State water index

Alaska water hardness

Search 131 indexed communities and 149 ZIP profiles, then compare the underlying utility, source, distance, and reporting context.

Median indexed hardness

83PPM

Moderately Hard

Indexed range 36.7–199 PPM

ZIP profiles: 149
Cities: 131
Matched utilities: 170
Counties: 25

Understanding Alaska

Why local comparisons matter here

Alaska's immense distances, isolated watersheds, permafrost regions, and remote community systems make statewide averages especially coarse. Neighboring settlements may rely on entirely different sources and infrastructure.

In this index, soft is the largest category, covering 7 of 18 profiles with hardness data. The state median is 83 PPM, but the full indexed range is 36.7–199 PPM.

State distribution

Hardness across indexed ZIPs

Counts describe published ZIP profiles, not a population-weighted statewide sample.

Soft · 0–60 PPM7

Moderately hard · 61–120 PPM5

Hard · 121–180 PPM0

Very hard · 181+ PPM6

Evidence coverage

What the current records support

Hardness estimate: 12%
Lead 90th percentile: 100%
Copper 90th percentile: 58%

Low-confidence hardness profiles

Nearest site more than 25 miles away

Reported source water

Utility source mix

Groundwater: 96
Surface water: 61
Groundwater influenced by surface water: 13

Highest medians

Hardest indexed cities

Lowest medians

Softest indexed cities

City directory

Explore Alaska by city

Search by city or county, then sort by name, hardness, or ZIP coverage.

131 cities · 149 ZIP profiles

Search city or county

County

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131 cities found

Page 1 of 6

Adak

Aleutians West Census Area · 1 ZIP

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County	Median	Range	ZIP profiles
Bethel Census Area	196 PPM	196–196	23
Kusilvak Census Area	196 PPM	196–196	10
North Slope Borough	123 PPM	47.9–199	4
Skagway Municipality	99 PPM	99.2–99.2	1
Yakutat City And Borough	85 PPM	85–85	1
Anchorage Municipality	83 PPM	83–83	17
Matanuska-Susitna Borough	83 PPM	83–83	1
Petersburg Borough	58 PPM	58–58	1
Prince Of Wales-Hyder Census Area	44 PPM	44.4–58.9	6
Ketchikan Gateway Borough	44 PPM	44.4–44.4	1
Lake And Peninsula Borough	37 PPM	36.7–36.7	6
Aleutians West Census Area	— PPM	—–—	4

Why local comparisons matter here

Hardness across indexed ZIPs

What the current records support

Utility source mix

Hardest indexed cities

Softest indexed cities

Explore Alaska by city

Adak

Akiachak

Akiak

Akutan

Alakanuk

Ambler

Anaktuvuk Pass

Anchor Point

Anchorage

Angoon

Anvik

Beaver

Bethel

Big Lake

Brevig Mission

Buckland

Chalkyitsik

Chefornak

Chevak

Chignik Lagoon

Chignik Lake

Circle

Coffman Cove

Cold Bay

Highest indexed county medians