How Much Does an Arsenic Water Filter Cost? (2026 Price Breakdown)
How Much Does an Arsenic Water Filter Cost? (2026 Price Breakdown)
The short answer
For a whole-house arsenic system that actually solves the problem long term, expect to pay $4,795 for the equipment, plus $0 to $1,000 for installation. The system is two tanks: 2 cubic feet of arsenic-selective ion exchange resin in a non-backwashing tank with a Clack C1190 in/out head, then a 1.5 cubic foot carbon tank that takes out the fishy smell and taste new arsenic resin can cause. No salt, no drain, no electricity. An annual lab test tracks media life, the resin is rebedded every 1 to 5 years, and the carbon is replaced every 4 to 5 years.
Arsenic is the most expensive contaminant most homeowners will ever treat in their well water. It is also the one with the highest stakes. The EPA classifies long-term exposure to inorganic arsenic above 10 ppb as a cause of bladder, lung, and skin cancer, plus cardiovascular and developmental harm (EPA; CDC; IARC Group 1 carcinogen). When you are quoted $5,000 to $10,000 by a local franchise to fix it, you naturally want to know: what does this actually cost? And is the cheap $1,200 system online a real solution or a future health bill in disguise?
I have been in this business for 32 years, and I size arsenic systems for well owners all over the country. The honest answer is that the right system, sized correctly, costs less than most people expect. The wrong system costs more. This guide breaks down every line item, including the parts the salespeople do not explain. For background on what arsenic does to your health, where it comes from, and the full treatment overview, see our complete guide to arsenic in well water.
What this guide covers
- The MAW arsenic system and current pricing
- Interactive cost estimator (your specific water)
- What actually drives the price
- 10-year total cost of ownership
- Owner-installed vs licensed plumber install
- The cost of not treating arsenic
- RO, distillation, bottled water, doing nothing
- Why $4,795 ion exchange beats $1,500 adsorptive media over 10 years
- FAQ
The MAW arsenic system at a glance
We sell one whole-house arsenic system, and one size covers most homes: the 2 cubic foot resin bed holds roughly 1,000,000 gallons of capacity, so a smaller household simply goes longer between rebeds. See it on the arsenic filters collection page, or for a deeper feature-by-feature comparison see best arsenic water filter for well water.
| System | Capacity | Valve | Service Reminder | Electricity | Best For | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole House Arsenic Removal System (Non-Backwashing) | 2 cu ft resin in a 12" x 54" black Vortech tank, then a 1.5 cu ft carbon tank | Clack C1190 in/out head, up to 10 GPM service flow | Annual lab test on treated water tracks media life | None | Most homes (up to 10 GPM) with confirmed arsenate (As V) | $4,795 |
The system is 1" inline plumbing, ships with the arsenic-selective ion exchange resin and the carbon boxed for loading at install, and removes arsenate (As V) extremely effectively; it handles arsenite (As III) only when paired with upstream pre-oxidation. If your lab report shows total arsenic without a speciation breakdown, run a speciation test first so the treatment train is designed for the form you actually have.
Estimate your total system cost
Use the tool below to get a realistic itemized estimate for your specific water. The numbers update live based on what you select. This is the same first-pass estimate I would build for you over the phone.
Arsenic system cost estimator
Your estimate
Make a selection in each row above to see your itemized estimate.
This is a planning estimate based on typical Mid-Atlantic well water. For an exact quote and sizing, text Aidan your water test results: 443-277-2204.
What actually drives the price
If you have shopped around, you have seen arsenic systems online from $400 cartridge units to $16,000 reverse osmosis behemoths. The spread is enormous because most listings are not comparing the same thing. Here is what actually moves the needle on price.
1. The media (the biggest single factor)
This is where the industry gets cute. There are two main families of arsenic-removal media:
- Adsorptive media (titanium dioxide, iron oxide, granular ferric oxide). Cheaper upfront ($1,200 to $2,500 for the system). The media is sacrificial: it binds arsenic until it is full, then bleeds through with no warning. Typical life is 12 to 36 months depending on arsenic level, pH, silica, and iron interference. Replacement runs $1,000 to $1,800 per cycle. Many of the top-ranked Google listings for "cheap arsenic filter" are this category.
