Rates & Billing

​​Residential Water/Sewer Usage Rates*

Charlotte Water is funded solely by water and sewer rates. Annual rate increases are needed to effectively maintain, improve, and expand Charlotte's aging water and wastewater infrastructure.

Customers are charged a volumetric rate for water and sewer use in addition to fixed and availability fees. 

Understanding Your Rates

Charlotte Water is funded solely by water and sewer rates. Annual rate increases are needed to effectively maintain, improve and expand Charlotte's aging water and wastewater infrastructure. In addition drinking water treatment system improvements are vital to continue to protect public health, supply high-quality drinking water, ensure fire protection and support the economic vitality of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.       

Water Usage Rates: Vary based on the amount of water used and are divided into four tiers. Usage is measured in Ccf​ (see table below)

​​​Ccf: An abbreviation representing 100 cubic feet and used to  measure your water and sewer usage. This unit of measure equals 748 gallons. 

Fixed Fees: These fees for both water and sewer cover the cost of servicing accounts, such as the cost of meter reading and billing. The fixed water fee is $3.57 per 30-day billing period for water and $3.57 per 30-day billing period for sewer. These fees are prorated based on the number of days of service on the bill. 

Availability Fees: All water customers pay an availability fee for each meter during each billing period. These fees apply to both water and sewer. They help Charlotte Water pay for water and sewer projects as well as reduce the impact of consumption changes due to weather. The fees vary based on the size of a customer’s meter. A standard residential customer has a 5/8-inch meter and has fee of $2.97 per 30-day billing period for water and a fee of $6.87 per 30-day billing period for  sewer. 


 


 


 


 

Fixed Fees

These fees recover costs associated with servicing customer accounts and cover:

  • Reading and maintaining more than 285,000 water meters

  • Investigating and responding to billing questions

  • Producing and mailing bills

  • Providing customer service

  • Receipt of receiving revenues

Availability Fees

This fee is based on the cost of water and wastewater projects needed to maintain a 24/7 water service. These costs are present whether a customer uses water or not.

These fees are prorated based on the number of days of service on the bill.

The average 7 Ccf customer will pay $72.88 per month.*

*This does not include stormwater fees.

Ccf: An abbreviation representing 100 cubic feet and used to measure your water and sewer usage. This unit of measure equals 748 gallons.​​