estimate from the state's regional model, not a survey of the lot.
How much does a water well cost in Levelland?
At the median depth (183 feet), a complete well would cost roughly $7,000 to $17,500, by TerraFunded's estimate from published Texas driller prices. The real price comes from a licensed driller's quote.
Do I need a permit to drill a well in Levelland?
Levelland is inside the High Plains Underground Water Conservation District No. 1. 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 96% 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 22,814 wells in the Texas part of the state's High Plains Aquifer System model (the Panhandle, the South Plains and the Permian Basin) 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 75% of them; when it names the Dockum (4,542 wells), the state's record agrees only about 33% of the time, and most of the others are recorded as Ogallala wells.
- The layers come from the Texas Water Development Board's High Plains Aquifer System model, with half mile cells, read here on a grid of about 1.2 by 1.4 miles. It is a regional model, not a survey of any lot.
- The state's model has half mile cells; we read it on a grid of about 1.2 by 1.4 miles, Texas part only. Layers from version 1.01 (2015); the 2025 extension (1.02) did not change them. It is not a survey of any lot, so we give ranges.
- Figures go by four groups: Ogallala; Pecos Valley; Edwards-Trinity and Rita Blanca (Cretaceous rock under the Ogallala; the Rita Blanca alone matched the state 19%); Dockum (upper and lower together: the state's codes almost never say which). The Edwards-Trinity group joins three aquifers in different places (High Plains around Lubbock, Plateau around Midland and Odessa, Rita Blanca in Dallam and Hartley): county and place pages name the local one where they can.
- Dockum: when our method names the Dockum, the state's record agrees only 33% of the time over all years (61% for wells with a screened interval, which is 93% of home wells of the last 10 years); most of the rest are recorded as Ogallala wells. The median well we put in the Dockum ends about 18 ft under the base of the Ogallala as the model draws it. So these pages say "at or just below the base of the Ogallala, in the top of the Dockum", never a certain formation. The state's own 2025 report on this model says depth alone overstates the upper Dockum.
- "Near or below the base" means the well ends near or below the base of the Dockum, or of the Ogallala where there is no Dockum (Permian red beds; Gray, Carson, Donley, Moore and north Potter counties). Half of these wells end within about 51 ft of the base, and the state usually records them as Ogallala or Dockum wells. That is not an error: the model simply ends there.
- For old wells without a screened interval (bottom of the hole) the method is only a little better than always saying Ogallala (65% against 58%); with an interval it is 89% against 80%. Figures over all years carry that weakness; last 10 years figures rest almost entirely on intervals.
- 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/levelland-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)
- Numerical Model Report for the High Plains Aquifer System Groundwater Availability Model. Deeds, N.E., and Jigmond, M. (INTERA Incorporated), for the Texas Water Development Board; extension through 2020 by Cawthon, T., and Wade, S. (TWDB, 2025), 2015, GAM v1.01 (layers unchanged in the 2025 extension, version 1.02). 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)