- Arsenic-selective ion exchange resin (what we use). Higher upfront cost, and the resin does not regenerate: it holds arsenic permanently inside the bead until the bed is replaced, typically every 1 to 5 years, and it never releases stored arsenic back into the water, even past capacity. The resin is highly selective for arsenate, so it is much less affected by competing ions.
Over a 10-year horizon, the higher-priced ion exchange system actually costs less than the cheap adsorptive system. We will run that math below in the TCO section.
2. The control head
The system uses a Clack C1190 in/out service head with no electronics: nothing to program, nothing to plug in, nothing to fail. The resin does the work and an annual lab test verifies it. Older arsenic systems used a metering valve, but that valve only counted gallons as a service reminder; it never backwashed or regenerated the media.
3. The tank
We use black Vortech tanks: 12" x 54" for the arsenic resin and 10" x 54" for the carbon. Vortech has a built-in distributor plate, so there is no gravel underbed (no gravel ships in the box, no gravel lives in the tank).
4. The carbon tank
New arsenic resin can give the water a fishy smell and taste for a while after install. ResinTech, the resin's maker, says new anion resins can release trace compounds such as trimethylamine that are not hazardous at the concentrations normally found and that the odor normally goes away once the system has been in service. Not every home notices it. So the system includes our 1.5 cubic foot non-backwashing carbon tank right after the arsenic tank, which takes that smell and taste out before the water reaches your taps. It adds $1,300 to the system price, and the carbon is replaced about every 4 to 5 years at $295 a cubic foot.
5. Pre-treatment for your specific water chemistry
Arsenic does not exist alone in the well. The other things in the water determine whether the arsenic system can do its job, and they add to the project cost.
- Iron above 0.3 ppm. Iron will foul any arsenic media in months. You need to remove iron first. See iron filter cost and best iron filter. Plan around $2,895 for a 2.5 cubic foot Katalox Light system.
- pH below 6.5. Low pH causes plumbing corrosion and reduces arsenic removal efficiency on some media. You need an acid neutralizer upstream. Plan around $1,495.
- As III (arsenite, the reduced form). Most wells are predominantly As V (arsenate), which the resin removes directly. Wells with low dissolved oxygen, high iron, or high sulfide can have significant As III, which has to be oxidized to As V before the resin will catch it. A simple chlorine pellet feeder runs about $350.
- Sediment. A 20" Big Blue housing with a 5 micron sediment cartridge protects the resin from particulate fouling. Roughly $200 to $250 for the housing plus $30 to $60 per year in cartridges.
Treatment order matters. Iron first, then water softening (if hardness is also high), then pH correction, then arsenic, with the carbon tank right after the arsenic tank. We cover the full sequence in our correct order of well water treatment systems guide.
6. Installation
Our arsenic system is two 1" NPT inline tanks with no drain line, no brine line, and no electrical connection, so the install is closer to two sediment filters than to a softener. We recommend having a plumber install it: about an hour or two per tank, roughly 2 to 4 hours for both. Both tanks ship empty with the media in separate boxes, loaded at install. The box has little install paperwork, so use our install guides, and Aidan supports your plumber by phone at 800-460-5810. If you'd rather do it yourself, text Aidan at 443-277-2204 with any questions.
