Austin Commercial Water and Wastewater Rates: 2026 Peak, Sewer, and Reclaimed-Water Checks

What changed in Austin

Source-reported facts: Austin Water lists 2025-2026 rates effective November 1, 2025. The City says its evaluation considered rising operating costs, growth-related infrastructure, and climate-change investments.

The Council backup schedule lists proposed commercial water at $5.57 per 1,000 gallons off peak and $6.35 peak. Commercial wastewater is listed at $11.62 per 1,000 gallons.

Who may be affected

Austin commercial buildings, restaurants, hotels, multifamily operators, offices, campuses, laundries, industrial users, and large-volume accounts should model water and wastewater together instead of looking at the water rate alone.

Large-volume schedules are listed separately for customers such as Cypress, NXP, Samsung, and the University of Texas. Reclaimed water customers also have a separate system-wide volume charge.

Why sewer is the larger marginal line

Commercial wastewater at $11.62 per 1,000 gallons is higher than Austin commercial peak water at $6.35 per 1,000 gallons. For many commercial accounts, the wastewater side can carry more bill exposure than the water side.

Austin also has wastewater averaging rules. Businesses should confirm whether wastewater volume is tied to current water usage, an averaging period, or another account-specific method before estimating savings.

What a 20 percent usage reduction could mean

Directional estimate: assume an Austin commercial account uses 300,000 gallons in a month during a peak-water period and wastewater volume tracks the same 300,000 gallons. A 20 percent reduction equals 60,000 gallons.

At $6.35 peak water plus $11.62 commercial wastewater per 1,000 gallons, those 60,000 gallons represent about $1,078.20 in monthly variable exposure. Actual savings depend on wastewater averaging, peak/off-peak timing, fixed charges, reclaimed-water use, and site feasibility.

What to check first on your bill

Confirm peak or off-peak water timing, billed gallons, wastewater volume calculation, customer class, large-volume classification, reclaimed-water account status, and any fixed minimum charges.

If irrigation or cooling loads drive summer water use but do not return to sewer, separate those end uses before estimating wastewater savings.

Where Smart Valve fits

Smart Valve may be relevant when an Austin commercial property has controllable metered volume and water or wastewater charges respond to reduced usage. It cannot reduce fixed charges or guarantee sewer savings when wastewater averaging limits the current-period effect.

A bill assessment should start with 12 months of water and wastewater detail, including peak months and the wastewater averaging period.

FAQ

Sources

• Austin Water - rates and fees page (retrieved June 22, 2026)
• City of Austin - FY2025-2026 water, wastewater, and reclaimed rate backup (retrieved June 22, 2026)