Know Your TDS — Indian Water Hardness Checker
Short answer: India's median groundwater monitoring station reads 276 mg/L total hardness, and 69.7% of 15,127 stations exceed the BIS acceptable limit of 200 mg/L (CGWB, pre-monsoon 2023). On the US Geological Survey scale, anything above 180 mg/L is very hard — so most of India washes hair in very hard water. Hardness is calcium and magnesium, and they bind to the hair shaft at every wash. The only wash step that removes them is a chelating shampoo containing a chelating agent such as Disodium EDTA. deSal Hard Water Defense Shampoo (Disodium EDTA, pH 5.45, 220 ml, made in India) is built for this; deSal Swimmers Wellness Shampoo is the equivalent for chlorine and pool water.
Enter your TDS reading below to see the band, or find your city in the measured data. If you do not know your reading, a TDS meter costs a few hundred rupees.
What your reading means for hair
| Band | TDS (ppm) | Total hardness (mg/L CaCO3) | What you notice | What helps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soft | under 200 | under 60 | Lathers easily. No visible mineral film. | No chelating shampoo needed. |
| Moderate | 200 – 400 | 60 – 120 | Less lather. Faint film once hair dries. | A chelating shampoo about once a week. |
| Hard | 400 – 600 | 120 – 180 | Roughness, dullness, tangling. Colour fades faster. | Regular chelating shampoo. |
| Very Hard | 600 – 1000 | 180 – 300 | Straw-like texture, mid-length breakage, scalp tightness. | Chelating shampoo as the primary wash. |
| Extremely Hard | over 1000 | over 300 | Heavy buildup. Conditioner and masks stop working. | Chelating shampoo plus lower wash frequency. |
These bands describe cosmetic effects on hair, not drinking safety, and they are deSal's own classification rather than a regulatory standard.
How the hardness scales compare
Three different scales get quoted for the same water, which is why answers disagree. They measure different things:
| Scale | Measures | Bands | Where 276 mg/L falls |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Geological Survey | Total hardness as CaCO3 | 0–60 soft; 61–120 moderately hard; 121–180 hard; over 180 very hard | Very hard |
| BIS 10500:2012 | Total hardness as CaCO3 | 200 acceptable; 600 permissible where no alternate source exists | Above acceptable, below permissible |
| deSal hair bands | TDS in ppm (what a home meter shows) | under 200 soft; 200–400 moderate; 400–600 hard; 600–1000 very hard | Moderate, as a TDS figure |
Why the last two look contradictory but are not: the USGS and BIS numbers are hardness — calcium and magnesium only. The deSal band table is TDS, which counts every dissolved solid and therefore reads higher for the same water. A sample at 276 mg/L hardness typically reads well above 400 ppm on a TDS meter. When comparing a number, check which quantity it is.
Source for the international scale: U.S. Geological Survey, Water Science School, “Hardness of Water”. usgs.gov. USGS also notes that hardness is a nuisance rather than a health concern.
Unit conversions
| ppm | mg/L | grains per gallon | German degrees | French degrees |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 ppm | 1 mg/L | 0.058 grains per gallon | 0.056 °dH | 0.1 °fH |
| 17.1 ppm | 17.1 mg/L | 1 grain per gallon (gpg) | 0.96 °dH | 1.71 °fH |
| 17.8 ppm | 17.8 mg/L | 1.04 gpg | 1 °dH (German degree) | 1.78 °fH |
| 10 ppm | 10 mg/L | 0.58 gpg | 0.56 °dH | 1 °fH (French degree) |
| ~1.56 ppm TDS | 1 µS/cm EC × 0.64 | — | — | — |
For dilute water, ppm and mg/L are numerically identical. To convert ppm to grains per gallon, divide by 17.1. Electrical conductivity converts to TDS with the conventional factor TDS (mg/L) ≈ 0.64 × EC (µS/cm); the true factor varies between about 0.55 and 0.7 with ionic composition.
