PA · wells & permits

Water wells in Pennsylvania

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

The permit, in plain language

No pre-drill permitgeneric

DCNR PaGWIS

Act 610

Pre-drill gate: None — report after drilling
Fee: —
Who files: Driller or owner may file
Timeline: Varies

Confirm current fee with authority

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.
No statewide pre-drill permit for typical domestic wells — confirm local/district overlays.
Still complete post-drill filing (registration / well log) on the deadline below.

After drilling: NOI 24h + Well Completion Report WWI via PaGWIS within 30 days → DCNR PaGWIS

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. Verified 2026-07-14.

Top drillers on record

No contractor statistics for Pennsylvania 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 Pennsylvania

County by county

Depth statistics across Pennsylvania

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
LANCASTER	25,805	25,073	200 ft	35–450 ft
CHESTER	24,378	22,378	150 ft	32–375 ft
YORK	22,706	22,208	190 ft	40–380 ft
MONTGOMERY	17,967	16,717	142 ft	20–360 ft
BUCKS	16,889	15,317	160 ft	21–410 ft
MONROE	15,644	14,865	220 ft	92–425 ft
BERKS	13,923	11,780	171 ft	45–360 ft
CUMBERLAND	13,581	12,824	175 ft	48–400 ft
DAUPHIN	11,594	10,882	175 ft	30–321 ft
LEHIGH	10,010	9,653	182 ft	58–400 ft
FRANKLIN	9,881	9,110	179 ft	59–420 ft
BEDFORD	9,329	9,151	185 ft	60–405 ft
BUTLER	9,255	8,924	140 ft	46–295 ft
LEBANON	8,945	8,338	200 ft	54–400 ft
MERCER	8,383	8,147	90 ft	30–200 ft
ERIE	8,162	7,893	60 ft	25–100 ft
NORTHAMPTON	7,975	7,675	180 ft	60–410 ft
CRAWFORD	7,738	7,577	80 ft	40–144 ft
ALLEGHENY	7,576	7,022	30 ft	15–132 ft
ADAMS	6,787	6,438	200 ft	50–407 ft
PHILADELPHIA	6,541	6,034	29 ft	15–200 ft
BRADFORD	6,464	5,029	124 ft	32–299 ft
PIKE	6,186	6,014	250 ft	120–480 ft
LUZERNE	5,909	5,477	150 ft	18–400 ft
LACKAWANNA	5,819	5,453	200 ft	23–420 ft
TIOGA	5,591	5,431	140 ft	41–304 ft
CARBON	5,470	5,344	200 ft	94–420 ft
DELAWARE	5,446	5,093	45 ft	15–325 ft
WESTMORELAND	5,322	5,188	102 ft	15–280 ft
LAWRENCE	5,241	5,138	127 ft	45–260 ft
SOMERSET	4,883	4,804	160 ft	50–400 ft
LYCOMING	4,831	4,504	125 ft	19–360 ft
BLAIR	4,796	4,663	133 ft	15–350 ft
SCHUYLKILL	4,726	4,430	160 ft	21–380 ft
INDIANA	4,653	4,403	105 ft	24–240 ft
WASHINGTON	4,642	4,421	65 ft	15–184 ft
PERRY	4,536	4,427	200 ft	81–400 ft
BEAVER	4,483	4,317	120 ft	20–300 ft
CAMBRIA	4,155	3,965	120 ft	20–290 ft
CENTRE	4,013	3,746	180 ft	30–400 ft
SUSQUEHANNA	3,983	3,667	225 ft	25–440 ft
VENANGO	3,768	3,712	85 ft	17–180 ft
WAYNE	3,619	2,992	205 ft	48–420 ft
HUNTINGDON	3,384	3,273	179 ft	35–404 ft
POTTER	3,282	3,137	140 ft	45–360 ft
NORTHUMBERLAND	3,174	2,948	140 ft	17–355 ft
UNION	2,962	2,874	150 ft	28–300 ft
JEFFERSON	2,922	2,796	120 ft	45–263 ft
CLINTON	2,891	2,804	91 ft	6–300 ft
WARREN	2,768	2,650	83 ft	31–185 ft
CLEARFIELD	2,450	2,376	120 ft	15–290 ft
WYOMING	2,131	1,963	225 ft	41–450 ft
ARMSTRONG	2,084	1,986	100 ft	22–300 ft
COLUMBIA	2,073	1,881	140 ft	30–360 ft
SNYDER	2,072	2,006	176 ft	25–425 ft
CLARION	2,024	1,891	90 ft	37–210 ft
MIFFLIN	1,976	1,852	161 ft	25–370 ft
GREENE	1,945	1,888	79 ft	16–197 ft
FULTON	1,898	1,779	220 ft	100–405 ft
JUNIATA	1,730	1,714	150 ft	17–379 ft