10-year total cost of ownership
Upfront equipment is only one line. The honest comparison is the total spend over a decade. Here is the line-item math for the most common scenarios, assuming a typical family of four with arsenic in the 10 to 30 ppb range.
| Cost line | MAW Non-Backwashing ($4,795) | Cheap Adsorptive ($1,500) |
|---|---|---|
| Equipment | $4,795 | $1,500 |
| Owner-installed labor | $0 | $0 |
| Sediment cartridges (10 yrs at $40/yr) | $400 | $400 |
| Annual arsenic lab test ($50, 10 yrs) | $500 | $500 |
| Resin or media replacement | One rebed in a typical decade: two 1 cu ft boxes of ASM-10-HP at $945 = $1,890 | $1,200 every 18 mo (~6 cycles) = $7,200 |
| Carbon replacement | One change in a typical decade: 1.5 cu ft of Centaur carbon at $295/cu ft = about $443 | $0 |
| Electricity | $0 | $0 |
| 10-year total | $8,028 | $9,600 |
Two things jump out. First, the cheap adsorptive system is the most expensive option in the long run, by a wide margin. Second, point-of-use RO has by far the lowest 10-year cost, but it only treats one tap, not the bathing, cooking, ice maker, or other fixtures. We will get into the trade-off in the alternatives section.
Owner-installed vs licensed plumber install
A licensed plumber typically charges about $200 to $500 per tank, so roughly $400 to $1,000 for the two tanks, and we recommend one. Here is the honest breakdown.
| Path | Cost | Time | What you need | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owner-installed | $0 labor (plus $30-60 in fittings) | From a few hours to a couple of days | Basic plumbing tools, a pipe cutter, Teflon tape, a couple of unions, two threaded 1" NPT adapters, and basic confidence with PEX, copper, or CPVC. Text Aidan at 443-277-2204 with any questions. | Owners who have done some plumbing and would rather do it themselves. |
| Licensed plumber | $400 to $1,000 typical for both tanks | 2 to 4 hours of plumber time | Schedule a local licensed plumber. Send them the install diagram from us in advance. They cut into the main line and install bypass-equipped unions on either side of each tank. | What we recommend for most homes, and especially homes with copper soldering or complex manifolds. |
Either way, the install is the same: cut the cold incoming line after the pressure tank (and after any iron filter or softener if you have them), put unions on each side, screw the arsenic tank into its bypass, plumb the carbon tank right after it, load the media, then open the valves slowly and flush. The system has no drain line under normal service operation.
The cost of not treating arsenic
This is the most important section of this guide. Arsenic is invisible. You cannot taste it, smell it, or see it. A family can drink and bathe in 30 ppb arsenic water for years and not feel a thing. The damage shows up later, and by then you cannot put it back.
The EPA Maximum Contaminant Level for arsenic is 10 ppb (10 micrograms per liter), set in 2001. The agency notes that even at the MCL, there is residual lifetime risk. That is why the EPA used to set the MCLG (the goal, ignoring cost) at zero (EPA Chemical Contaminant Rules).
The IARC classifies inorganic arsenic in drinking water as a Group 1 carcinogen: known to cause cancer in humans (IARC monograph). Long-term exposure has been linked to:
- Bladder, lung, and skin cancers
- Cardiovascular disease and elevated blood pressure
- Skin lesions, hyperpigmentation, and keratoses
- Developmental and cognitive effects in children exposed in utero or early childhood (CDC)
I am not in the business of fear marketing. I am in the business of telling you what is actually true so you can decide. If your water tests above 10 ppb, treatment is not a luxury upgrade. If it tests above 50 ppb, you should not be drinking or cooking with the water until you have a system in place. Bottled water is a reasonable bridge while you order and install. Children, pregnant women, and immunocompromised family members are at higher risk, so a water test result that you might delay treating in a single-adult household is a result you should treat immediately when little kids are in the home.
For a deeper look at health thresholds, see the EPA arsenic rule, the World Health Organization arsenic fact sheet, and the IARC monograph linked above. Risk also varies sharply by region. For a state-by-state breakdown of where arsenic in well water shows up most often, see arsenic in well water by state.