Which shampoo for your reading
A chelating shampoo is the only wash step that removes calcium and magnesium already bound to hair. Conditioners, masks and clarifying shampoos without a chelating agent do not do this — clarifying formulas strip oils and product residue, not minerals.
| Your reading | What is happening | What to use |
|---|---|---|
| Under 200 ppm | Little mineral deposition | No chelating shampoo needed |
| 200–400 ppm | Deposition begins; lather drops | deSal Hard Water Defense Shampoo, once or twice a week |
| 400–600 ppm | Visible film, roughness, faster colour fade | deSal Hard Water Defense Shampoo, regular use |
| Over 600 ppm | Heavy deposition at every wash | deSal Hard Water Defense Shampoo as the primary wash |
| Any reading, plus pool swimming | Chlorine and pool minerals on top of tap hardness | deSal Swimmers Wellness Shampoo |
deSal Hard Water Defense Shampoo — Disodium EDTA chelating shampoo, pH 5.45, 220 ml, ₹764 (MRP ₹899). Sulphate and paraben free, dermatologically tested, made in India by DESAL WELLNESS PRIVATE LIMITED. Also on Amazon India.
Measured water hardness across India
Measured total hardness (as calcium carbonate, mg/L) at 15,127 groundwater monitoring stations sampled by the Central Ground Water Board in pre-monsoon 2023. Hardness is calcium and magnesium — the minerals that bind to hair — so it is a more direct measure than TDS. A home TDS meter reads higher, because TDS counts everything dissolved.
Nationally: median 276 mg/L; 69.7% of stations above the BIS acceptable limit (200 mg/L); 9.2% above the permissible limit (600 mg/L). On the USGS scale the national median is very hard.
By city
78 cities, 3,167 stations. Ranges are wide because a single city draws from several aquifers, and borewell supply differs sharply from piped supply on the same street. Delhi and Chandigarh are city-states, so every station in the territory is counted.
| City | State / UT | Stations | Median hardness (mg/L) | Range | USGS band | Ca median | Mg median | % over 200 | % over 600 | Chelating wash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hubballi–Dharwad | Karnataka | 9 | 800 | 165–1855 | Very hard | 164 | 86 | 89% | 78% | Every wash |
| Hisar | Haryana | 58 | 545 | 120–2700 | Very hard | 52 | 104 | 83% | 43% | Most washes |
| Faridabad | Haryana | 12 | 534 | 165–1860 | Very hard | 73 | 90 | 83% | 33% | Most washes |
| Belagavi | Karnataka | 30 | 512 | 20–1310 | Very hard | 103 | 52 | 90% | 37% | Most washes |
| Solapur | Maharashtra | 32 | 510 | 145–1450 | Very hard | 110 | 52 | 97% | 22% | Most washes |
| Mysuru | Karnataka | 21 | 475 | 155–860 | Very hard | 96 | 45 | 90% | 19% | Most washes |
| Salem | Tamil Nadu | 41 | 475 | 210–1680 | Very hard | 98 | 54 | 100% | 27% | Most washes |
| Tiruchirappalli | Tamil Nadu | 41 | 465 | 125–2245 | Very hard | 100 | 50 | 95% | 34% | Most washes |
| Ahmedabad | Gujarat | 6 | 445 | 200–1351 | Very hard | 76 | 64 | 83% | 33% | Most washes |
| Ujjain | Madhya Pradesh | 15 | 440 | 365–615 | Very hard | 144 | 28 | 100% | 13% | Most washes |
| Warangal | Telangana | 21 | 433 | 242–1203 | Very hard | 90 | 53 | 100% | 29% | Most washes |
