costtodrillawell.com

Cost to drill a well in West Virginia: $6,500–$40,200

A drilled, finished water well in West Virginia typically costs $6,500–$40,200, with a midpoint of $18,900. Depth sets most of that price. Wells built here since 1980 have a median depth of 150 ft across 747 wells in the USGS groundwater inventory, priced at national driller rates.1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9

West Virginia does not publish driller completion reports in bulk. The depths here come from the USGS groundwater inventory, which covers all well uses, not only household wells, so treat them as a rough guide. There are too few wells per county to show county figures.

Key figures for West Virginia

ItemFigure
Finished well, typical range (midpoint $18,900) $6,500–$40,2001,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9
Drilling and casing only (no pump, tank, or hookup) $3,900–$29,1001,2,3,4,5,6
Median well depth (747 USGS-inventoried wells) 150 ft1
Middle half of wells 90 ft to 290 ft1
Drilling rate (national rates) $25–$75/ft3

Estimate a well in West Virginia

Typical total: $6,500–$40,200, midpoint $18,900.1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9

Depths from 747 domestic well reports in West Virginia, 1980–2025: 91 ft (25th percentile), 150 ft (median), 289 ft (75th percentile).

Low uses the 25th percentile depth at low rates; high uses the 75th percentile at high rates.
Line itemLowMidHigh
Drilling (per foot of depth) (150 ft × $50/ft)$2,300$7,500$21,7003
Casing, installed (98 ft × $28/ft)$900$2,700$4,4004
Rig mobilization and setup ($550–$2,500)$600$1,500$2,5005
Well permit ($50–$500)$100$300$5006
Pump, wire, and drop pipe, installed ($1,000–$4,000)$1,000$2,500$4,0007
Pressure tank and switch, installed ($500–$1,800)$500$1,200$1,8007
Trench, water line, and electrical to the house ($1,000–$5,000)$1,000$3,000$5,0008
Water quality test ($50–$250)$100$200$3009
Total$6,500$18,900$40,200

Casing depth of 98 ft is a model assumption; the records for this area do not report casing.2

No state rate survey yet, so national driller rates are used.

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Where the money goes on a West Virginia well

Drilling is billed by the foot at $25–$75/ft, so the hole alone runs $2,300–$21,700 at the depths above. Casing, the steel or PVC pipe that lines the upper borehole, adds $900–$4,400 at $10–$45/ft. Rig setup is a flat $600–$2,500.

The pump, pressure tank, and trench to the house add $2,500–$10,800 on top of the hole. A quote that looks low next to the range above often leaves those three out, so ask for it itemized.

Sources3,4,5,6,7,8,9

Permits and driller licensing in West Virginia

Water wells in West Virginia fall under West Virginia Bureau for Public Health, Environmental Engineering Division. You must apply for a permit from your local health department before a well is drilled, modified or abandoned. All water well drillers must be certified by the state before starting a project, and contractors need a bond and liability insurance. The certified driller must submit a completion report to the state within 30 calendar days after a well is built, altered or abandoned, and give the owner a copy. When a journeyman runs the job, a master driller has to sign the report.

Sources10,11

Groundwater and well construction in West Virginia

Well cap Submersible pump Casing to about 100 ft Total depth about 150 ft Soil and loose rock Open hole in rock
Cross-section of a 150 ft well with casing to 100 ft, the West Virginia median

A 2025 USGS study of West Virginia's bedrock aquifers found that fewer than 8 percent of the fractures a borehole crosses carry water, and that fractures are denser above 215 feet than below it. In the Appalachian Plateaus yields run highest in valleys and lowest on hilltops. The Valley and Ridge counties in the east break that pattern: there, hillside sites gave the highest yields, and a few high-yield holes reached deeper limestone.

A well at the West Virginia median reaches 150 ft with casing to about 100 ft, a model assumption because the records here do not report casing. The state's water well design standards put a private well at least 50 feet from a septic tank, or 100 feet when the well sits lower than the tank.