Cost of alternatives, honestly
I get this question a lot: "Can't I just buy a Brita pitcher or a $300 RO unit?" Let us run the numbers.
| Alternative | Upfront | Annual | 10-year total | Honest assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitcher filter (e.g., countertop) | $30-$80 | $80-$200 | $830-$2,080 | Most pitcher filters are not certified for arsenic. The few that are remove a fraction. A 2017 peer-reviewed study found pitcher filters effective only at low concentrations and only when the cartridge is fresh (Barnaby et al., 2017). Not appropriate for whole-family drinking water at any meaningful arsenic level. |
| Under-sink reverse osmosis (drinking water only) | $275-$595 | $80-$120 | $1,440 typical | Genuinely effective for drinking and cooking from one tap, usually the kitchen. Look for an NSF/ANSI 58 certified arsenic-rated unit. Does nothing for your shower, bathtub, ice maker on a fridge that is not plumbed to the RO, or laundry. If your only concern is drinking water and your arsenic is moderate, this is a defensible answer. |
| Distillation (countertop) | $200-$500 | $30-$50 (electricity) | $700-$1,000 | Effective at removing arsenic but slow (about 1 gallon per 4-6 hours). Practical only as a backup for drinking water in a single-person household. |
| Bottled water for a family of four | $0 | $1,040-$2,080 | $10,400-$20,800 | Surprisingly common. Surprisingly expensive. And you are still bathing in untreated water. The cumulative cost over 10 years is more than twice the cost of our whole-house arsenic system. |
| Whole-house arsenic system (MAW) | $4,795 | $90/yr (test + cartridges) plus one ~$1,890 rebed and one ~$443 carbon change per decade | $8,028 | The only option that protects every fixture in the house, including the shower, kids' bathwater, ice maker, dishwasher, and washing machine. Lowest 10-year total of any whole-house solution. |
Why our $4,795 system actually costs less than a $1,500 cheap one
This is the most counterintuitive thing in the cost comparison, and it is the reason we sell the systems we do.
The Google search results for "cheap arsenic filter" point you toward systems in the $1,200 to $1,800 range. They look like a great deal. They use granular adsorptive media, often titanium dioxide or granular ferric oxide. The marketing copy says they last "up to 5 years." In real wells, with real arsenic levels and real flow rates, here is what actually happens:
Year 1: works great. Year 2: starts losing capacity, especially if you have any silica or competing ions. Year 2.5 to 3: media is exhausted. With no warning, it bleeds through and you start drinking arsenic again, often at higher levels than the raw water (because it can release what it has stored). The only way to know is to test. If you test annually, you catch it. If you do not, you have been exposed for months.
Then you pay $1,200 to $1,800 to re-bed it, and start over. Repeat 4 to 6 times in a decade. Reddit thread that surfaced in our research: "Filter replacements cost about $2k. Filter did not even last 6 months."
Year 1: works great. Years after: still works great, because the hybrid resin carries roughly 500,000 gallons of capacity per cubic foot and, critically, never releases stored arsenic back into the water even past capacity. Run an annual lab test on the treated water; when the number starts creeping up (typically after 1 to 5 years), rebed the tank with two boxes of ASM-10-HP resin and keep going. The carbon tank after it gets new carbon about every 4 to 5 years.
The selectivity of the resin means it is far more resistant to interference from other ions, and the no-dumping chemistry means a late test is never a safety emergency. You spend more upfront. You spend less total. And the failure mode is safe by chemistry, which is the part that matters for a YMYL contaminant.
Both systems will technically remove arsenic on day one. But on day 1,000, only one is still doing it reliably. That is what you are buying when you spend the extra money: certainty over a 10-year window on a contaminant you cannot see, taste, or smell.
Send Aidan your water test for an exact quote
I will look at your arsenic level, iron, manganese, pH, hardness, and any other contaminants and give you a sized, itemized recommendation. No salespeople, no franchise markup. Just the right system for your water.
Call: 800-460-5810
See Arsenic SystemsFrequently asked questions
Is $4,795 actually a fair price for a whole-house arsenic system?
Yes. The Crystal Quest 2-cu-ft Standalone is $2,389 with adsorptive media (1 to 3 year life). The Clean Water Store 7500 starts at $2,972 for a 1.0 cu ft adsorptive system. Local franchises (Culligan, RainSoft, etc.) typically quote $5,000 to $10,000 for an arsenic install. Our $4,795 price buys twice the arsenic media of most budget systems, in a certified no-dumping resin that can never spike arsenic back into your water at end of life, plus a carbon tank for the fishy taste and odor new arsenic resin can cause, backed by a real US warranty.