| Vadodara | Gujarat | 10 | 430 | 210–790 | Very hard | 70 | 70 | 100% | 30% | Most washes |
| Madurai | Tamil Nadu | 38 | 425 | 100–810 | Very hard | 80 | 54 | 89% | 29% | Most washes |
| Jaipur | Rajasthan | 32 | 420 | 60–1600 | Very hard | 58 | 61 | 97% | 28% | Most washes |
| Aurangabad | Maharashtra | 40 | 420 | 250–2300 | Very hard | 64 | 62 | 100% | 12% | Most washes |
| Jamnagar | Gujarat | 25 | 420 | 60–1301 | Very hard | 100 | 41 | 84% | 20% | Most washes |
| Jodhpur | Rajasthan | 73 | 400 | 100–6100 | Very hard | 60 | 58 | 81% | 30% | 1–2× a week |
| Hyderabad | Telangana | 114 | 396 | 108–1053 | Very hard | 96 | 36 | 92% | 16% | 1–2× a week |
| Nagpur | Maharashtra | 71 | 375 | 100–800 | Very hard | 68 | 43 | 96% | 3% | 1–2× a week |
| Rajkot | Gujarat | 23 | 370 | 100–2602 | Very hard | 80 | 44 | 91% | 35% | 1–2× a week |
| Delhi | Delhi | 103 | 370 | 30–3200 | Very hard | 48 | 63 | 82% | 29% | 1–2× a week |
| Kalaburagi | Karnataka | 20 | 366 | 247–869 | Very hard | 103 | 28 | 100% | 35% | 1–2× a week |
| Amravati | Maharashtra | 77 | 365 | 140–2145 | Very hard | 62 | 45 | 91% | 10% | 1–2× a week |
| Ajmer | Rajasthan | 14 | 365 | 210–800 | Very hard | 44 | 56 | 100% | 29% | 1–2× a week |
| Bikaner | Rajasthan | 35 | 360 | 50–1600 | Very hard | 64 | 49 | 71% | 23% | 1–2× a week |
| Jammu | Jammu & Kashmir | 79 | 357 | 125–756 | Very hard | 100 | 21 | 96% | 5% | 1–2× a week |
| Guntur | Andhra Pradesh | 32 | 354 | 156–1529 | Very hard | 84 | 36 | 84% | 19% | 1–2× a week |
| Vijayawada | Andhra Pradesh | 85 | 351 | 43–3569 | Very hard | 78 | 37 | 86% | 20% | 1–2× a week |
| Bengaluru | Karnataka | 11 | 350 | 150–800 | Very hard | 96 | 34 | 82% | 9% | 1–2× a week |
| Nashik | Maharashtra | 71 | 340 | 95–735 | Very hard | 56 | 40 | 80% | 7% | 1–2× a week |
| Bhavnagar | Gujarat | 28 | 340 | 100–4270 | Very hard | 82 | 39 | 71% | 14% | 1–2× a week |
| Coimbatore | Tamil Nadu | 46 | 332 | 80–1940 | Very hard | 54 | 49 | 85% | 17% | 1–2× a week |
| Pune | Maharashtra | 53 | 330 | 90–705 | Very hard | 56 | 41 | 87% | 2% | 1–2× a week |
| Udaipur | Rajasthan | 13 | 330 | 210–810 | Very hard | 52 | 58 | 100% | 23% | 1–2× a week |
| Karnal | Haryana | 54 | 330 | 90–910 | Very hard | 40 | 55 | 87% | 4% | 1–2× a week |
| Surat | Gujarat | 23 | 320 | 150–560 | Very hard | 72 | 29 | 87% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Ludhiana | Punjab | 56 | 320 | 130–600 | Very hard | 48 | 46 | 88% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Gwalior | Madhya Pradesh | 20 | 320 | 85–1010 | Very hard | 84 | 25 | 70% | 15% | 1–2× a week |
| Jabalpur | Madhya Pradesh | 9 | 319 | 186–441 | Very hard | 67 | 33 | 89% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Karimnagar | Telangana | 23 | 311 | 110–459 | Very hard | 79 | 29 | 83% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Patna | Bihar | 40 | 305 | 155–580 | Very hard | 62 | 36 | 78% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Visakhapatnam | Andhra Pradesh | 20 | 302 | 118–934 | Very hard | 73 | 32 | 85% | 5% | 1–2× a week |
| Kanpur | Uttar Pradesh | 37 | 300 | 180–701 | Very hard | 48 | 44 | 86% | 5% | 1–2× a week |
