Lab data
Microplastics in LA Tap Water
Distribution from 50+ tap-water samples we counted under a microscope across Los Angeles. There is no federal limit for microplastics in drinking water — these are raw counts, not violations.
Microplastics
1 µm – 5 mm
Big enough to trap on a filter and count under a microscope. The numbers on this page are microplastic counts.
Nanoplastics
< 1 µm
Below the resolution of any optical method. Small enough to cross cell membranes and the blood-brain barrier — and roughly 90% of the plastic particles found in bottled water. We can't count them, but they travel with the microplastics we can.
Bottled water, brand by brand
We tested 7 bottled water brands for microplastics
Dasani, Liquid Death, Fiji, Evian, Crystal Geyser, San Pellegrino, and Path — every one came back positive for PET particles, and the aluminum cans scored as high as the plastic bottles. See which is the worst bottled water for microplastics, which has the least, and whether Crystal Geyser or your brand made the list.
Read the brand ranking →Particle count distribution
How many samples fall in each range
Percentiles
Where different cutoffs fall in our dataset
Results by tier
How samples distribute across our particle-count tiers
By neighborhood
Average particle count where we have 2+ samples
Sample images
48 microscope captures — the bright dots are microplastic particles fluorescing under Nile Red staining.
Samples are public, non-baseline tap water processed using Nile Red fluorescence staining. Particle counts are per 100mL. No federal safety standard exists for microplastics in drinking water. Updates automatically as new results are added.