WateringTimes
Mandatory scheduleVerified Schedule for October 2026

San Antonio watering schedule 2026

SAWS customers water one day a week, Monday to Friday, by the last digit of the address. Never 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. No watering from midnight to 5 a.m. either; the morning window opens at 5 a.m.

Today

Rules from: San Antonio Water System (SAWS), under the City of San Antonio drought ordinance (City Code Chapter 34, Article IV) (official schedule )

San Antonio watering days by season

Stage 3, in force since September 21, 2026

One day a week
  1. MON
  2. TUE
  3. WED
  4. THU
  5. FRI
  6. SAT
  7. SUN

Some addresses, see the listTodayEarlier this week

  • Ending in 0 or 1Monday
  • Ending in 2 or 3Tuesday
  • Ending in 4 or 5Wednesday
  • Ending in 6 or 7Thursday
  • Ending in 8 or 9Friday

No sprinklers between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. on any day. No watering from midnight to 5 a.m. either; the morning window opens at 5 a.m.

DaysStage 3 is in force: one watering day a week, set by the last digit of the street address.
RulesOn that day, sprinklers run only from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 9 p.m. to midnight.
RulesNo sprinkler watering on Saturday or Sunday. A handheld hose has no day or hour limit.
RulesDrip irrigation gets two days, Monday and Friday, in the same hours.
How the rule works

San Antonio Water System customers are in Stage 3: sprinklers, soaker hoses and irrigation systems run once a week, on the day set by the last digit of the street address, from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 9 p.m. to midnight. Addresses ending in 0 or 1 water on Monday, 2 or 3 on Tuesday, 4 or 5 on Wednesday, 6 or 7 on Thursday and 8 or 9 on Friday. No address has a sprinkler day on Saturday or Sunday. The day and hour limits do not cover a handheld hose. SAWS announced the return to Stage 3 on September 21, 2026, under the city drought ordinance (City Code 34-319 and 34-323). Stage 3 lasts until a published notice ends it. When no drought stage is declared, the standing year-round rule assigns no watering day and bans sprinkler watering from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Rules and fines in San Antonio

Current stage Stage 3 is in force. SAWS announced on September 21, 2026 that its customers are again under Stage 3 watering rules, triggered under City Code 34-319(a)(3) when the Edwards Aquifer 10-day rolling average at well J-17 falls below 640 feet. Stage 3 continues until a newspaper notice cancels it or puts Stage 4 in effect (SAWS Stage 3 page). Earlier in 2026, Stage 3 had been lifted in favor of Stage 2 in early August after running since June 2024.

The exceptions include drip irrigation, hand watering, food gardens, new plantings and recycled water, each with its own conditions. A written exception can also be requested. The full text is below.

First: $137. Then $225 and $500, for a single family home.

Full text of the rules

Exceptions to the San Antonio rules

  • No day or hour limit for watering with a handheld hose (City Code 34-323(3)).
  • Drip irrigation: two days a week, Monday and Friday, from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight (City Code 34-323(3), kept in Stage 3 by 34-323(4)).
  • Residential vegetable gardens on drip: three days a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, during Stage 3 watering hours only (SAWS Stage 3 page and vegetable garden variance).
  • New landscape: extra watering days need a new landscape variance from SAWS (City Code 34-292(a) and 34-332). SAWS has said it does not grant variances for new grass unless the site is new construction.
  • Recycled or treated wastewater: any day, also during the restricted hours, without waste, when the property posts the signage SAWS requires (SAWS Stage 3 page; City Code 34-332).
  • Other variances (hose-end sprinkler time, large properties, fountains) are requested in writing from SAWS Conservation; not all are granted (City Code 34-276; SAWS Variance Requests).
  • Water waste is banned at all times and in every stage: runoff into a gutter, ditch or storm drain, overspray, failure to fix a controllable leak, and landscape watering during or shortly after rain. Automatic sprinkler systems must have a working rain sensor (City Code 34-271 and 34-274(2); SAWS Report Water Waste).

