Colorado Well Finder › Wells by county › Weld County
A shallow countywide median does not guarantee a shallow well on your lot. Weld County's recorded well depths have a median of 59 feet, but the middle half runs from 30 to 227 feet. That spread matters when you price land, compare drilling bids or decide where to build.
Colorado DWR records include 41,527 permits countywide, with 23,859 wells recorded as constructed. These records cover household, stock, irrigation and monitoring uses—not just residential wells. Start with the county picture, then check comparable wells around your parcel in places such as Fort Lupton, Kersey, Platteville or Erie.
Figures are computed from Colorado Division of Water Resources permit records for all permitted wells in the county. Not every permit reports every field; each statistic uses the wells that report it.
| Depth statistic | Feet |
|---|---|
| 25th percentile | 30 |
| Median | 59 |
| 75th percentile | 227 |
| 90th percentile | 555 |
| Deepest on record | 3,340 |
| Aquifer named on permits | Wells |
|---|---|
| unnamed / fractured-bedrock aquifer | 25,640 |
| Alluvial | 4,508 |
| Laramie Fox Hills | 3,487 |
| Yield statistic | gpm |
|---|---|
| 25th percentile | 10.0 |
| Median | 14.0 |
| 75th percentile | 15.0 |
| Median depth to water | 26 ft |
| Median water level by decade | Depth to water |
|---|---|
| 1950s | 46 ft |
| 1960s | 21 ft |
| 1970s | 52 ft |
| 1980s | 40 ft |
| 1990s | 88 ft |
| 2000s | 98 ft |
| 2010s | 65 ft |
| 2020s | 17 ft |
Of the 25,992 wells reporting depth, 65% are under 100 feet. Still, the middle half spans 30–227 feet, and the 90th-percentile depth is 555 feet. A bid based only on the 59-foot median can miss a substantially deeper job.
Aquifer records help explain why a single depth allowance does not fit this county. Permits identify Alluvial and Laramie Fox Hills aquifers, while 61% are classified as Denver Basin aquifer wells. Many records carry an unnamed / fractured-bedrock label; that label alone does not establish the geology beneath your parcel.
Ask the driller which aquifer the proposed well will target. Then compare nearby completion logs for that aquifer, rather than treating every shallow well around La Salle or Firestone as a usable depth comparison.
Reported pump yield has a median of 14.0 gpm, with the middle half at 10.0–15.0 gpm. Those rates can support ordinary household demand when the well sustains production and the pump and storage are properly matched. They do not establish permission to irrigate or serve additional uses.
Only 7,501 permit records report a yield. The reported share under 1 gpm is 0%, while 3% fall in the 1–5 gpm band. That is encouraging within the reporting sample, but it is not proof that low-producing or unsuccessful wells are absent.
Weld County's mix includes domestic, stock, irrigation and monitoring wells. For a home purchase, request a current pumping and recovery test; an old reported rate is not a guarantee of present-day supply.
Static water level is the depth to standing water, not the depth of the drilled hole. Among 3,693 reporting wells, the median is 26 feet below ground, and the middle half ranges from 10 to 109 feet. In a confined aquifer, that measurement can reflect pressure rather than the depth of a shallow water table.
The decade medians fluctuate: 46 feet in the 1950s, 88 feet in the 1990s, 98 feet in the 2000s, 65 feet in the 2010s and 17 feet in the 2020s. These figures do not show a steady countywide decline.
They also do not prove recovery at a particular property. Different wells and aquifers contribute to each decade. Look for repeated measurements from the same well when assessing a local trend.
Weld County permit issuance rose from 1,543 in the 1950s to 6,867 in the 2000s. Records show 5,689 permits in the 2010s and 6,054 in the 2020s, with the newest permit year listed as 2026. The current decade is incomplete, and permit totals are not completed-well totals.
Domestic/household use accounts for 39% of the use mix, stock 16%, irrigation 17% and monitoring 25%. That variety matters when choosing comparable records for a residential project.
The leading driller-field entries are Authorized (Pe, Pg), with 7,232 records; Lesh Drilling Inc. (Lesh Jr., Ed), with 1,662; and Clement, Glenn A., with 1,265. Treat these as historical record entries, not a verified list of currently available drilling contractors.
The supplied cost model assumes Denver Basin sedimentary bedrock at $50–$70 per foot. At the county's 59-foot median depth, that puts the drilled hole at about $3,000–$4,100. A finished well with pump, tank, trenching and electrical is modeled at approximately $9,000–$16,100.
Use that as a planning allowance, not a parcel-specific quote. The county includes alluvial wells as well as deeper bedrock completions, and a lot needing a well near the upper end of the 30–227-foot middle range will not fit a median-depth drilling budget.
Have the bid spell out casing, grout, development, testing and site access. Confirm the proposed pump setting and trench route, and ask how additional depth or an unsuccessful hole would be charged.