You can request a bacteriological test through your local health department, which charges a fee for the sample. The state suggests testing when the water tastes or smells off, looks cloudy, or stains fixtures and laundry, when pipes corrode fast, or when someone in the house has ongoing stomach trouble. Springs and cisterns are not approved as a supply unless the water is treated with a chlorinator or ultraviolet light. A house that keeps a private supply alongside a public water connection must also meet the state's cross-connection and backflow rule, 64 CSR 15.

Sources12,2,13,14

West Virginia compared with neighboring states

StateMedian depthTypical finished well
West Virginia150 ft$6,500–$40,200
Kentucky140 ft$6,500–$32,800
Marylandno records$6,800–$42,500
Ohio120 ft$6,800–$31,900
Pennsylvaniano records$10,800–$37,600
Virginiano records$6,800–$42,500

Sources15,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23

Common questions

How deep is a typical well in West Virginia?

Half of the 747 wells of all uses in the USGS inventory in West Virginia from 1980–2025 are between 90 ft and 290 ft deep, and the median is 150 ft. Your county can sit well above or below that, so check the county table on this page before you compare quotes.

How much does it cost per foot to drill a well in West Virginia?

Drilling alone runs $25–$75/ft on the rates we compiled. Spread across a whole finished well, including casing, pump, tank, and hookup, the midpoint estimate works out to about $126/ft at a depth of 150 ft. Per-foot quotes rarely include the pump.

Do you need a permit to drill a well in West Virginia?

You must apply for a permit from your local health department before a well is drilled, modified or abandoned. The driller usually files the paperwork, but the permit is tied to your property, so ask for a copy.

How much do a well pump and pressure tank add in West Virginia?

An installed submersible pump with wire and drop pipe runs $1,000–$4,000, and a pressure tank with its switch runs $500–$1,800. Together they are often the line items missing from a drilling quote, so a quote for the hole alone will look $3,700 cheaper than a finished well.

Related pages

For every state side by side and the national range, see how much a well costs.

