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How deep are water wells in South Houston, Texas?

Only 11 home water wells in and around South Houston, Texas have been reported since 2001, so treat this as a rough guide: the middle half are 234 to 360 feet deep (median 347 ft). All the wells the model covers are completed in the Chicot Aquifer, according to the state's northern Gulf Coast Aquifer model (TWDB). In this county the state records many of the deeper wells in the Evangeline, so read the Chicot as the most likely layer, not a certain one. Estimated cost of a complete well at the median depth: $11,000 to $27,500.

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 pointHarris County
What is under South Houston, TexasUnderground column at the center of South Houston: median well 347 ft, middle half 234 to 360 ft, water at 140 ft, and the layers of the state's model with their thickness.Chicot: 0 to 1,441 ftChicotcontinues to 7,988 ft0100200300400500ftGround level · 42 ft above sea levelMedian well: 347 ftWater standing in the well from 140 ftWater level140 ftMiddle half234–360 ftMedian well347 ft

Under South Houston, Harris County

Layers at the center of South Houston 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 11 real wells.

Home wells in and around South Houston

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: South Houston and about 2 miles around it

Key figures

Typical depth (middle half)
234 to 360 feet
Median depth
347 feet
Deepest 10% are past
385 feet
Water level (median)
140 feet
11 wells
Yield (median)
45 gpm
11 wells, gallons per minute
Wells used
11
Since 2001
Inside the city limits
0
the rest within 2 miles
All years on file
11
median 347 ft, since 2003
Confidence
Few wells (10 to 29)

When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 140 feet below the surface (11 wells), well above the bottom: the typical well holds about 207 feet of water.

What is under South Houston, TexasUnderground column at the center of South Houston: median well 347 ft, middle half 234 to 360 ft, water at 140 ft, and the layers of the state's model with their thickness.Chicot: 0 to 1,441 ftChicotcontinues to 7,988 ft0100200300400500ftGround level · 42 ft above sea levelMedian well: 347 ftWater standing in the well from 140 ftWater level140 ftMiddle half234–360 ftMedian well347 ft
Layers at the center of South Houston 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 11 real wells.

Which formation do wells in South Houston draw from?

All the wells the model covers are completed in the Chicot Aquifer, 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, and in this county the state's own records put many of the deeper wells that the model draws in the Chicot in the Evangeline. Read the Chicot as the most likely layer, not a certain one.

Layer (state's model)ShareWellsTypical depth (ft)
Chicot100%11234–360

Only 27% 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 South Houston

From the state's model, at 42 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)
Chicotsand, silt and clay01,4411,441
Evangelinesand and clay1,4412,6311,190
Jasper, Catahoula and Burkevillesand, sandstone, clay and volcanic tuff2,6317,9885,356

Depth over time

Too few wells per period in and around South Houston to compare depth over time. Since 2003, 11 home wells have been reported, with a median of 347 feet.

PeriodMedian depth (ft)Wells
2001–2005under 10 wells3
2006–2010under 10 wells4
2011–2015under 10 wells2
2016–2020under 10 wells1
2021–2025under 10 wells1

What a well costs in South Houston

At the median depth for South Houston (347 feet), a complete home well would cost roughly $11,000 to $27,500: $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 (234 to 360 feet) the range runs from $8,500 to $28,000. 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 South Houston, Texas?

Only 11 home water wells in and around South Houston, Texas have been reported since 2001, so treat this as a rough guide: the middle half are 234 to 360 feet deep (median 347 ft). One in ten goes past 385 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 South Houston draw from?

All the wells the model covers are completed in the Chicot Aquifer, 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, and in this county the state's own records put many of the deeper wells that the model draws in the Chicot in the Evangeline. Read the Chicot as the most likely layer, not a certain one. This is an estimate from the state's regional model, not a survey of the lot.

How much does a water well cost in South Houston?

At the median depth (347 feet), a complete well would cost roughly $11,000 to $27,500, 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 South Houston?

When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 140 feet below the surface (11 wells), well above the bottom: the typical well holds about 207 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 South Houston?

South Houston is inside the Harris-Galveston Subsidence 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.

Only 27% 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 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/south-houston-tx. License CC BY 4.0. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.24126380.

Sources