NC · wells & permits

Water wells in North Carolina

Real drilling records, county depth medians, active contractors, and exactly what it takes to pull a well permit in North Carolina.

The permit, in plain language

Paper / PDF filingverified landing

NC DEQ DWR (post-drill GW-1); county EH issues pre-drill permits

NCGS 87-97; 15A NCAC 02C

Instrument: well construction permit
Fee: Call to confirm
Who files: Driller or owner may file
Timeline: 30-day statutory decision (NCGS 87-97)

County-set; exclusive issuer is county health dept

Before the rig arrives

Confirm parcel allows a private well (vs required public water connection).
Select a licensed well contractor; obtain owner authorization as required.
File well construction permit with NC DEQ DWR (post-drill GW-1); county EH issues pre-drill permits (PDF/email/mail — WellMap prepares the packet; lawful submitter files).
Provide site plan: proposed well, septic, property lines, structures.
Schedule site evaluation / sanitary survey if required.
Do not drill until authorization is issued (or notification accepted, per regime).

After drilling: GW-1 Well Construction Record within 30 days → NC DEQ DWR + county health department copy · filing link ↗

Forms: GW-1 Well Construction Record

Permit record lookup

WellMap prepares estimate-backed quote packets and dual-party approvals. It does not issue permits and never auto-submits to government systems. The licensed driller (and/or owner where required by law) is the submitter of record. Post-drill GW-1 goes to NC DEQ DWR with a county copy (NCGS 87-97; 15A NCAC 02C). Verified 2026-07-14.

Top drillers on record

No contractor statistics for North Carolina yet — several states publish drilling records without contractor names, and a few aren't in bulk form at all. See data & methodology.

Get a depth estimate anywhere in North Carolina

County by county

Depth statistics across North Carolina

Medians from wells with verified total depth. Click a county for its permit authority, fee and filing channel.

County	Wells	With depth	Median	p10–p90
Wake	7,986	7,885	264 ft	145–505 ft
Watauga	919	881	340 ft	125–725 ft
Orange	660	651	185 ft	85–380 ft
Avery	654	606	245 ft	120–600 ft
New Hanover	609	459	87 ft	43–180 ft
Guilford	580	530	113 ft	46–271 ft
Onslow	431	370	194 ft	21–615 ft
Craven	426	327	78 ft	17–298 ft
Martin	419	308	97 ft	16–139 ft
Wilson	400	389	80 ft	24–210 ft
Brunswick	360	331	70 ft	20–263 ft
Catawba	337	333	144 ft	84–345 ft
Lee	326	315	225 ft	89–360 ft
Mecklenburg	322	308	90 ft	22–200 ft
Beaufort	320	250	198 ft	24–380 ft
Gaston	300	295	122 ft	54–300 ft
Wayne	290	255	75 ft	13–200 ft
Chowan	279	130	40 ft	11–336 ft
Cumberland	266	227	43 ft	16–103 ft
Lincoln	259	243	80 ft	35–214 ft
Chatham	254	253	96 ft	41–200 ft
Robeson	251	210	160 ft	70–344 ft
Stanly	251	246	97 ft	43–185 ft
Moore	234	204	100 ft	35–204 ft
Rockingham	228	225	109 ft	50–266 ft
Pitt	215	156	70 ft	14–490 ft
Alamance	193	193	90 ft	50–335 ft
Bladen	186	163	196 ft	65–413 ft
Greene	185	135	23 ft	6–241 ft
Iredell	185	184	144 ft	31–400 ft
Nash	178	176	103 ft	51–184 ft
Randolph	174	172	85 ft	40–185 ft
Anson	172	170	96 ft	39–210 ft
Johnston	162	150	122 ft	34–282 ft
Cabarrus	156	156	123 ft	55–300 ft
Granville	155	155	83 ft	51–165 ft
Forsyth	150	150	150 ft	67–406 ft
Lenoir	150	109	332 ft	42–490 ft
Franklin	144	144	110 ft	55–224 ft
Sampson	142	103	87 ft	20–346 ft
Union	141	140	121 ft	67–256 ft
Dare	138	108	65 ft	24–211 ft
Wilkes	137	134	185 ft	92–390 ft
Cleveland	135	135	130 ft	42–300 ft
Warren	134	134	110 ft	66–198 ft
Pender	131	110	126 ft	44–268 ft
Hyde	130	123	111 ft	20–293 ft
Rowan	127	125	159 ft	91–406 ft
Pamlico	126	116	185 ft	6–362 ft
Yadkin	125	124	186 ft	101–388 ft
Caswell	119	118	95 ft	49–182 ft
Pasquotank	119	63	70 ft	11–628 ft
Person	119	119	85 ft	49–156 ft
Tyrrell	119	117	12 ft	4–149 ft
Surry	117	115	138 ft	76–349 ft
Hoke	116	108	102 ft	50–140 ft
Davidson	107	107	146 ft	72–420 ft
Duplin	104	90	130 ft	6–375 ft
Stokes	103	103	100 ft	73–168 ft
Buncombe	96	95	106 ft	22–380 ft