SAWS Impact Fees & Tap Costs in San Antonio (2026)

Most new homes in San Antonio get water and sewer from the San Antonio Water System (SAWS), and SAWS’s impact fees are the bulk of the connection cost. For a single-family home with a standard 5/8-inch meter on a lot platted on or after July 1, 2024, the water impact fee is $5,470 to $5,987 and the sewer impact fee is $1,873 to $5,541, so the two together run from $7,343 to $11,528. The spread comes from two separate maps: the water fee depends on the lot’s elevation zone and the sewer fee depends on its sewer impact-fee area. You need both before any number is reliable.

Official fees at a glance

The table lists every SAWS row in our database with a link to the source. The water rows are already totals for one EDU (equivalent dwelling unit): each combines a flow fee of $1,368, a system development fee that varies by elevation zone, and a water supply fee of $2,592. The sewer rows are per EDU for each of six collection areas, and each includes a treatment component. SAWS defines one EDU as 290 gallons per day for water and 200 gallons per day for sewer; a 5/8-inch meter counts as 1 EDU and a 3/4-inch meter as 1.5. The service-line and lateral rows are SAWS’s own time-and-materials estimates, not fixed prices.

Worked example: a new single-family home

Assumptions: detached house, plat recorded on or after July 1, 2024, water and sewer both from SAWS, a private contractor installs the service line and lateral under permit (the normal arrangement). All figures come from the SAWS impact fee meter size chart, effective July 1, 2024. Three cases show the range.

SAWS impact fees for one home, by zone and meter size. 3/4-inch figures = 5/8-inch figures × 1.5 EDU.

The arithmetic for the middle case: $1,368 flow + $1,744 middle-elevation system development + $2,592 water supply = $5,704 water; plus $3,897 sewer = $9,601. On a 3/4-inch meter, 1.5 × $9,601 = $14,401.50. The other sewer areas fall between the extremes: Lower Collection $2,243, Upper Medina $2,807 and Medio Creek $3,363 per EDU.

Two practical points follow. First, the elevation zone moves the water fee by only $517 between low and high, while the sewer area moves the sewer fee by $3,668, so the sewer map matters more. Second, going from a 5/8-inch to a 3/4-inch meter adds half again to every impact fee: $3,671.50 more in the lowest case and $5,764 more in the highest.

If SAWS rather than a private contractor builds the service connection, add its published estimates: $1,400 for a 3/4-inch water service on the same side of the street or $2,100 across the street (plus $500 if the tap is on a concrete steel cylinder main), and $2,300 for a 6-inch sewer lateral. A middle-case home with a same-side water service and a SAWS-built lateral would then be $9,601 + $1,400 + $2,300 = $13,301 before the $100 account deposit. SAWS states these are estimates and the final charge is time and materials.

What these fees don’t include

SAWS does not publish a meter-set or tap fee schedule for single-family homes. In most cases a licensed private contractor installs the connection under a SAWS water connection permit, so the physical work is a private contract price rather than a utility fee. Budget separately for:

• Water service line from the main or meter to the house. National estimate $30–$150 per foot installed, typically about $50. See water service line cost.
• Sewer lateral. National estimate $50–$250 per foot, typically about $100. See sewer lateral cost.
• Street cut or bore when the main is on the far side of the road. National estimate $1,000–$10,000 per crossing, typically about $4,000.
• Plumbing permit for the connection, national estimate $100–$1,300.

These are national estimates from our benchmark set. The calculator combines them with SAWS’s official fees:

How and when you pay

The current SAWS impact fees apply to plats recorded on or after July 1, 2024. Under the 2024 SAWS Utility Service Regulations (Section 9.6), private contractors normally install new connections under a water connection permit; the Schedule B figures above apply when SAWS does the work. For multifamily buildings on a master meter, SAWS counts one-half EDU per unit.

When service starts, SAWS charges a residential account deposit of $100 for water and sewer ($60 water only, $40 sewer only), per its special services fees page. Uplift Assistance customers pay half.

Changes to watch

• Plat date. The July 2024 schedule covers plats recorded on or after July 1, 2024. We did not find the rates that apply to earlier plats in the current documents; if your lot was platted before that date, ask SAWS which schedule applies.
• Zone maps. SAWS publishes separate elevation-zone and sewer-area maps. A lot near a boundary should be confirmed with SAWS before you rely on the lower figure.

SAWS impact fee FAQ

Related: Texas utility connection costs by city · Austin Water fees · Houston impact fees · tap fee vs. impact fee · sewer tap fees · water tap fees · utility connection cost calculator

Sources

• Impact Fees, San Antonio Water System (checked Sep 24, 2026)
• Impact Fees Meter Size Chart, effective July 1, 2024 (PDF), SAWS (checked Sep 24, 2026)
• 2024 SAWS Utility Service Regulations (PDF), SAWS (checked Sep 24, 2026)
• Special Services Fees, SAWS (checked Sep 24, 2026)