Physical & aggregate · 2026

Color in San Diego, City of, CA tap water

Within the federal limit· 0.7× the limit

San Diego, City of, CA's 2026 Color measurement is below the federal limit of 15 UNITS (MCL).

The measurement

StatisticValue
Highest single sample
Other
14 UNITS
Highest single sample
Entry point
3 UNITS
Average
Other
10.416666666666666 UNITS
Average
Entry point
1 UNITS
Average
Source water
9.428571428571429 UNITS
Highest single sample
Source water
20 UNITS

Verbatim from San Diego, City of, CA's 2026 Consumer Confidence Report — source document ↗

About Color

A measure of visible tint in the water.

Regulated only as a secondary (cosmetic) standard.

How San Diego, City of, CA compares

5 of the 196 systems measuring Color on The Water Map have it at or above the federal limit:

Nearby systems also reporting Color:

People also ask

+Is there Color in San Diego, City of, CA tap water?

Yes — San Diego, City of, CA's 2026 Consumer Confidence Report lists Color at 10.416666666666666 UNITS. San Diego, City of, CA's 2026 Color measurement is below the federal limit of 15 UNITS (MCL).

+What's the federal limit for Color in drinking water?

The federal MCL for Color is 15 UNITS. The EPA enforces this against the regulated reporting statistic (running annual average or 90th percentile), not a single-sample spike.

+What is Color?

A measure of visible tint in the water. Regulated only as a secondary (cosmetic) standard.

+Which other U.S. cities have Color over the federal limit?

5 of the 196 systems on The Water Map measuring Color report it at or above the federal limit. Examples include City of Vallejo, CA, City of Fairfield, CA, City of Vallejo, CA.

+Where does this Color measurement come from?

This page reproduces the Color entry from the 2026 Consumer Confidence Report published by the San Diego, City of, CA water utility — the annual drinking-water report every U.S. utility is required by federal law to publish. The original source document is archived at /water/ca/san-diego/2026/source.

Full report
All San Diego, City of, CA water-quality data →
Every contaminant measured in the 2026 report.
Contaminant pillar
Color across the U.S. →
Every public water system measuring Color, ranked.