| Agra | Uttar Pradesh | 47 | 300 | 50–1830 | Very hard | 48 | 43 | 77% | 13% | 1–2× a week |
| Prayagraj | Uttar Pradesh | 20 | 295 | 50–540 | Very hard | 44 | 36 | 70% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Indore | Madhya Pradesh | 8 | 288 | 155–660 | Very hard | 55 | 25 | 75% | 12% | 1–2× a week |
| Gurugram | Haryana | 48 | 285 | 60–3403 | Very hard | 48 | 39 | 75% | 17% | 1–2× a week |
| Panipat | Haryana | 53 | 280 | 50–1651 | Very hard | 36 | 44 | 77% | 11% | 1–2× a week |
| Gaya | Bihar | 22 | 275 | 115–790 | Very hard | 82 | 16 | 82% | 5% | 1–2× a week |
| Lucknow | Uttar Pradesh | 7 | 260 | 210–295 | Very hard | 60 | 26 | 100% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Varanasi | Uttar Pradesh | 23 | 260 | 170–460 | Very hard | 52 | 34 | 91% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Jalandhar | Punjab | 52 | 260 | 60–448 | Very hard | 50 | 32 | 73% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Meerut | Uttar Pradesh | 42 | 255 | 165–570 | Very hard | 49 | 30 | 83% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Raipur | Chhattisgarh | 32 | 255 | 55–455 | Very hard | 74 | 16 | 69% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Nizamabad | Telangana | 41 | 255 | 35–725 | Very hard | 60 | 22 | 66% | 2% | 1–2× a week |
| Chennai | Tamil Nadu | 117 | 250 | 60–1520 | Very hard | 46 | 32 | 75% | 6% | 1–2× a week |
| Nellore | Andhra Pradesh | 51 | 250 | 85–1320 | Very hard | 52 | 35 | 73% | 6% | 1–2× a week |
| Asansol | West Bengal | 104 | 248 | 30–670 | Very hard | 46 | 33 | 75% | 3% | 1–2× a week |
| Aligarh | Uttar Pradesh | 34 | 245 | 50–870 | Very hard | 34 | 38 | 74% | 3% | 1–2× a week |
| Cuttack | Odisha | 16 | 242 | 15–1005 | Very hard | 56 | 32 | 62% | 25% | 1–2× a week |
| Bhopal | Madhya Pradesh | 5 | 240 | 205–305 | Very hard | 58 | 32 | 100% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Amritsar | Punjab | 61 | 240 | 110–460 | Very hard | 54 | 25 | 70% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Jamshedpur | Jharkhand | 44 | 240 | 55–475 | Very hard | 63 | 21 | 64% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Thane | Maharashtra | 59 | 235 | 65–1070 | Very hard | 46 | 24 | 63% | 2% | 1–2× a week |
| Noida & Ghaziabad | Uttar Pradesh | 36 | 235 | 120–951 | Very hard | 47 | 28 | 64% | 6% | 1–2× a week |
| Bareilly | Uttar Pradesh | 14 | 220 | 100–490 | Very hard | 48 | 22 | 71% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Mumbai | Maharashtra | 22 | 218 | 105–455 | Very hard | 47 | 16 | 59% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Kolkata | West Bengal | 200 | 215 | 50–1145 | Very hard | 33 | 33 | 56% | 2% | 1–2× a week |
| Chandigarh | Chandigarh | 8 | 205 | 110–270 | Very hard | 30 | 22 | 50% | 0% | 1–2× a week |
| Dehradun | Uttarakhand | 50 | 165 | 60–460 | Hard | 34 | 18 | 26% | 0% | Occasional |
| Kolhapur | Maharashtra | 40 | 162 | 35–620 | Hard | 28 | 17 | 45% | 2% | Occasional |
| Ranchi | Jharkhand | 54 | 158 | 50–470 | Hard | 33 | 19 | 30% | 0% | Occasional |
| Guwahati | Assam | 10 | 145 | 35–460 | Hard | 41 | 12 | 30% | 0% | Occasional |
| Bhubaneswar | Odisha | 24 | 106 | 25–445 | Moderately hard | 31 | 7 | 33% | 0% | Not needed |
