What is your water footprint?

By Rachel Sells | Texas Water Institute
Provided by Texas State Soil & Water Conservation Board

  • What is your water footprint?
    What is your water footprint?

    How much water do you consume? The length of your shower, timing of lawn watering and amount of time you run the water while brushing your teeth may seem insignificant. But how do those add up? 

    One way to look at the full picture of your water use is to calculate your water footprint, which is the amount of water a person consumes directly and indirectly.  

    Direct water use is water that you can see in your home and on your water bill. Decreasing this water use may save money and reduce your water footprint. 

    Indirect water use is the water embedded in the production of consumer products, including food, clothing and technology. This water use is unseen, so many people may not consider it.  

    What is your total daily water footprint? It might surprise you. 

    Direct water use 

    • Bathing 
      • Short shower (5 minutes): 10-12.5 gallons 
      • Long shower (15 minutes): 30- 37.5 gallons  
      • Bath (standard tub): 30-35 gallons 
    • Load of laundry (average): 41 gallons 
    • Dishwasher load (modern energy-efficient): 3-5 gallons  
    • Watering 0.5 acres of turfgrass lawn once with 1.5 inches of water using a conventional residential sprinkler system: 20,000-25,000 gallons  
    • Household water leaks: 7-10 gallons a day 

    Indirect water use 

    • Drinks 
      • Plastic water bottle (1 liter or .26 gallons): 0.40 gallons 
      • Soda (8 fluid ounces or 0.063 gallons):110 gallons 
      • Cup of coffee (8 fluid ounces or 0.063 gallons): 66 gallons 
      • Beer (8 fluid ounces or 0.063 gallons): 19 gallons 
    • Food 
      • Burger patty (4 oz): 463 gallons 
      • Chicken patty (4 oz): 130 gallons 
      • Bread (4 oz): 48 gallons 
      • Lettuce (4 oz): 7 gallons 
      • Apple (4 oz): 25 gallons 
    • Clothing 
      • 1 new t-shirt: 650 gallons 
      • 1 new pair of denim blue jeans: 998 gallons 
    • Transportation  
      • 1 gallon of gas: 3-6 gallons 
      • A new car: 13,737-21,926 gallons 
    • Paper products 
      • Roll of paper towels: 12 gallons  
      • Piece of paper: 1.3 gallons 
    • Technology 
      • 1 smart phone: 3500 gallons 
      • AI-written email: 0.13 gallons 
      • AI-generated image: 0.5 gallon* 
      • AI-generated video: 1 gallon for 10 seconds* 

    *Note: The water footprint for using generative AI to create photos or videos varies depending on size of image and length of video, and clear data on that usage is not available currently. Experts agree that using generative AI to create larger files or longer videos requires more energy and more water. 

    Tips to shrink your water footprint 

    Lawn watering: Consider using Water My Yard, a free web application by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, which can create location-customized, science-based lawn watering recommendations. Watering when temperatures are is cool can save water by reducing evaporation. Be mindful of recent rain, and pause irrigation systems after rains to reduce water use. Turf grass makes up 46.6% of municipal water use.  

    Water-efficient landscaping: Integrating drought-tolerant plants, native plant landscapes, and zero scaping can help reduce residential outdoor water use.   

    Fix leaks quickly: A leak that drips one time a second wastes 7-10 gallons of water a day. That can add up to 3,000 gallons a year. Save money and water by quickly identifying and fixing leaks. 

    Clothing: Clothing consumption can be reduced by repairing current pieces or purchasing high-quality secondhand clothes.  

    Food and drinks: Consider investing in a water filter and reuseable water bottle to reduce the water used to produce drink packaging. Buying locally grown foods can help reduce the water used for transportation.  

    Technology: Reducing unnecessary AI usage can reduce your indirect water use. And, using technological devices for more years until they need to be replaced can reduce water used to produce new devices more frequently.  

    Rainwater collection: Collecting rainwater for watering the lawn, washing laundry, and more non-potable water uses can help reduce your water bill. After it is treated, rainwater can also be used for potable uses, such as bathing. 

    Appliances: Only run full loads of laundry and dishes. If you need to replace an appliance, consider ENERGY STAR certified models.  

    Water conservation resources: 

    Tag(s): residential water use, Urban Water, water conservation

    Water Use Sources: