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How deep are water wells in May, Texas?

Only 22 home water wells in and around May, Texas have been reported since 2001, so treat this as a rough guide: the middle half are 82 to 140 feet deep (median 115 ft). All (100%) are completed in the Trinity, which the state maps here as one undivided unit, the Antlers Formation. Estimated cost of a complete well at the median depth: $5,500 to $13,500.

This page is based on fewer than 30 wells, so it is kept out of search engines until more reports come in. Treat every figure as a rough guide.

Updated every day from Texas Water Development Board driller reports. Last update: November 11, 2026, using the state file of November 10, 2026.

See the wells and layers at an exact pointBrown County
What is under May, TexasUnderground column at the center of May: median well 115 ft, middle half 82 to 140 ft, water at 53 ft, and the layers of the state's model with their thickness.Lower Trinity: 0 to 148 ftLower TrinityBelow the base of the Trinity050100150200250ftGround level · 1,646 ft above sea levelMedian well: 115 ftWater standing in the well from 53 ftWater level53 ftMiddle half82–140 ftMedian well115 ft

Under May, Brown County

Layers at the center of May from TWDB's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model (quarter mile cells, summarized here to about 1.3 miles), at true depth scale. The well and the water are the median of 22 real wells.

Home wells in and around May

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.

See underground

Well depth (ft)

  • <100
  • 100
  • 200
  • 300
  • 400
  • 600
  • 800+

Dashed line: May and about 2 miles around it

Key figures

Typical depth (middle half)
82 to 140 feet
Median depth
115 feet
Deepest 10% are past
213 feet
Water level (median)
53 feet
20 wells
Yield (median)
18 gpm
20 wells, gallons per minute
Wells used
22
Since 2001
Inside the city limits
5
the rest within 2 miles
All years on file
22
median 115 ft, since 2002
Confidence
Few wells (10 to 29)

When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 53 feet below the surface (20 wells).

What is under May, TexasUnderground column at the center of May: median well 115 ft, middle half 82 to 140 ft, water at 53 ft, and the layers of the state's model with their thickness.Lower Trinity: 0 to 148 ftLower TrinityBelow the base of the Trinity050100150200250ftGround level · 1,646 ft above sea levelMedian well: 115 ftWater standing in the well from 53 ftWater level53 ftMiddle half82–140 ftMedian well115 ft
Layers at the center of May from TWDB's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model (quarter mile cells, summarized here to about 1.3 miles), at true depth scale. The well and the water are the median of 22 real wells.

Which formation do wells in May draw from?

All (100%) are completed in the Trinity, which the state maps here as one undivided unit, the Antlers Formation.

Layer (state's model)ShareWellsTypical depth (ft)
Lower TrinityTwin Mountains and Travis Peak100%2188–140

Only 24% of these wells have the water-bearing interval on their report (reports before about 2012 rarely do). For the others we use the bottom of the hole, which tends to read one layer deeper than where the water actually comes from.

The layers under the center of May

From the state's model, at 1,646 feet above sea level. These are the model's depths at that one point, not those of any particular lot.

Depths in feet below ground.
Layer (state's model)Top (ft)Bottom (ft)Thickness (ft)
Lower Trinitysandstone with shale and limestone0148148

Depth over time

Too few wells per period in and around May to compare depth over time. Since 2002, 22 home wells have been reported, with a median of 115 feet.

PeriodMedian depth (ft)Wells
2001–2005under 10 wells5
2006–2010under 10 wells7
2011–2015under 10 wells4
2016–2020under 10 wells1
2021–2025under 10 wells5

What a well costs in May

At the median depth for May (115 feet), a complete home well would cost roughly $5,500 to $13,500: $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 (82 to 140 feet) the range runs from $4,500 to $15,000. 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

Nearby places

Median depth of home wells in each place.

All Texas cities and towns

Common questions

How deep do you have to drill a well in May, Texas?

Only 22 home water wells in and around May, Texas have been reported since 2001, so treat this as a rough guide: the middle half are 82 to 140 feet deep (median 115 ft). One in ten goes past 213 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 May draw from?

All (100%) are completed in the Trinity, which the state maps here as one undivided unit, the Antlers Formation. This is an estimate from the state's regional model, not a survey of the lot.

How much does a water well cost in May?

At the median depth (115 feet), a complete well would cost roughly $5,500 to $13,500, 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 May?

When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 53 feet below the surface (20 wells). The level moves with drought and from one well to the next.

Do I need a permit to drill a well in May?

In the state's boundary file (current as of November 2019) no groundwater conservation district covers May. Districts created or enlarged since then are missing from that file, so confirm with the county or TWDB before drilling. Anywhere in Texas the well must be drilled by a licensed driller, who files the report with the state.

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.

Only 24% of these wells have the water-bearing interval on their report (reports before about 2012 rarely do). For the others we use the bottom of the hole, which tends to read one layer deeper than where the water actually comes from.

How well it works: In 7,977 wells in the area of the state's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model (North and Central Texas) where the State of Texas recorded the aquifer, our estimate of the formation the well draws from names the same layer of the state's model in about 74% of them, and that layer or the one next to it in at least 95%; among the 3,130 of those wells that the state places in a Trinity layer (Paluxy to Hosston) it is about 56%.

  • The layers come from the Texas Water Development Board's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model, with quarter mile cells, summarized here to about 1.3 miles. It is a regional model, not a survey of any lot: between one model point and the next, the real depth of each layer can differ.
  • In this model every layer is at least 30 feet thick, even where the real rock is thinner or missing. Thin layers and the edges of the model are approximate.
  • Inside the Trinity this atlas does not name single model layers: it groups the Paluxy and Glen Rose (upper Trinity) and groups the Hensell, Pearsall and Hosston (lower Trinity, Twin Mountains and Travis Peak), because the check against the state's codes shows the method cannot separate them reliably.
  • In this area, north and west of Fort Worth, the state maps the Trinity as one undivided unit, the Antlers Formation. The model cuts it into layers by depth; the split between upper and lower Trinity shown here is approximate, and the depth ranges are the solid part.
  • "Near or below the base of the Trinity" means the well reaches the bottom of the model or passes it, often by tens of feet. Older rock that the model does not include may lie there.
  • 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/may-tx. License CC BY 4.0. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.24126380.

Sources