Well drilling cost is driven mostly by depth and casing type, but the pump, pressure tank, water testing, and permit add real cost that a bare per-foot number misses. The inputs below account for all of it so the number you see reflects a real well, not a textbook average.
Last reviewed September 2026
| Line item | Low | Mid | High |
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| Casing type | Low | Mid | High |
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This calculator starts with a per-foot drilling cost that scales directly with your chosen depth: HomeGuide's own $30-$80 per foot complete-installation range sets the low and high tiers, and Angi's own casing-specific per-foot rate (an exact linear fit of Angi's own published depth-by-casing table) sets the mid tier, selected by whether you choose PVC or Steel casing. A regional labor multiplier applies to that drilling line only. Casing pipe, pump, pressure tank, water testing, and permit are added on top as separate, nationally-priced line items, since neither HomeGuide nor Angi publishes a regional breakdown for those components.
Depth is the single biggest lever on total cost, since it drives every foot of drilling and every foot of casing. Casing type matters nearly as much: HomeGuide's own published figures put PVC casing at $7 to $11 per linear foot and steel casing at $30 to $130 or more per linear foot, a gap Angi's own figures confirm almost exactly ($6 to $10 for PVC, $30 to $130+ for steel).
A well priced only per foot of depth misses real cost. Every well needs a pump ($400 to $2,500, per HomeGuide's and Angi's own published ranges) and, in most cases, a pressure tank (Angi's own "most homeowners pay $300 to $500" figure). Water testing before use is not optional: the EPA's own guidance is to "test your private well annually for total coliform bacteria, nitrates, total dissolved solids, and pH levels," and lab testing typically runs $50 to $600 depending on how many contaminants are tested (Angi, HomeGuide). Most jurisdictions also require a drilling permit, typically $200 to $700+ depending on where you live (Angi, HomeGuide).
Well diameter has a real but not cleanly formulaic effect on cost: Angi's own example shows an 8-inch casing on a 50-foot well running roughly two and a half times a 4-inch casing on the same well. This calculator treats diameter as informational context rather than inventing an unsourced multiplier, and discloses the 8-inch effect directly. Region changes labor cost for the drilling operation itself (rig, crew, mobilization); casing, pump, tank, testing, and permit pricing are national retail figures in both of this calculator's sources.
Per-foot drilling cost and the depth table it fits: HomeGuide.com, "How Much Does Well Drilling Cost? (2026)" (July 30, 2025), whose own published depth table fits an exact linear formula ($30-$80 per foot) used here for every depth, cross-checked against Angi.com, "How Much Does Well Drilling Cost? [2026 Data]" (updated September 18, 2026), whose own depth-by-casing table fits an exact linear formula for both 4-inch PVC ($35.50/ft) and 6-inch steel ($61.20/ft), both falling inside HomeGuide's own band. Casing pipe pricing: both sources' own published per-foot ranges for PVC and steel. Pump and pressure tank pricing: both sources' own published ranges, with a real source disagreement disclosed rather than silently picked (see the freshness stamp above). Water testing pricing: both sources' own published ranges; testing guidance quoted verbatim from the U.S. EPA, "Protect Your Home's Water". Permit pricing: both sources' own published ranges. Public groundwater-level data: linked, not quoted, from the U.S. Geological Survey's National Ground-Water Monitoring Network Data Portal. Region multiplier reused from this site's bathroom remodel, fence, retaining wall, and concrete slab cost calculators, calibrated against the JLC/Zonda 2025 Cost vs Value report.
HomeGuide and Angi publish independently-derived but closely agreeing figures at most price points: both agree almost exactly on casing pipe cost by material, and both fall within a consistent overall per-foot band for drilling. Where the two sources genuinely disagree (well pump floor, pressure tank, and permit fee), both figures are shown and the disagreement is disclosed on-page in the freshness stamp above rather than silently blended away.
Building more than one thing at once? See also the Excavation Cost Calculator, the Concrete Slab Cost Calculator, and the Retaining Wall Cost Calculator for other site work estimates.