| Kochi | Kerala | 26 | 72 | 9–660 | Moderately hard | 23 | 3 | 19% | 4% | Not needed |
| Siliguri | West Bengal | 83 | 70 | 15–280 | Moderately hard | 14 | 7 | 7% | 0% | Not needed |
| Thiruvananthapuram | Kerala | 30 | 61 | 19–294 | Moderately hard | 17 | 4 | 7% | 0% | Not needed |
| Kozhikode | Kerala | 23 | 38 | 12–153 | Soft | 13 | 2 | 0% | 0% | Not needed |
By state
| State / UT | Stations | Median (mg/L) | 90th percentile | Highest | USGS band | % over 200 | % over 600 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delhi | 103 | 370 | 1110 | 3200 | Very hard | 81.6% | 29.1% |
| Rajasthan | 626 | 380 | 1080 | 6400 | Very hard | 83.2% | 26.7% |
| Karnataka | 342 | 398 | 915 | 2480 | Very hard | 86.5% | 25.1% |
| Haryana | 879 | 330 | 1081 | 8847 | Very hard | 77.2% | 23.5% |
| Gujarat | 631 | 360 | 851 | 6355 | Very hard | 85.6% | 21.9% |
| Tamil Nadu | 912 | 365 | 760 | 3255 | Very hard | 85.9% | 19.3% |
| Andhra Pradesh | 1135 | 310 | 636 | 7050 | Very hard | 76.2% | 12.1% |
| Telangana | 1149 | 342 | 594 | 3165 | Very hard | 81.9% | 9.7% |
| Maharashtra | 1567 | 325 | 555 | 3510 | Very hard | 81.4% | 7.1% |
| Madhya Pradesh | 589 | 287 | 510 | 1140 | Very hard | 78.6% | 5.9% |
| Bihar | 808 | 270 | 470 | 1225 | Very hard | 74.0% | 4.2% |
| Punjab | 922 | 270 | 450 | 3766 | Very hard | 71.8% | 4.1% |
| Odisha | 625 | 199 | 461 | 1127 | Very hard | 49.8% | 4.0% |
| Uttar Pradesh | 1306 | 260 | 430 | 4400 | Very hard | 74.9% | 3.2% |
| Jammu & Kashmir | 250 | 325 | 460 | 756 | Very hard | 82.4% | 2.8% |
| Jharkhand | 397 | 260 | 480 | 1060 | Very hard | 67.3% | 2.8% |
| Chhattisgarh | 783 | 200 | 410 | 1800 | Very hard | 49.0% | 2.2% |
| West Bengal | 957 | 180 | 375 | 2400 | Hard | 42.5% | 1.9% |
| Himachal Pradesh | 171 | 200 | 310 | 670 | Very hard | 49.7% | 1.2% |
| Uttarakhand | 207 | 200 | 340 | 650 | Very hard | 44.9% | 0.5% |
| Kerala | 342 | 50 | 176 | 660 | Soft | 8.5% | 0.3% |
| Andaman & Nicobar Islands | 112 | 160 | 235 | 460 | Hard | 25.0% | 0.0% |
| Arunachal Pradesh | 12 | 155 | 220 | 230 | Hard | 25.0% | 0.0% |
| Assam | 155 | 115 | 230 | 475 | Moderately hard | 20.6% | 0.0% |
| Chandigarh | 8 | 205 | 270 | 270 | Very hard | 50.0% | 0.0% |
| Meghalaya | 39 | 45 | 75 | 140 | Soft | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Mizoram | 3 | 115 | 115 | 200 | Moderately hard | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Nagaland | 6 | 105 | 130 | 265 | Moderately hard | 16.7% | 0.0% |
| Tripura | 81 | 70 | 150 | 230 | Moderately hard | 1.2% | 0.0% |
| Goa | 10 | 13 | 27 | 29 | Soft | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| All India | 15,127 | 276 | — | — | Very hard | 69.7% | 9.2% |
Source: Central Ground Water Board, Ground Water Quality of National Hydrograph Network Stations, Pre-monsoon 2023, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. Download the dataset (PDF). Medians, percentiles and exceedance percentages are deSal's calculations from the published per-station values, not figures stated in the source. City rows aggregate the stations inside that city's district(s); district boundaries are wider than city limits, so treat them as regional rather than street-level.