What size home does the system cover?
Most of them. The system flows up to 10 GPM continuously, and the 2 cubic foot bed holds roughly 1,000,000 gallons of capacity, so a 2 person household and a 7 person household run the same hardware; the bigger family simply rebeds sooner. For raw arsenic above 30 ppb, call Aidan with your lab results before ordering so media-life expectations are set conservatively. Free shipping.
How often does the resin need to be replaced?
Typically every 1 to 5 years, depending on your raw arsenic level, water use, and competing anions like sulfate. The annual lab arsenic test on the treated water is how you track it: when the treated number starts creeping up, it is rebed time. Under correct operating conditions (iron below 0.3 ppm, pH 6.5-8.0) and moderate arsenic, the 2 cubic foot bed can run toward the long end of that range.
What does resin replacement cost if it is ever needed?
The rebed is two 1 cubic foot boxes of ASM-10-HP arsenic-selective resin at $945 per box ($1,890 total), typically once every 1 to 5 years. The tank, head, and bypass stay in service, and we walk you through the change-out on the phone. Owners of our older arsenic systems use the same resin.
Do I really need a whole-house system, or can I just put an RO under the kitchen sink?
Honest answer: it depends on your arsenic level and your goals. If your arsenic is in the 10-25 ppb range and your only concern is the water you drink and cook with, a certified NSF/ANSI 58 arsenic-rated under-sink RO is a defensible solution at much lower cost. You will still bathe in untreated water, which is generally considered low-risk for arsenic since dermal absorption is minimal compared to ingestion. If your arsenic is above 25 ppb, if you have young children, or if you want your ice maker, dishwasher, and refrigerator all on filtered water, the whole-house system is the right call.
Will a whole-house carbon filter or standard sediment filter remove arsenic?
No. Standard activated carbon does not remove arsenic. A 5-micron sediment filter does not remove arsenic. Standard ion exchange water softeners do not remove arsenic. A water softener can actually slightly increase the bioavailability of any arsenic that passes through. You need a media or membrane specifically designed for arsenic.
Does electricity bill go up?
No. The system runs zero electricity, period. There is no valve, no display, and no drain: the ambient pressure of your well or city line pushes water through the resin bed and the carbon tank. Nothing to plug in, nothing to program, nothing to fail.
What if my water test shows iron in addition to arsenic?
Common scenario. Iron must be removed first, in a separate stage upstream of the arsenic system. Iron above 0.3 ppm will foul the arsenic resin within months. Plan on adding an iron filter (about $2,895 for a 2.5 cubic foot Katalox Light system; see our iron filter cost guide). The order is well -> pressure tank -> iron filter -> softener (if hard) -> acid neutralizer (if low pH) -> arsenic tank -> carbon tank -> house.
Do I need a plumber to install this?
We recommend one; Aidan supports your plumber by phone at 800-460-5810. The install is two 1" NPT inline tanks on the cold side after your pressure tank, the arsenic tank and then the carbon tank, with no drain line and no electrical connection; a plumber typically needs about an hour or two per tank. If you'd rather do it yourself, you can; text Aidan at 443-277-2204 with any questions.
How do I find out my arsenic level?
You need a certified independent lab test. Strip test kits are not accurate at the parts-per-billion level required for arsenic. Our well water test kit ($199) covers arsenic plus 52 other contaminants and is processed by an independent certified lab. For an arsenic-specific walk-through (lab options, sample handling, and how to interpret the result), see how to test for arsenic in well water. For broader context, see our guides on how to test well water and how to read your test results.
Where does this fit in the bigger well water cost picture?
Arsenic is one stage of a complete well water treatment train. If you want the master cost overview that covers iron, hardness, pH, sulfur, sediment, and arsenic together, see our well water treatment system cost guide. For the full architecture, see the complete guide to well water filtration systems.