Water supply charges
Keeping your drinking water supply reliable, affordable and ready for the future
From 1 April 2026, our average yearly bill is £162. That’s £1 a month more than last year.
The cost of a year’s worth of water from us is over £100 cheaper than the sector average of £266 for 2026/27.
Where is my money spent?
Most of the pennies from your bill go toward keeping your drinking water flowing every day. But we also invest in making sure your supply is reliable, affordable and ready for the future.
Worried about paying your bill?
If you’re worried about paying your bill, we’re here to help
Could you save with a meter?
Try our water calculator to find out
Did you know?
| Where your money goes | Cost within each £1 | What this means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Safe drinking water every day | 37p | Treating and testing every drop to the highest standards so you have safe, high-quality drinking water whenever you turn on the tap. |
| Maintaining our reliable network | 20p | Looking after 21 water treatment sites and our 3,409km of underground pipes to keep bursts and interruptions at the lowest levels in the industry. Plus we’re proactively finding and fixing leaks to save water, so you can rely on your supply every day. |
| Investing to ensure we’re ready for the future | 19p | This funds new investment so we can tackle the big challenges of the future, like climate change, population growth and infrastructure getting older. Improvements will mean fewer leaks, smarter ways to track your usage, and an even more sustainable, reliable water supply. |
| Protecting the environment we all rely on | 13p | Managing our water sources, securing new ones, and caring for the rare chalk streams on our doorstep, like the Ems, Meon and Lavant. |
| Supporting you | 11p | Being there when you need us with the highest levels of service. From helping you be more water efficient to save money, to providing extra support when you need it most, there’ll always be a friendly voice at the end of the phone. |
Find more information about our work to save water and about our ambitious five year plan.
Important documents about our charges
- Scheme of Charges for Household Customers 2026-2027
- Addendum to our 2026-2027 Charges Scheme
- Statement of Board Assurance in relation to the 2026-2027 Charges Scheme
- Statement of significant changes 2026-2027
For documents relating to previous years, see the FAQ below.
Frequently asked questions
We understand that many household budgets are under pressure. We don’t take any increase to your bills lightly and want to be clear about changes.
1. Prices have changed
From April 2026, our average bill will increase from £150 to £162 per year for 2026-2027. That’s £1 more a month compared to last year.
These increases are down to both inflation and to invest in projects that keep your water reliable, affordable and ready for the future – from fixing leaks faster to protecting our environment.
Helping Hand social tariff and Watersure
We have kept the increase to our Helping Hand social tariff as low as possible and below the rate of inflation, increasing it by just under £3 compared to last year. For 2026, this is £94 a year.
Our Watersure tariff has also stayed below the rate of inflation, increasing just £4.81 a year.
2. Changes to the billing year
If you don’t have a meterThis year, we’ve changed when we send annual bills.
From 2026, your annual bill will cover from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. This is different from previous years when bills covered from 1 June to 31 May.
To move to the new billing year, your last annual bill covered a shorter period. That means you paid for three months less than a normal year. Because of this, your bill may look much higher than last year’s because it’s for a full year.
If you have a meterYou’ll get your bill when you normally do, but new prices for 2026-2027 begin from April 1. In previous years, this would have been from June. With a meter, we charge you every six months based on the water you use.
3. We’ve made some changes to measured and unmeasured charges
The average annual bill from 1 April 2026 is £162, but this can look different depending on
- Whether you have a meter or not
- If you have a meter, how much water you use
- Your home’s rateable value
- If you’re on a social tariff
We want to help our customers get their water use down – both for saving money, water and our environment. We also want to make sure everyone pays a fair amount for the water they use.
Our latest analysis shows that there is currently an imbalance between our two main types of charges (measured and unmeasured). To help address this, we have applied a higher increase to unmeasured bills than to measured bills for 2026-27.
- Measured charges will increase by a maximum of 3.5% in line with inflation, or less with lower water users getting the lowest increases, and in some cases less.
- Unmeasured charges will increase by 7–9%, with the top of the threshold driven by the Rateable Value (RV) of the property.
The best way to make sure you’re paying a fair bill is to pay for the water you’re actually using. We’ll fit a meter for free if you request one and it’s possible at your home. If we can’t, we can look at moving you to an 'Assessed Charge' to make sure your bill is as fair as possible. We can help you if you’re worried about paying your bills. Please just get in touch with us and we’ll see what we can do to best support you.
There are a few different ways you can save on your bill.
Save water at home
Small changes, like shorter showers or turning taps off, can really add up. You can also get free water‑saving devices from us to help reduce your use even more.
Switch to a meter
Pay for the water you actually use. If you live in an area where we’re fitting smart water meters, these make it even easier to see your usage and spot where you can save. With a meter, your wastewater bill could also do down.
Spread the cost
Why not set up a Direct Debit or flexible payment plan so you can pay in smaller chunks over the year? You can do this in your online account, online or by phone.
Support from us
If you’re on a low income or have medical needs, schemes like Helping Hand and WaterSure can help keep your bills more manageable. Find out your eligibility and apply online, or give us a call.
2025-2026 Scheme of Charges for household customers
2024-2025 Scheme of Charges for household customers
2023-2024 Scheme of Charges for household customers
2022-2023 Scheme of Charges for household customers
2021-2022 Scheme of Charges for household customers
2020-2021 Scheme of Charges for household customers
For information about our Scheme of Charges dating back further than five years, please contact us to request this from our regulations team.
Your water bill is for the whole year from 1st April to 31st March. You can either pay your bill in full immediately, or if you wish you can pay in two instalments, the first being due straight away and the second six months later. We will send out a reminder for the second instalment.
Don't worry if you haven't got got a bank or building society account and need to spread the payments of your water bill. You can sign up for weekly, fortnightly or monthly payments by contacting our Customer Services Department. A set of instalment slips payable free of charge at any branch of Lloyds will be sent to you. You can choose to make your payment at any PayPoint retailer with your unique barcode printed on the front page.
Although in 1991 the local authority ceased using the Rateable Value of a property for charging rates, and the Rateable Values were no longer reviewed, the Government made provision for the Water Industry to continue using these assessments for charging purposes. For those properties without a Rateable Value and who are not on a meter we charge a Licence Fee for the supply of water.
If you have any questions about your bill you can contact us by phone, email or Live Chat. If you decide to contact us, we'll respond within 10 working days of receiving the correspondence. If you write to ask us to change the way you pay your bill and we find we can't make the change, we'll let you know within 5 working days from the date we hear from you.
Your Portsmouth Water account may be in credit for a number of reasons. If you'd like a refund, find out how to do this in our refund policy.