Showers
Per day
Baths
Per week
Toilet flushes
Per day
Low-flow (1995 or newer) toilet?
Running water
Minutes per day washing hands, brushing teeth, etc.
Low-flow faucet?
Dishes by hand
Minutes per day
Low-flow faucet?
Dishwasher
Loads per week
Laundry
Loads per week
Lawn watering1
Irrigation cycles
per week
Outside water
Minutes per week washing cars, using the hose, etc.
Pool
Minutes per week filling your pool.
This water use calculator is for general information only and based on local averages and national benchmarks. Calculations are estimates that are valuable for comparison purposes but are not meant to reflect exact water usage.
Daily water use
* Rounded up to the nearest gallon.
Itemized Household Usage:
Shower
& bath: 0 gallons
Toilet: 0 gallons
Sink: 0 gallons
Dishes by hand: 0 gallons
Dishwasher: 0 gallons
Laundry: 0 gallons
Lawn: 0 gallons
Outside & pool:
0 gallons
Daily: 0 gallons
Weekly: 0 gallons
Monthly: 0 gallons
Yearly: 0 gallons
0 gallons
To Calculate Per Person Water Usage:
Select the number of people living in your home
If everyone in our area reduced their water use by 10%, we’d save over 44 million gallons of water per day!
Comments or questions? Email us.
1Dukes, M.D. and M.J. Boyer, 2018. “Determination of Landscape Irrigation Water Use in Southwest Florida (B283).” Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. »
2Boyer, M.J. and M.D. Dukes, 2015. “Estimated Water Savings Potential of Florida-Friendly Landscaping Activities.” Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. »
This report states that water savings from rain sensors can be conservatively estimated at 8%. Installing a rain sensor on your irrigation system is a cost effective way to lower your water consumption.
When most people in the US want fresh, clean water, all they have to do is turn on a faucet. Still, no place is immune from drought, so it’s important to be conservative with your water use at home, no matter where you live. On average in the US, water use at home (water from the tap, toilet, dishwasher, etc.) adds up to about 138 gallons per household per day, or 60 gallons per person per day. Recent studies of how Americans use water throughout their homes show that, for most people, indoor water use is highest in the bathroom, followed by the laundry room. Table 1 provides a breakdown. Leaks are, perhaps, the most surprising use of water on this list – they amount to 18 gallons of water per household per day lost to leaky toilets, appliances and faucets. Fortunately, saving water around the house is easier now than ever before. Switching to water-saving fixtures and appliances can reduce indoor water use by twenty percent. The Environmental Protection Agency’s
WaterSense website lists many water-saving products. The Department of Energy’s ENERGY STAR label also has an extensive list of energy- and water-saving appliances, like dishwashers and washing
machines. Newer bathroom fixtures and appliances like toilets, showerheads and faucets are designed to be more water-efficient than older models and can save hundreds of gallons a month. For example, older toilets use up to six gallons per flush, whereas low-flow toilets (or any toilet manufactured after 1994) use 1.6 gallons or
less. Likewise, older showerheads flow well over the federal limit of 2.5 gallons per minute, while low-flow models can flow no higher than two gallons per minute. Some shower fixtures,
especially those with multiple nozzles, exceed the federal limit, so these fixtures require reduced shower time in order to save water. Likewise, newer dishwashers and clothes washers use water much more efficiently than older models. Water efficient dishwashers save more than 5,000 gallons of water per year compared with washing
dishes by hand (and use less than half as much energy, too). Newer washing machines handle much bigger loads of clothing with much less water. A full-sized ENERGY STAR-certified clothes washer uses 13 gallons of water per load, compared to the 23 gallons used by a standard machine, saving over 3,000 gallons of water per year. With
a little bit of research, water- and energy-saving products can be purchased that provide enhanced performance, help save on water bills and have the added benefit of saving water for future generations. If new appliances aren’t in the budget, significant water savings can still be achieved just by finding and fixing leaks. Because it takes a lot of water to make electricity, water heating can be a big energy user – it’s right up there with heating and cooling and running appliances, electronics and lighting. Those long, hot showers feel good but they waste both water and energy, and although modern fixtures and appliances are a great way to save gallons, it’s still important to simply turn off the tap.American Water Use at Home – How Many
Gallons do We Use?
SOURCE: Residential End Uses of Water, V2 (2016)Appliance/Device
Household per Day
Percent of Total
Toilet
33 gallons
24%
Shower
27 gallons
20%
Faucet
27 gallons
20%
Washing Machine
22 gallons
16%
Leaks
18 gallons
13%
Bath
4 gallons
3%
Dishwasher
2 gallons
2%
Other
4 gallons
3%
Total
138 gallons
100% (101% with rounding)
Saving Water with Water-Efficient
Toilets, Showerheads and More
Heating and Cooling Are Water (and Energy) Hogs!
Read about how much
water it takes to manufacture all of your consumer goods.