Certified well water labs in Montana (2026)
Montana doesn’t test existing private wells for you, but it gives you two cheap routes. The Montana State Environmental Laboratory (DPHHS, Helena) sells private-well packages by mail: a $55 Basic Screen (coliform/E. coli, nitrate + nitrite, conductivity), a $135 metals screen that includes uranium, and a $75 anion screen. MSU Extension’s Well Educated program hands out kits at participating county offices and ships them to a state-certified lab in Billings. Some counties also help pay: Gallatin Conservation District reimburses up to 75%.
The short version
- Cheapest yearly check: the state lab’s $55 Basic Screen. Order bottles from the State Environmental Laboratory (406-444-3444 or toll-free 800-821-7284), pay in advance, and get the bacteria bottle back to Helena within 48 hours (private-well chemistry form). Bacteria by itself is $25 (bacteria form, Jan 2024 prices).
- Want a guided panel and help reading it? Use Well Educated. Pick up a kit at a participating county office. The price depends on which packages you pick, and a cost sheet comes in the kit. MSU says the program is not for real-estate or legal use.
- Buying a house or in a hurry? Go straight to a DPHHS-certified lab. MSU keeps a certified Montana drinking-water lab list. Call before you send anything; some of these labs don’t take homeowner samples.
How Montana’s system actually works
DPHHS runs the Water Laboratory Certification Program and the State Environmental Laboratory. DEQ handles public water supplies, and county sanitarians handle well and septic permits for new construction. Testing an existing household well is up to you. Find your well log through the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology Ground Water Information Center; it helps you read your results.
Options we verified
- Montana State Environmental Laboratory (DPHHS), 1400 Broadway, Helena · 406-444-3444. Private-well packages: Basic Screen $55; Metals Screen (WellScan, includes uranium) $135; Anion Screen (alkalinity, fluoride, sulfate…) $75; VOC screen $148; herbicide screen $206; pesticide screen $285. Individual tests from the fee schedule effective Jan 1, 2024: coliform P/A $25, nitrate + nitrite $28, gross alpha $130, iron or sulfur bacteria $42 each.
- MSU Extension Well Educated (welleducated@montana.edu, 406-994-7381). County-office kits are analyzed by a state-certified lab in Billings. Gallatin Conservation District gives out free kits and reimburses up to 75% of testing costs for eligible residents (not inside Bozeman or Belgrade city limits).
- Park County reduced-cost clinic: $125 per participant for a full panel (arsenic, uranium, lead, nitrate, bacteria, about 30 parameters). Kits are limited and the dates are seasonal, so confirm the current cycle with the Livingston office (406-222-4156).
- DPHHS-certified commercial labs (from MSU’s list; call first for prices): Energy Laboratories, Billings (406-252-6325) and Helena; Mission Mountain Laboratories, Arlee; Montana Environmental Laboratory, Kalispell; Aqua Tech Laboratory, Lewistown; Missoula City-County Health Department Water Lab; RD Water Lab, Missoula. Bridger Analytical (Bozeman) doesn’t accept homeowner samples.
- Childcare on a well? DPHHS and DEQ test childcare wells for free through the Choose Safe Places program (eLABorations, July 2026).
What to test for in Montana
- Every year: total coliform / E. coli and nitrate (the $55 Basic Screen covers both).
- At least once: arsenic, uranium, lead, copper, and fluoride. MSU names arsenic, lead, copper, uranium, nitrate, and bacteria as Montana’s most common well contaminants.
- Near mining, fields, or feedlots: add metals, plus herbicides or pesticides if anything is sprayed upslope. Near fuel tanks, add VOCs.
- Staining or a rotten-egg smell: test for iron and sulfur bacteria ($42 each at the state lab).
Mail-in kits (for a broader PDF)
These are independent labs that mail you bottles, run the tests, and email a PDF. Neither one sells softeners. Listed prices checked for this ship:
- Tap Score / SimpleLab Essential Well: $209 listed.
- National Testing Laboratories WaterCheck Basic: $220 listed; next-day return shipping not included.
If a lender or buyer needs a certified chain-of-custody result, a self-collected mail-in kit may not count. Use a DPHHS-certified lab.
Side by side for a Montana well
The table scrolls sideways on a phone.
| State Environmental Lab | Well Educated / county clinic | Mail-in (Tap Score / NTL) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Cheap yearly bacteria + nitrate; metals with uranium | A guided panel plus help reading it | A broader analyte list in one PDF |
| Typical cost | $55 basic; $135 metals | Varies; $125 Park clinic; Gallatin 75% back | About $209–$220 |
| Drop-off | Mail to Helena (48-hr bacteria hold) | County Extension office | Ship it yourself |
| Real estate? | Ask the lender | No (MSU says not for real estate) | Usually no |
Remind me to test my well every year
CDC and EPA say to test a private well at least once a year. We’ll send one email a year, about when your test is due, with your state’s lab options.
Thanks, you’re on the list. We’ll email you once a year when it’s time to test your well. Nothing else.
What to do in Montana
- Call the State Environmental Laboratory (800-821-7284) and order the $55 Basic Screen. Add the $135 metals screen the first year.
- Check with your county Extension office for a Well Educated kit or a reduced-cost clinic, and ask your conservation district about cost-share.
- Buying a house: use a DPHHS-certified lab, such as Energy Laboratories, and ask what your lender needs.
- Got a positive result? Disinfect, flush, and retest before you buy any treatment. You don’t have to buy from anyone who tested your water.
- If you want a broader PDF, use Tap Score / SimpleLab or National Testing Laboratories.
Not this if…
- You already chlorinated the well. Wait and flush before a bacteria sample, or the result means nothing.
- The “lab” quoting you is also selling a treatment system. Get an independent result. See the Home Depot free-kit comparison.
- Someone offered a free in-home “test” that ends in a softener pitch. That is not on this page.
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