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From Town Tools. For the current version, visit https://www.towntools.org/san-luis-obispo-california-us/water-bill
unit (1 CCF, 748 gallons)
≈ 3,740 gallons
Your bill lists usage in whole units. Meters are read in the first ten days of the month and billed on the 15th.
Sewer is charged on your Average Winter Water Use (AWWU) cap, not this month's water reading — the mean of your December, January and February use, set once a year under Resolution No. 10587. New customers with no usage history default to 5 units for a single-family home, or 4 units per dwelling on a shared multi-family meter. Work out your own cap on this site's Sewer Cap tool and enter that number here.
Water rates by tier
Band
How much
Water
Tier 1 (0–5 units)
up to 5 unit
$9.51
Tier 2 (6–12 units)
5–12 unit
$10.95
Tier 3 (13+ units)
everything above 12 unit
$18.88
1 unit = 748 gallons.
Your estimated monthly bill
At FY 2026–27, effective 1 July 2026 rates
$168.79
a month
Water
$85.28
Sewer
$83.51
Total
$168.79
Water includes the monthly base charge, your metered usage, any per-meter fees and sales tax.
Sewer is billed on your winter-average use, so summer watering is not charged as sewage. Sewer is not sales-taxed.
The city bills water and sewer on the same monthly statement, but at different rules: water is priced in three rising tiers on however much you actually used that month, while sewer is priced on a single flat rate applied to your Average Winter Water Use (AWWU) cap — a number fixed each winter, not this month's reading. Use the Sewer Cap tool on this site to work out your own cap, then enter it below.
An estimate, not your bill
This is a guide, not your actual bill. Real bills depend on your meter size, your exact metered use, and any adjustments or programs you qualify for. Check your bill or the city for the exact figures.
Why the bills keep rising
Why a bill can go up in a month you used less
The city bills in whole units and rolls the leftover fraction forward: 3.8 units used in March is billed as 3, with 0.8 carried into April. If April's own use is small, that carried-over 0.8 can push April's bill higher than March's even though less water actually ran that month. The city's own rate page states this in as many words.
San Luis Obispo's Utility Users Tax is 5% of the entire water portion of the bill — the base fee and every tier of usage — and it does not apply to the sewer charge, which is untaxed. This tool applies the 5% the same way.
The rate for next year's sewer cap has not been set
Council has only adopted rates through fiscal year 2026–27. The winter of 2026–2027 sets the sewer cap for the billing year starting 1 July 2027 — FY 2027–28 — and no rate has been published for that year yet. This tool always uses the current $11.14/unit rate; treat any total involving next year's cap as today's rate carried forward, not a confirmed figure.
A 20% discount exists for qualifying households
The Customer Assistance Program discounts both the water and sewer bill by 20% — and the bi-monthly trash and recycling bill by 20% too — for households on CalWORKs, CalFresh, SSI/SSP or a Veteran Survivor's Pension, or with income below twice the federal poverty rate. It must be renewed every November and is not retroactive. Apply at forms.slocity.org/Forms/CAP or call Utility Billing at (805) 781-7133. This tool does not apply the discount automatically — subtract 20% from the total if you qualify.
The water supply here is comfortable, not restricted
San Luis Obispo draws on four sources — Whale Rock, Salinas and Nacimiento reservoirs, and recycled water — with a portfolio of about 10,000 acre-feet a year against an annual need of roughly 4,700. There is no conservation mandate driving these rates; the increases are routine cost-of-service adjustments.
One-off account fees, if you're moving
Setting up a new account costs $44.85; an after-hours setup is $541.43 and cannot be cancelled once a crew is dispatched. A late payment adds the greater of $15 or 1.5%. None of these are on a typical monthly bill and this tool does not include them.
Check the rates or pay your bill
Water and Sewer RatesThe full current rate sheet, and where these figures come from.