Can you drink tap water in Amsterdam?

Drinking water, tested every day

Amsterdam's water is produced and supplied by Waternet, the public water company for the city and region, which serves around 1.3 million customers. It must comply with the European Drinking Water Directive and with Dutch law, which is stricter. Waternet's laboratory, Het Waterlaboratorium, tests the water every day at every stage: at the source, in the treatment plants, in the pipes and in people's homes.

Waternet also uses as little chlorine and as few chemicals as possible: purification relies mainly on natural processes (filtration through dune sand, settling ponds). As a result, the water has almost none of the swimming-pool taste you find elsewhere. It is soft (7.8 German degrees of hardness, whereas Waternet only calls water hard from 12): little limescale in the kettle, and a neutral taste.

Ice cubes, coffee, tea and brushing your teeth are therefore no problem at all.

Where Amsterdam's water comes from

Tap water comes from two sources:

• Rhine water, taken from the Lek Canal near Nieuwegein, pre-treated on site, then sent to the dunes of the Amsterdamse Waterleidingduinen, near Vogelenzang, between Haarlem and the sea. There it seeps through and is filtered naturally for about 90 days before being treated at the Leiduin plant. This system supplies about two thirds of Amsterdam's water.
• Water from the Bethunepolder, near Maarssen, groundwater that rises naturally in this polder. It spends about three months in the Loenderveen reservoir lake before being treated at the Weesperkarspel plant, south-east of the city.

The dunes of the Amsterdamse Waterleidingduinen are also a nature reserve, a few kilometres from the beaches near Amsterdam.

How much tap water costs

In 2026, Waternet charges €1.18 per cubic metre of water, plus the tap water tax (€0.437 per cubic metre) and 9% VAT. That comes to about €1.76 for 1,000 litres, or 0.2 cents a litre, excluding the standing charge. A bottle of water bought at a kiosk in the station or a museum costs hundreds of times more. On a budget trip, a reusable bottle is one of the simplest savings: more ideas are in our guide to budgeting for Amsterdam.

Where to fill your bottle for free

According to Waternet, the city has around 500 free public water points. There are two kinds:

• happertjes, drinking fountains with a jet of water, installed in Amsterdam since 1903; they are generally turned off in winter to prevent freezing;
• tappertjes, modern push-button taps, installed since 2014 (the first in the Oosterpark), which only run when you press and work all year round. Their tap lets you fill a bottle.

You will find them in the Vondelpark, the Oosterpark, the Amsterdamse Bos and on Leidseplein, among other places. Waternet publishes their locations on an online map, the Happertjeskaart. For a day on a bike, look them up before you set off: our guide to cycling in Amsterdam suggests routes.

Other useful places:

• Schiphol Airport: free water points are installed after security, often near the toilets. Go through security with an empty bottle and fill it afterwards. Everything about arriving and leaving is in our guide to Schiphol Airport.
• Stations: Dutch Railways (NS) launched a programme of free water fountains in its stations in 2019.
• Your hotel: the tap water in your room is the same as everywhere else (see below for old buildings).

In restaurants and cafés: do you have to pay for water?

In the Netherlands, no law requires restaurants and cafés to serve tap water for free. The Dutch hospitality association (KHN) leaves it up to each establishment and advises customers to ask explicitly for tap water when ordering: the server can then tell you whether it is charged. Practices vary: some places serve it free, others charge for it, especially for flavoured carafes.

To ask for it, say "Mag ik een glas kraanwater?" (a glass of tap water, please) or "Een karaf kraanwater, alstublieft". If you don't specify, you may be served a bottle of mineral water, still (spa blauw) or sparkling (spa rood), which you will pay for. Our recommendations by neighbourhood are in the guide to where to eat in Amsterdam, and customs for the bill and tipping in the guide to money, payment and tipping.

Old buildings and lead pipes

The only real point of caution concerns buildings built before 1960, which are common in the historic centre: some still have lead pipes inside. Waternet has replaced all the lead connections in its network; what remains is inside buildings, and is the responsibility of their owners.

If the pipes are lead, the Dutch public health services (GGD) advise against this water for formula-fed babies, children up to age 7 and women who are pregnant or trying to conceive. For adult visitors, the risk is negligible over a stay of a few days. In practice:

• if you are travelling with a baby or are pregnant and staying in an old canal house, ask your host whether the pipes have been replaced; if not, use bottled water for baby bottles;
• a lead pipe is grey and dull, turns silvery when scratched and sounds dull when tapped.

Another rule that applies everywhere: only drink cold water. Hot tap water, which goes through a water heater, is not considered drinking water; heat cold water for tea or a baby bottle.

Canal water: not for swimming

Tap water has nothing to do with canal water. The canals and the Amstel are not official bathing waters: boat traffic makes them dangerous and, after heavy rain, the sewers can overflow into the canals. For swimming, the city points people to supervised, monitored bathing spots; the nearest are covered in our guide to beaches near Amsterdam. For health questions while travelling, see our guide to health in Amsterdam.

Summary table

Information and prices checked in October 2026 with Waternet and the Dutch health authorities.

Further reading

To find toilets during the day, read our guide to toilets in Amsterdam. Pharmacies, doctors and emergency numbers are in our guide to health in Amsterdam, and tips for spending less in the guide to budgeting for Amsterdam.