Sources

  1. Monitoring locations: West Virginia groundwater sites (Water Data API) , U.S. Geological Survey. Accessed November 9, 2026. All groundwater sites in the USGS inventory for West Virginia; no water-use field. Used: wells with a construction year 1980 to 2025 and a depth of 20 to 3,000 ft (n=747).
  2. 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.
  3. Water Well Installation: Complete Guide, Cost and Tips for Success , Stevens Drilling (La Vernia, TX). Accessed November 8, 2026. Published 2025-10-27. Drilling $25-$65/ft; pumps $500-$2,000; pressure tank $300-$1,500; permit/licensing $100-$750; total $7,500-$17,000+.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. Compilation of fetched state and county well permit fees (research/rates/NOTES.md, section permit) , costtodrillawell.com research. Accessed November 8, 2026. Internal compilation used only for the national permit fallback. Component sources: ok-owrb-well-driller-fact-sheet ($0), fl-nwfwmd-well-fees through fl-manatee-water-wells-2026 ($35-$265), ny-dutchess-dbch-fees ($45), wi-dnr-well-notification ($50.50), ga-pierce-well-permit-2024 ($70), idaho-code-42-235 ($75), crs-37-92-602 ($100), az-ars-45-596 ($100-$150), nmac-19-27-5 ($125), wa-rcw-18-104-055 ($200), nc-wayne-private-wells through nc-gaston-eh-fees ($225-$450), mi-grand-traverse-fees-2026 and mi-delta-menominee-fees-2025 ($240-$334), mt-dnrc-form-613-2025 ($250-$400), pa-chester-county-health-fees ($300), mn-stat-103i-208 ($325), oh-logan-fees-2024 through oh-summit-fees-2025 ($350-$594), or-hb2808-2025 ($490), blanco-pedernales-gcd-fees-2025 ($500), ca-calaveras-fees-2026 ($693), ny-nyc-well-water-permit ($1,090 outlier).
  7. How Much Does a Well Pressure Tank Cost? , Mid Atlantic Water LLC (water-system supplier, nationwide). Accessed November 8, 2026. Updated 2026-10-14; prices live as of 2026-09. Tank replaced by plumber $800-$1,800 all-in (20-44 gal); labor $200-$500; submersible pump job $1,000-$2,500; tank plus pump $2,500-$5,000+. Supplier, not an installer.
  8. 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+.
  9. DSHS Austin Laboratory Fee Schedule, effective 2026-09-01 , Texas Department of State Health Services. Accessed November 8, 2026. Potable Water (coliform) MZZ0441A $18.39; Nitrate-N EZZ0048A $30.00; Routine Water Mineral Group $155; All Metals $165; VOCs $150.
  10. Water Well Regulations Summary , West Virginia Office of Environmental Health Services. Accessed November 9, 2026.
  11. W. Va. Code R. 64-19-5, Records of Completed Water Wells , West Virginia Department of Health, via Cornell LII. Accessed November 9, 2026. Fetched: 30 calendar days (5.1); two copies to Commissioner, one to owner (5.3); master driller signs when a journeyman drills. 2026 bills (SB266, HB4215) propose replacing 64CSR19; enactment not confirmed.
  12. Factors affecting the distribution of water-bearing fractures in the bedrock aquifers of West Virginia (SIR 2025-5044) , U.S. Geological Survey. Accessed November 9, 2026. Fetched: 7.4 percent of 3,403 fractures water-bearing; higher fracture density above 215 ft; Plateaus yields highest in valleys, lowest on hilltops. Valley and Ridge: highest yields on hillsides, and a few high-yield wells target deeper limestone (abstract, corroborated by search).
  13. W. Va. Code R. 64-46-4, Water Well Design Standards: Location (Table 64-46 A) , West Virginia Department of Health, via Cornell LII. Accessed November 9, 2026. Fetched 64-46-4.2.a, which points to Table 64-46 A; the table's septic tank row (50 ft, 100 ft if well is lower) corroborated by search, table not rendered on the fetched page.
  14. Individual Water Supplies , West Virginia Office of Environmental Health Services. Accessed November 9, 2026.
  15. Kentucky Groundwater Data Repository, water wells , Kentucky Geological Survey. Accessed November 8, 2026. Well completion records used for depth, casing, and yield distributions.
  16. National depth distribution, median of state percentiles , Cost to Drill a Well. Accessed November 9, 2026. Median across states with records of each state's 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile depth.
  17. Water well log database , Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Accessed November 8, 2026. Well completion records used for depth, casing, and yield distributions.
  18. Complete Water Well System Cost: Full Transparency from an Experienced Driller , K & B Water Well Drilling & Excavation (Mount Gilead, OH). Accessed November 8, 2026. Undated (2026 site). Drilling alone $30-$80+/ft; steel casing sometimes over $100/ft; pump unit $900-$2,500 plus installation; tank and switch $500-$2,000; full installed system $6,000-$16,000.
  19. 2026 Approved Fee Schedule, Private Water System Fees effective 2026-01-01 , Butler County General Health District (OH). Accessed November 8, 2026. New private water system (well), single family dwelling $534 ($440 local + $74 state + $20 ODNR), includes one site visit, one water sample and one inspection; water samples $90 base plus lab costs.
  20. Private Water Systems , Ashland County Health Department (OH). Accessed November 8, 2026. Undated (2026 site). New single family application/permit $309 plus $75 water sample fee = $384.
  21. 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.
  22. Fee schedule , Chester County Health Department (PA). Accessed November 8, 2026. Undated. New well permits $300; second or additional well $175; alteration $100.
  23. Drinking Water Testing , Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory. Accessed November 8, 2026. Undated (2026 site). Bacteria (total coliform and E. coli) $40; nitrate-nitrogen $15; WD01 standard package $60; WD04 standard plus nitrate $70.

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