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Well casing cost per foot: $6–$10 for PVC, $20–$130 for steel

Well casing costs $6–$10 per foot for PVC and $20–$130 per foot for steel on the published prices we compiled, with most installed 6-inch steel quotes between $28 and $90. Across 24 states in our records, the casing runs about 65 percent of a well's total depth, so a 200 foot well carries about 130 feet of it.

1,2,3,4,5

Key figures

ItemFigure
PVC casing $6–$10 per ft1,6
Steel casing $20–$130 per ft2,1
Casing as share of depth (Median across 24 states with casing records) 65%5
Grouting $8–$14 per ft7

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Published casing prices

Each row is one driller's, contract's or agency's figure. Some quote casing installed and some the material alone, so read the notes.

Well casing prices per foot, published
SourceMaterialPer foot
Merrill Drilling (NC)Casing, unspecified$5–$20
This Old House, 2026PVC$6–$10
Southern California Well Service, 2026PVC$10–$20
Weeks Drilling (CA), 2026Steel$20–$45
Minnesota state contract, 20236-inch, code to black steel$28–$48
Florida DEP rate schedule, 20196-inch surface casing$40.10
USDA NRCS West Virginia, FY2026Steel, 100 ft or more$54.30
Wenatchee Well Pros (WA), 20266-inch steel, installed$55–$90
This Old House, 2026Galvanized or stainless steel$30–$130

The NRCS figure is a cost-share payment rate, not a full price, and the Florida figure is for environmental wells. Both are useful as public reference points.

Sources8,1,9,2,3,10,11,4

How much casing a well needs

Casing runs from the surface down through loose soil and into solid rock or a sealed layer. We measured the ratio from state well records: across the 24 states that report casing depth, the median casing is 65 percent of the median well depth. Our calculator uses that ratio where a county has no casing data of its own. Codes set floors too. Utah requires unperforated casing to at least 30 feet and a surface seal to at least 30 feet in most wells.

Sources5,12

Grouting is a separate line

The seal around the casing is often priced on its own. CS Garber in southeastern Pennsylvania lists grouting at $8–$14 per foot, and Boylan Water Well Service in Santa Fe prices casing and grouting together at $1,500–$4,000 per well.

Sources7,13

Common questions

Is casing included in the per-foot drilling price?

Sometimes. Boylan in New Mexico quotes $28–$65 per foot including PVC casing, while CS Garber quotes drilling plus 6-inch steel casing at $35–$55. Ask which a quote uses.

Related pages

For the cost of a finished well in your state, see our national cost table.

Sources

  1. Well Installation Cost , This Old House. Accessed November 9, 2026. Updated 03/30/2026
  2. Cost to Drill a Water Well in Northern California , Weeks Drilling & Pump Co. (Sebastopol, CA). Accessed November 8, 2026. Published 2026-04-30. Drilling $35-$130/ft; steel casing $20-$45/ft; pump and pressure tank $3,500-$9,000; permitting $500-$2,500.
  3. D-203(5) Statewide Drilling Services, Exhibit D Price Schedule (Thein Well Co., contract 226711) , Minnesota Office of State Procurement. Accessed November 8, 2026. 2023 state-contract unit rates from a licensed MN driller: 6-in borehole $30-$31/ft (mud rotary/auger), $75/ft air rotary in rock; 6-in casing $28/ft (code) to $48/ft (black steel); mobilization $1,000/project; 34-gal pressure tank installed $1,000, 62-gal $1,450; submersible pump 3/4-1 hp $1,250-$1,350 each; drop pipe $7/ft; pitless and lateral $2,000; trench $20/LF. Agency-buyer rates, not retail quotes.
  4. Well Drilling Cost in Washington: 2026 Price Guide , Wenatchee Well Pros (pump and water-system installer, Wenatchee, WA; does not drill). Accessed November 8, 2026. Published 2026-07-02. Soft formation $45-$65/ft; basalt $65-$95/ft; installed 6-inch steel casing $55-$90/ft; pump systems $4,500-$7,500 (200 ft) to $8,000-$12,000 (over 400 ft); mobilization $500-$2,500; trenching and hookup $1,500-$5,000; water testing $150-$400; 200-ft well complete $18,000-$25,000. Not a licensed driller; weaker evidence.
  5. Default casing share of well depth , Cost to Drill a Well. Accessed November 9, 2026. Median of state casing_p50 / depth_p50 across states that report casing. Used only where no local casing median exists.
  6. Well Drilling Cost , Bob Vila. Accessed November 8, 2026. Published 2023-03-30. Residential $15-$30/ft; PVC casing $6-$10/ft; steel casing $33-$130/ft; pump $300-$2,000; pressure tank $100-$700; Oklahoma $20-$40/ft; Florida $15-$30/ft. Corroboration only.
  7. Well Drilling Cost in Bucks County, PA (2026 Guide) , CS Garber & Sons, Inc. (southeastern PA). Accessed November 8, 2026. Published 2026-02-04. Drilling plus 6-inch steel casing $35-$55/ft; mobilization $750-$1,500; grouting $8-$14/ft; submersible pump install (1/2-1 hp, complete) $3,500-$6,500; pressure tank $900-$1,800 installed; yield test and water sample $250-$500; turnkey $12,000-$22,000.
  8. How much does it cost to drill a well? , Merrill Drilling & Water Systems (Penrose, NC). Accessed November 8, 2026. Undated (site 2023; images 2018). Drilling about $10/ft low end up to $30/ft; casing $5-$20/ft; permits $200-$500 residential; drilling alone from $2,000.
  9. Cost to Drill a Well in California 2026 , Southern California Well Service (San Diego / Riverside / San Bernardino, CA; lic. 1086994). Accessed November 8, 2026. Templated marketing page; weaker. Soft $25-$50/ft, mixed $40-$70/ft, hard rock $50-$100+/ft; PVC casing $10-$20/ft, steel $25-$50/ft; remote mobilization $1,500-$5,000; San Diego permit $500-$1,500; plumbing to house $1,000-$3,000; electrical $500-$1,500; testing $200-$500.
  10. Low-Scored Site Initiative Drilling Rate Schedule , Florida DEP, Division of Waste Management, Petroleum Restoration Program. Accessed November 8, 2026. 2019 schedule. Mobilization roundtrip $560.78; 6-in surface casing $40.10/ft; 4-in well installation $33.34-$35.67/ft. Environmental wells; mobilization reference only.
  11. EQIP Fiscal Year 2026 Payment Schedule, West Virginia , USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Accessed November 8, 2026. FY2026 payment rates (not full cost): Water Well 642, Typical Well Six Inch Diameter, base $5,069.44 plus $72.44/LnFt; steel casing >=100 ft $54.30/LnFt; Livestock Pipeline 516 difficult trenching $18.88/LnFt.
  12. Utah Admin. Code R655-4-11 Well Drilling and Construction Requirements , Utah Division of Water Rights (via Cornell LII). Accessed November 9, 2026. Effective July 26, 2022 (Utah State Bulletin 2022-15)
  13. What Are the Cost Factors of Drilling a Santa Fe Water Well? , Boylan Water Well Service (Santa Fe, NM). Accessed November 8, 2026. Published 2026-06-25. Drilling incl. PVC casing $28-$65/ft; submersible pump $850-$2,500; casing and grouting $1,500-$4,000; pressure tank and controls $500-$1,800; electrical hookup and trenching $1,000-$3,500; permits and lab testing $300-$1,000; turn-key $12,000-$30,000+.

How these figures are built: methodology. Updated November 2026.