Water Rates: Residential Metered and Flat Rate
Are you a residential customer?
Residential customers include:
- Single-family homes
- Duplexes/triplexes/fourplexes
- Attached homes where units have an individual City water meter (please note: your unit’s water meter may be located on a meter tree in a neighboring unit)
If you don’t fit the description above, you may be a multi-family customer.
There are two types of rates for this customer group (detailed below):
- Residential Metered
- Residential Flat Rate
To learn more about how we set rates and service charges, see Water Rates FAQ.
Customer service
Questions about your water utility bill?
Please visit the ENMAX Customer Care Centre or contact 310-2010. ENMAX is The City's contracted customer care, billing and meter reading provider.
Need help reading your water bill?
For information on the rates and service charges on your bill, visit Understanding your Water Utility Bill.
Need a new account?
See how to set up a new water account, visit Accounts and Billing.
Water rates and service charges
Your rates and service charges are changing for 2021
Each year we review and adjust rates and service charges to ensure we can continue to deliver the City utility services you value.
In 2021, residential metered customers will see their bill decrease.
- The typical monthly water bill will decrease from $115.43 to $112.84 in 2021, a 2.2 per cent decrease.
Delivering services you value
Rates and service charges are set at the lowest level possible to:
- cover the cost of providing water, wastewater, and stormwater services
- perform required maintenance and upgrades to the system
Utility customers ensure we are able to deliver safe, reliable drinking water, treat wastewater safely and protect the river now and for years to come.
Residential rates
Residential Metered (based on a household using 19m3 per month)
Residential metered customers include residences containing one or more dwelling units that are individually metered by The City, and those with less than five dwelling units (regardless of how each is metered). For more information on what each of the rates and charges listed below pays for, visit Understanding Your Water Utility Bill.
Residential Metered Customers (Based on household using 19m3 per month) |
||||||
2020 |
2021 |
% change |
Impact on monthly bill |
2021 monthly bill |
||
| Water treatment and supply |
Usage rate per cubic metre (1 cubic metre = 1000 litres) |
$1.52 |
$1.45 |
-3.7% |
-$1.65 |
$42.42 |
Service charge per 30 days |
$15.16 |
$14.87 |
||||
| Wastewater collection and treatment |
Usage rate per cubic metre* (1 cubic metre = 1000 litres) |
$1.63 |
$1.57 |
-1.7% |
-$0.94 |
$54.79 |
Service charge per 30 days |
$27.84 |
$27.88 |
||||
| Stormwater management |
Service charge per 30 days |
$15.63 |
$15.63 |
0% |
$0.00 |
$15.63 |
* Not all of the water delivered to your home over 12 months is returned to the wastewater system. The wastewater usage is your water usage multiplied by 0.90 to reflect that over the course of the year you return around 90% of the water used to the wastewater system. This percentage is used year round and recognizes seasonal fluctuations where you send more water to the wastewater treatment system in the winter months and less during the summer months because of outdoor activities like watering.
Residential Flat Rate
Residential customers that do not have a water meter to measure the amount of water being used are billed on a flat rate.
Visit the water meter installation page to arrange to have a meter installed.
Water Utility rates for residences on a flat rate are calculated according to the square feet of actual lot area and gross building area based on the original development permit submitted to The City of Calgary Planning department. For detailed information on your flat rate calculation, please call 311.
The following 2019-2022 Water Utility rates are based on 30 days of service, which means the amount on your bill may vary depending on the number of days you have been billed.
Water treatment and supply
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|
$ per thousand square feet |
6.1240 |
6.1240 |
6.1240 |
6.1240 |
$ per thousand square feet |
19.0978 |
19.0978 |
19.0978 |
19.0978 |
Minimum monthly rates (for 2019-2022 is $46.17):
If the total water charge for a flat rate customer falls below the minimum monthly water rate, the customer will be charged the monthly minimum rate for water and this amount will be used to calculate the wastewater charge.
Wastewater collection and treatment
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|
Percentage of water charge |
144.46% |
144.46% |
144.46% |
144.46% |
Stormwater management
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|
Stormwater service charge (formerly Drainage) |
15.43 |
15.63 |
16.21 |
16.61 |
Residential Irrigation Meter Rates
Irrigation meter water rates are higher than residential meter water rates because this type of use contributes significantly to our peak demand, our highest water use period. Our water system needs to be sized to accommodate this peak demand so a higher proportion of cost is associated with this type of use.
Customers that are installing or considering installing an irrigation system are required to have the all of the irrigation components installed at their own expense and separated from the residential plumbing system. The City of Calgary will install an irrigation meter at no charge. Customers are responsible for basic service charges year-round but are only charged for water service and consumption charges (no wastewater or drainage charges).
Customers should consider the plumbing costs associated with the installation of an irrigation system, the size of space they will be irrigating, how much water they are planning to use and the service charge of the additional irrigation meter prior to deciding to install an irrigation meter to ensure this service will provide savings.
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|
Water service charged based |
29.95 |
29.13 |
28.64 |
28.00 |
Water usage rate |
2.6640 |
2.7151 |
2.8099 |
2.8828 |
*All irrigation services will be charged the 20 millimetre (mm) minimum.
Thinking about installing an irrigation system for your yard? Learn more about having an irrigation system.
Your monthly water bill pays for three important services
Water Treatment Supply
Treatment and delivery of the clean and safe water used in your home or business, which includes:
- Two water treatment plants
- Maintenance of over 4800 kms of water pipes
- Over 117,000 water quality tests
- Responsive field crews to address service interruptions
Wastewater Collection and Treatment
Collecting and safely treating the water you produce from flushing toilets, draining sinks and bathtubs, and then returning it to our rivers, which includes:
- Three wastewater treatment plants
- Significant upgrades to our treatment plants to meet regulatory requirements
- Maintenance of over 7000 kms of wastewater pipes
- High quality water returned to our rivers
- Responsive field crews to address service interruptions
Stormwater Management
Reliable street drainage, flood protection and river health, which includes:
- Protection from property damage
- Storm ponds that help protect our rivers from 30,000 tonnes of sediment
- Maintenance and improvements to the stormwater system
- Investment in flood protection and riverbank improvements