Set the dials on the picture. Enter what the bill says. Watch the live Bill Match score.
Your meter shows 1247 CCF
Bill Match · meter ahead by 7 CCF
Usage after the read date — or the bill used a low estimate. Confirm the read date, then overnight-test.
Educational — match digit count and units to your utility’s face.
Guide · 5 steps · ~2 min read
Dials in, units out — verify the reading against the bill in your hand.
Most bills show a prior read, a present read, and days in the period. Note whether the unit is gallons, CCF/HCF (≈748 gallons), or cubic meters. Estimated reads are often flagged “E” or “estimated.”
Decode my billAnalog meters use dials (sweep hands) or odometer-style wheels; digital meters show fixed digits. Photograph the face, ignore the sweep/flow indicator for the billed total, and write the same digit count the utility uses.
Convert if needed (CCF × 748 ≈ gallons). If your live meter is far ahead of the bill’s present read, usage continued after the read date — or the bill used an estimate. If the bill is ahead of the dials, suspect a misread or unit mix-up.
Compare MoMA matching read does not clear a leak. Run a quiet-house overnight test and dye-test toilets if usage still feels high.
Overnight meter testIf digits disagree with the meter photo, ask for a reread. If a spike has no indoor cause, use the sudden-high path or a leak-adjustment packet with proof.
Sudden high, no leak?You have checked off each step. Choose your next action below.
Optional · $29
Get dispute-letter help, leak-adjustment coaching, and 24 diagnosis credits plus 3 bonus credits.
The bill analyzer stays free. This optional pack costs $29; review your purchase securely on Stripe.
Instant plain-English answers about how water meter reads work — powered by AI.
Educational estimates, not professional advice. Sources linked below.
Keep one primary page per question. These siblings cover the rest of the high-intent set.
National diagnosis: usage vs rates vs sewer vs silent leaks.
Dye-test, size the waste, fix the flapper before upgrading.
Drip Meter: drips/min → gallons → $/month bill proof.
Stuck schedules and broken heads before indoor gadgets.
Bill jumped out of nowhere? Four causes, checked in order.
Units per day — not dollars — when the total lies.
Catch-up dump after a low estimated read.
Gallons you keep vs sewer you may credit.
24h timeline: municipal demand vs internal pipe/pump.
Drop-timer: Slow seep vs Fast waste gal/day.
Stormwater/impervious fee — Drainage Delay over 48h.
Quiet house, jumping bill — check the outdoor timer.
Municipal vs recommended PSI — age the valve, size waste.
Whole house vs one fixture — name the cause before you call.
Safe Zone vs Shock Zone — prior actual vs this estimate.
The utility subtracts the prior read from the present read, converts to its billing unit (gallons, CCF, or m³), then applies water and often sewer rates. Estimated reads skip a true dial check and can true-up later.
Common causes: estimated prior/present, reading the wrong digit column, unit mix-up (gallons vs CCF), usage after the read date, or a swapped digit. Photograph the meter and compare digit-for-digit.
Document with dated meter photos, ask for a reread, normalize units per day across bills, and still run an overnight no-use test so a silent leak is not missed.