Groundwater salinity by state
Electrical conductivity is what CGWB publishes for salinity; a home meter shows TDS. The conversion is TDS (mg/L) ≈ 0.64 × EC (µS/cm), so the three bands below are roughly under 480 ppm, 480–1920 ppm and above 1920 ppm. Across 5,314 common monitoring locations, 37.7% of pre-monsoon samples were below 750 µS/cm, 55.0% between 750 and 3000, and 7.2% above 3000.
| State / UT | Samples | <750 µS/cm pre / post |
750–3000 pre / post |
>3000 pre / post |
% high salinity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gujarat | 132 | 1 / 3 | 68 / 87 | 63 / 42 | 47.7% |
| Delhi | 86 | 8 / 4 | 41 / 44 | 37 / 38 | 43.0% |
| Rajasthan | 100 | 9 / 8 | 50 / 54 | 41 / 38 | 41.0% |
| Haryana | 189 | 51 / 59 | 101 / 96 | 37 / 34 | 19.6% |
| Karnataka | 267 | 32 / 39 | 194 / 197 | 41 / 31 | 15.4% |
| Andhra Pradesh | 313 | 26 / 25 | 240 / 241 | 47 / 47 | 15.0% |
| Tamil Nadu | 286 | 38 / 42 | 207 / 205 | 41 / 39 | 14.3% |
| Punjab | 231 | 66 / 75 | 140 / 134 | 25 / 22 | 10.8% |
| Maharashtra | 335 | 81 / 87 | 236 / 228 | 18 / 20 | 5.4% |
| Telangana | 363 | 58 / 70 | 294 / 282 | 11 / 11 | 3.0% |
| Bihar | 115 | 31 / 22 | 81 / 91 | 3 / 2 | 2.6% |
| West Bengal | 236 | 99 / 105 | 131 / 126 | 6 / 5 | 2.5% |
| Odisha | 413 | 165 / 154 | 243 / 256 | 5 / 3 | 1.2% |
| Uttar Pradesh | 607 | 353 / 306 | 249 / 293 | 5 / 8 | 0.8% |
| Madhya Pradesh | 577 | 206 / 208 | 367 / 369 | 4 / 0 | 0.7% |
| Chhattisgarh | 249 | 165 / 197 | 83 / 52 | 1 / 0 | 0.4% |
| A&N Islands | 28 | 19 / 22 | 9 / 6 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Arunachal Pradesh | 15 | 15 / 15 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Assam | 127 | 119 / 118 | 8 / 9 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Chandigarh | 8 | 7 / 7 | 1 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Goa | 2 | 2 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Himachal Pradesh | 43 | 31 / 13 | 12 / 30 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Jammu & Kashmir | 61 | 17 / 13 | 44 / 48 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Jharkhand | 138 | 50 / 46 | 88 / 90 | 0 / 2 | 0.0% |
| Kerala | 185 | 159 / 170 | 26 / 15 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Meghalaya | 38 | 38 / 38 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Nagaland | 67 | 63 / 65 | 4 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
| Uttarakhand | 103 | 95 / 95 | 8 / 8 | 0 / 0 | 0.0% |
Source: Central Ground Water Board, Annual Ground Water Quality Report 2025, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India (Faridabad, November 2025), Table 5, p. 18. PDF. Counts here total 5,314; the report prints 5,368 for this table, a 54-sample difference from three small UTs included in its total but not itemised in the table.
City guides
- Is the water hard in Delhi?
- Is the water hard in Noida & Ghaziabad?
- Is the water hard in Gurugram?
- Is the water hard in Mumbai?
- Is the water hard in Navi Mumbai & Thane?
- Is the water hard in Pune?
- Is the water hard in Hinjewadi, Wakad & Baner?
- Is the water hard in Bangalore?
- Is the water hard in Whitefield & Marathahalli?
- Is the water hard in HSR Layout?
- Is the water hard in Electronic City?
- Is the water hard in Sarjapur?
- Is the water hard in Chennai?
- Is the water hard in Coimbatore?
- Is the water hard in Hyderabad?
- Is the water hard in Gachibowli, Kondapur & Madhapur?
- Is the water hard in Jaipur?
- Is the water hard in Lucknow?