Fines in San Antonio

  1. 1Charge added to the SAWS bill for a single family or small commercial customer: $137 for the 1st violation, $225 for the 2nd and $500 for the 3rd (SAWS charge table, effective for violations on or after July 6, 2024). Accounts using 1 million gallons or more, and meters at large irrigation sites, pay $500, $625 and $1,250.
  2. 2The first charge can be waived by taking a one-hour online class, once in the life of the account (Utility Service Regulations 4.8.9).
  3. 3Watering on the wrong day or at the wrong time can bring a violation without a prior warning when an enforcement officer sees it (SAWS Report Water Waste).
  4. 4A customer can ask SAWS Conservation to review a violation in writing within 14 days of the notice (Utility Service Regulations 4.9.1).
  5. 5The City Code still lists criminal fines of $50.00 to $100.00 for a first offense, $250.00 to $500.00 for a second, and $1,000.00 to $2,000.00 for a third (34-295(a)), but SAWS says it no longer issues municipal court citations for drought rules.

Report water waste

Call 210-704-SAWS and choose the Water Waste option, or use the SAWS Report Water Waste online form.

Sprinkler minutes are not computed for San Antonio: the free run time calculator and the personal plan use California's state climate table, so they cover California cities only.

San Antonio watering questions

What is my watering day in San Antonio?

It depends on the last digit of your street address: 0 or 1 Monday, 2 or 3 Tuesday, 4 or 5 Wednesday, 6 or 7 Thursday, 8 or 9 Friday (City Code 34-323(1)). A property with no street address, or with several addresses on one lot, waters on Wednesday. The same days apply in Stages 1 to 4.

What hours can I run sprinklers in San Antonio during Stage 3?

Only on your watering day, from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 9 p.m. to midnight. Stage 3 keeps the watering times of Stage 2 (City Code 34-323(3) and (4)). Soaker hoses and hose-end sprinklers follow the same day and hours as in-ground systems.

Can I water my lawn on the weekend in San Antonio?

Not with sprinklers, soaker hoses or an irrigation system while a drought stage is in force. Every address ending is assigned a weekday from Monday to Friday, so no address has a sprinkler day on Saturday or Sunday (City Code 34-323(1)). A handheld hose has no day or hour limit (City Code 34-323(3)).

How much is the SAWS fine for watering on the wrong day?

SAWS adds a charge to the water bill: $137 for a first violation at a home, $225 for a second and $500 for a third. The first charge can be waived once in the life of the account by taking a one-hour online class (Utility Service Regulations 4.8.9). A violation can be issued without a prior warning when an officer sees it, and a review can be requested within 14 days of the notice.

What are the San Antonio watering rules when there is no drought stage?

Under the year-round rule, used when the Edwards Aquifer is above 660 feet, there is no assigned watering day, and sprinklers and irrigation systems run only from midnight to 10 a.m. and from 9 p.m. to midnight (City Code 34-272(1) starts at 12:01 a.m.). Water waste, such as runoff into the street, an unrepaired leak or watering during or shortly after a rain, is banned in every stage.

Can drip irrigation or a vegetable garden be watered more often in Stage 3?

Drip systems get two days, Monday and Friday, from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight (City Code 34-323(3)). The SAWS Stage 3 page gives residential vegetable gardens on drip three days a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, during the Stage 3 watering hours only.

What is the Stage 3 drought surcharge on a SAWS bill?

In Stage 3, single family accounts pay a surcharge of $10.37 per thousand gallons for water use above 20,000 gallons a month. The surcharge is separate from the watering day rules and is charged on volume, not on violations (City Code 34-332, Table C; SAWS Stage 3 page).

Do these rules apply if SAWS is not my water company?

Inside San Antonio city limits, yes: SAWS says the city sets the water waste rules no matter who supplies the water, so well users and customers of other water companies follow them too. SAWS also applies its rules and charges to all its own customers, including those outside the city limits.

Sources and verification

Rules checked October 2026. The schedule is watched for changes and updated when the supplier changes it.

Water supplier: San Antonio Water System (SAWS), under the City of San Antonio drought ordinance (City Code Chapter 34, Article IV) (official schedule )

All 15 sources

Nearby water suppliers

AustinAustin WaterMandatory: 1 day/week for sprinkler systems, 2 for hose-end and drip; year-roundCity water
HoustonHouston Public Works (Houston Water)No assigned days; days and hours apply only in a declared drought stageCity water

The name on the water bill decides which rules apply.