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How deep are water wells in Odessa, Texas?

Home water wells in and around Odessa, Texas are typically 110 to 150 feet deep (median 128 ft, 922 wells drilled in the last 10 years). Most draw from the Edwards-Trinity (Plateau) Aquifer (64%), and 23% draw from the Ogallala Aquifer, according to the state's High Plains Aquifer System model (TWDB). Estimated cost of a complete well at the median depth: $5,500 to $14,000.

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 pointEctor County
What is under Odessa, TexasUnderground column at the center of Odessa: median well 128 ft, middle half 110 to 150 ft, water at 58 ft, and the layers of the state's model with their thickness.Ogallala: 0 to 136 ftOgallalaEdwards-Trinity (Plateau): 136 to 167 ftEdwards-Trinity (Plat…Dockum: 167 to 1,408 ftDockumcontinues to 1,408 ft050100150200250ftGround level · 2,938 ft above sea levelMedian well: 128 ftWater standing in the well from 58 ftWater level58 ftMiddle half110–150 ftMedian well128 ft

Under Odessa, Ector County

Layers at the center of Odessa 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 922 real wells.

Home wells in and around Odessa

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: Odessa and about 2 miles around it

Key figures

Typical depth (middle half)
110 to 150 feet
Median depth
128 feet
Deepest 10% are past
190 feet
Water level (median)
58 feet
68 wells
Yield (median)
20 gpm
697 wells, gallons per minute
Wells used
922
In the last 10 years
Inside the city limits
1,228
the rest within 2 miles
All years on file
3,180
median 127 ft, since 2001
Confidence
Standard (30 or more wells)

When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 58 feet below the surface (68 wells).

What is under Odessa, TexasUnderground column at the center of Odessa: median well 128 ft, middle half 110 to 150 ft, water at 58 ft, and the layers of the state's model with their thickness.Ogallala: 0 to 136 ftOgallalaEdwards-Trinity (Plateau): 136 to 167 ftEdwards-Trinity (Plat…Dockum: 167 to 1,408 ftDockumcontinues to 1,408 ft050100150200250ftGround level · 2,938 ft above sea levelMedian well: 128 ftWater standing in the well from 58 ftWater level58 ftMiddle half110–150 ftMedian well128 ft
Layers at the center of Odessa 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 922 real wells.

Which formation do wells in Odessa draw from?

Most draw from the Edwards-Trinity (Plateau) Aquifer (64%), and 23% draw from the Ogallala Aquifer, according to the state's High Plains Aquifer System model (TWDB).

Only 54% bottom out inside the Edwards-Trinity (Plateau) Aquifer: the rest keep going deeper but take their water from that layer.

Layer (state's model)ShareWellsTypical depth (ft)
Edwards-Trinity (Plateau)64%593110–158
Ogallala23%207110–140
Dockumat or just below the base of the Ogallala13%122120–162

For 89% of these wells the report says where the water enters and we use the middle of that interval; for the rest we use the bottom of the hole, which tends to read one layer too deep.

The layers under the center of Odessa

From the state's model, at 2,938 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)
Ogallalasand, gravel, silt and caliche0136136
Edwards-Trinity (Plateau)sand, sandstone and limestone13616731
Dockumred mudstone, sandstone and conglomerate1671,4081,241

Depth over time

Home well depth in and around Odessa has not changed meaningfully in 20 years: the median was 124 feet in 2003 to 2007 and 125 feet in 2021 to 2025 (a difference under 10% or within the margin of error).

PeriodMedian depth (ft)Wells
2001–2005125298
2006–2010124585
2011–20151281,311
2016–2020130525
2021–2025125404
202612557

What a well costs in Odessa

At the median depth for Odessa (128 feet), a complete home well would cost roughly $5,500 to $14,000: $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 (110 to 150 feet) the range runs from $5,500 to $15,500. 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

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 Odessa, Texas?

Home water wells in and around Odessa, Texas are typically 110 to 150 feet deep (median 128 ft, 922 wells drilled in the last 10 years). One in ten goes past 190 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 Odessa draw from?

Most draw from the Edwards-Trinity (Plateau) Aquifer (64%), and 23% draw from the Ogallala 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 Odessa?

At the median depth (128 feet), a complete well would cost roughly $5,500 to $14,000, 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 Odessa?

When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 58 feet below the surface (68 wells). The level moves with drought and from one well to the next.

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

In the state's boundary file (current as of November 2019) no groundwater conservation district covers Odessa. 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.

For 89% of these wells the report says where the water enters and we use the middle of that interval; for the rest we use the bottom of the hole, which tends to read one layer too deep.

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/odessa-tx. License CC BY 4.0. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.24126380.

Sources