The environmental layer lists 4,834 PFAS sampling/contamination sites, 14 historic mine features and 6 EPA Superfund/cleanup sites within about 10 miles of the mapped area. Those are screening flags, not findings that every nearby well is contaminated. A PFAS sampling location is not necessarily a confirmed contaminated location.
For a purchase, obtain laboratory testing for bacteria and nitrate, and discuss additional testing with the laboratory or local health authority based on nearby site records. Clear-looking water and a satisfactory pump test do not establish drinking-water safety.
Also inspect the wellhead, casing condition and surface drainage. Review septic placement and required setbacks before fixing the house location. The reported yield sample cannot rule out a low-yield or dry-hole outcome on an undrilled lot.
Start with the DWR permit for the actual parcel and confirm that the approved uses match your plans. A household-use permit should not be assumed to cover lawn watering, livestock or other outdoor demand. Where water rights and basin conditions require it, augmentation may be part of the permitting path.
Next, compare nearby wells around the property's town—such as Milliken, Gilcrest, Lochbuie or Aristocrat Ranchettes—with attention to aquifer, depth, construction and test results. County boundaries are not aquifer boundaries; an adjacent record in Adams or Larimer County may also be relevant if it taps the same formation.
Before closing, coordinate the well location, septic area, driveway and home footprint. For an existing well, obtain the completion report, current yield test, water-quality results and a clear account of what the sale includes.
| Decade permitted | Wells |
|---|---|
| 1950s | 1,543 |
| 1960s | 2,032 |
| 1970s | 2,527 |
| 1980s | 2,250 |
| 1990s | 5,159 |
| 2000s | 6,867 |
| 2010s | 5,689 |
| 2020s | 6,054 |
| Most active drillers on record | Wells |
|---|---|
| Authorized (Pe, Pg) | 7,232 |
| Lesh Drilling Inc. (Lesh Jr., Ed) | 1,662 |
| Clement, Glenn A. | 1,265 |
How this is built: the median permitted depth here times the per-foot range for this ground, plus the normal system costs. A lot at the 75th-percentile depth (227 ft) would run roughly $17,350–$27,890. See the full Colorado well cost guide.
Counts come from EPA, USGS and state datasets layered on the Colorado Well Finder map. A count is not a verdict on any one well; it tells you what to test for.
The numbers above are the area average. Your lot is one point on the map. Search the address to see the real depth, yield and aquifer of each permitted well around it.
Map wells near Weld CountyFor a Weld County lot, plan the well location alongside access, septic and the home footprint. Tri-Lakes Contracting is a licensed Colorado contractor for access driveways, site development, new-build septic systems and custom homes.
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A listing photo can't tell you whether a lot is a dream or a money pit. Two parcels near Weld County can carry the same asking price while one needs an $80,000 driveway and a $45,000 engineered septic the other doesn't. The well numbers on this page are the start of that answer. A Tri-Lakes Site Feasibility Report is the rest of it: a licensed general contractor, excavator and septic installer reads the parcel the way we would if we were about to build on it, and puts the real cost in writing before your money is committed.
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Under contract, comparing parcels, or a realtor with a rural listing whose buyers keep asking "what will it cost to build here?" This is the due-diligence step almost everyone skips, and the one that saves the most.
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The median reported depth is 59 feet, and the middle half of wells falls between 30 and 227 feet. Although 65% are under 100 feet, the 90th-percentile depth is 555 feet. Your likely depth depends on the parcel and target aquifer, so compare nearby completion logs rather than budgeting from the county median alone.
The supplied Denver Basin sedimentary-bedrock model uses $50–$70 per foot. At the 59-foot median depth, the drilled hole is about $3,000–$4,100, while a finished well with pump, tank, trenching and electrical is about $9,000–$16,100. Deeper drilling and parcel-specific construction requirements can change the bid.
Among 7,501 records reporting pump yield, the median is 14.0 gpm and the middle half is 10.0–15.0 gpm. Those reported rates can be useful for household planning, but the dataset includes other well uses. Have the property's well tested for sustained pumping and recovery before relying on an older yield record.
Safety has to be established at the well, not from county depth or yield figures. The environmental layer includes 4,834 PFAS sampling/contamination sites within about 10 miles of the mapped area, but sampling sites do not all represent confirmed contamination. Obtain bacteria and nitrate testing and discuss site-specific additional testing with a laboratory or health authority.
The supplied decade medians do not show a steady countywide decline. Median depth to water was 98 feet in the 2000s, 65 feet in the 2010s and 17 feet in the 2020s. Because different wells and aquifers contribute to those measurements, they do not prove improvement at your property. Repeated measurements from the same well are more useful.
Driveway, septic, site development, feasibility or a custom build near Weld County.
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