- Is the water hard in Indore?
- Is the water hard in Ahmedabad?
- Is the water hard in Chandigarh?
- Is the water hard in Kolkata?
- Is the water hard in Nagpur?
- Is the water hard in Mysore?
- Is the water hard in Vizag?
How to test your water at home
- Use a digital TDS meter (a few hundred rupees online).
- Fill a clean glass from the tap you shower with — not the RO outlet, which reads far lower.
- Let the water reach room temperature. Temperature shifts the reading.
- Switch the meter on and dip to the marked line. Read once it settles, five to ten seconds.
- Retest during tanker season, or after any change in supply.
Frequently asked questions
How much TDS is good for a hair wash?
Below 200 ppm is comfortable for hair. Between 200 and 400 ppm you notice reduced lather and a faint film. Above 400 ppm calcium and magnesium deposit fast enough to cause roughness and breakage, and a chelating shampoo becomes the practical fix. There is no official 'safe TDS for hair' standard in Indian or WHO regulation — BIS 10500 governs drinking water, not washing.
Is TDS the same as water hardness?
No. TDS measures every dissolved solid, including sodium, chloride, sulphates and nitrates. Hardness measures only calcium and magnesium, reported as mg/L of calcium carbonate. Hardness is what damages hair. TDS is a useful proxy because calcium and magnesium make up a large share of dissolved solids in most Indian supplies, and a TDS meter costs a fraction of a hardness test.
Which is the best shampoo for hard water in India?
There is no single best shampoo for everyone, but there is a spec. A hard water shampoo needs a named chelating agent — usually Disodium EDTA — an acidic pH between 4.5 and 5.5, and humectants such as panthenol to offset the dryness chelation causes. If a bottle names no chelating agent and states no pH, it is not built for hard water whatever the front label says. deSal Hard Water Defense Shampoo meets that spec: Disodium EDTA, pH 5.45, 220 ml, made in India.
What is a chelating shampoo and how does it work?
A chelating shampoo contains a chelating agent, most commonly Disodium EDTA, which bonds to calcium and magnesium ions deposited on the hair shaft by hard water and holds them in solution so they rinse away. A regular or clarifying shampoo uses surfactants that lift oil and product residue but leave mineral deposits in place, which is why hair washed in hard water still feels rough after a clarifying wash.
Which city in India has the hardest water?
Among the cities in this dataset, Hubballi–Dharwad records the highest median total hardness at 800 mg/L, followed by Hisar at 545 mg/L, Faridabad at 534 mg/L, Belagavi at 512 mg/L and Solapur at 510 mg/L. All are classified very hard on the USGS scale. Individual stations run far higher — the maximum recorded in Rajasthan is 6,100 mg/L.
Is 300 TDS good for hair?
300 ppm TDS falls in the Moderate band for hair. It is comfortably within BIS drinking limits, but calcium and magnesium are already depositing on the hair shaft with each wash. Most people at this level notice reduced lather and a faint film once hair dries. A chelating shampoo once or twice a week is usually enough.
Is 500 TDS water good for hair?
500 ppm is in the Hard band. It is within the BIS permissible drinking limit of 2000 mg/L and just above the acceptable limit of 500 mg/L, so it is generally fine to drink. For hair it is high enough that calcium and magnesium bind to the cuticle at every wash, showing up as dullness, tangling and faster colour fade.
Is 700 TDS water good for hair?
700 ppm is Very Hard. Most people notice straw-like texture and mid-length breakage within a few weeks. A chelating shampoo that binds calcium and magnesium is the direct fix; conditioner does not remove minerals already bound to the hair.
Does a chelating shampoo work for a 500 ppm TDS reading?
Yes. 500 ppm is in the Hard band, where calcium and magnesium deposit at every wash. A Disodium EDTA chelating shampoo used as the regular wash is the direct answer at that reading. deSal Hard Water Defense Shampoo is formulated for this range at pH 5.45.
Does boiling water remove hardness?
Only partly. Boiling precipitates temporary hardness — the calcium and magnesium bicarbonates — as scale, which is why kettles fur up. It does nothing for permanent hardness from sulphates and chlorides, and it concentrates whatever remains as water evaporates. Boiling is not a practical treatment for wash water in any case.
Do shower filters remove hardness?
Most do not. Common KDF and activated carbon shower filters reduce chlorine and some sediment, but they do not remove dissolved calcium and magnesium, which is what hardness is. A filter also does nothing about minerals already bound to the hair — that requires chelation.
What TDS level is safe for washing hair?
Under 200 ppm needs no intervention. CGWB's monitoring shows India's median groundwater station at 276 mg/L total hardness, with 69.7% of stations above the BIS acceptable limit — so most of India washes in water above the comfortable range. Water can meet every drinking standard and still be hard enough to damage hair.
How is water hardness classified internationally?
The US Geological Survey classifies water by total hardness as calcium carbonate: 0–60 mg/L soft, 61–120 mg/L moderately hard, 121–180 mg/L hard, and above 180 mg/L very hard. On that scale India's national median of 276 mg/L is very hard, and every one of the twenty hardest cities in this dataset is very hard.
What shampoo should swimmers use in India?
Pool water adds chlorine and pool minerals on top of whatever hardness the tap already has, so a swim-specific wash is worth it if you swim regularly. deSal Swimmers Wellness Shampoo (220 ml) is formulated for chlorine and pool-water exposure; deSal Hard Water Defense Shampoo is the one for tap-water hardness alone.
How do I convert TDS in ppm to grains per gallon?
Divide ppm by 17.1. A 400 ppm reading is about 23 grains per gallon. One German degree (°dH) is 17.8 mg/L as calcium carbonate, and one French degree (°fH) is 10 mg/L. Indian meters and standards use mg/L or ppm, which are numerically the same for dilute water.
How do I test the TDS of my water at home?
A digital TDS meter costs a few hundred rupees. Fill a clean glass from the tap you actually shower with — not the RO outlet, which reads far lower. Let it reach room temperature, switch the meter on and dip to the marked line. Read once the number settles, about five to ten seconds. Retest during tanker season or after any change in supply.
Why does my water hardness change through the year?
Supply source changes. Many Indian cities switch between piped surface water and borewell or tanker water depending on season and availability, and borewell water is usually far harder. CGWB's own pre- and post-monsoon comparison shows measurable dilution after the monsoon at thousands of stations. Retest during tanker season rather than assuming one reading holds all year.
What does BIS say about TDS and hardness?
BIS 10500:2012 sets an acceptable limit of 500 mg/L for total dissolved solids, extendable to 2000 mg/L where no alternate source exists. For total hardness as calcium carbonate the acceptable limit is 200 mg/L and the permissible limit is 600 mg/L. Both are drinking-water standards; neither addresses hair.
Methodology and sources
- Measured hardness by city and state: Central Ground Water Board, Ground Water Quality of National Hydrograph Network Stations, Pre-monsoon 2023, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. PDF. 15,127 station records carrying a valid total-hardness value, parsed from the published annexure. Medians, percentiles and exceedance percentages are deSal's calculations.
- Groundwater salinity by state: Central Ground Water Board, Annual Ground Water Quality Report 2025, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India (Faridabad, November 2025), Table 5, p. 18. PDF.
- International hardness scale: U.S. Geological Survey, Water Science School, “Hardness of Water”. usgs.gov.
- Drinking-water limits: IS 10500:2012, Indian Standard Drinking Water — Specification, Bureau of Indian Standards; and WHO, Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality, 4th edition.
- EC to TDS conversion: TDS (mg/L) ≈ 0.64 × EC (µS/cm); actual factor varies roughly 0.55–0.7 with ionic composition.
- Hair-effect bands: deSal's own classification describing cosmetic effects. Not a regulatory standard.
- Coverage limit: CGWB monitors groundwater. Cities supplied mainly by treated surface water may see lower hardness at the tap than these stations suggest.
Cite this page: deSal, “Know Your TDS — Indian Water Hardness Checker”, desal.in/pages/know-your-tds. Data aggregated from Central Ground Water Board national hydrograph station records, pre-monsoon 2023. Published 6 September 2026. Licence: CC BY 4.0.
