Malta’s mains water is treated to drinking standard, and the Water Services Corporation (WSC), the national utility, describes it as safe to drink. Most Maltese still buy bottled water, and most students end up doing the same in their first week. The reason is taste, not safety, and once you understand where the water comes from, the decision is yours to make instead of copying your flatmates.
Where Malta’s water comes from
Malta has no rivers and little rainfall in summer, so the islands make most of their drinking water from the sea. According to the WSC annual report covering 2022, as reported by MaltaToday, desalinated water produced by reverse osmosis made up 64 per cent of the water blend, against 57 per cent in 2017. The remaining 36 per cent came from groundwater pumped from the aquifer.
The two sources are mixed before they reach your tap, and the proportion varies by area. That is why the water in one town tastes different from the water two bus stops away.
Why it tastes the way it does
Groundwater in Malta carries a fair amount of chloride, the salt that gives the water its flat, slightly metallic taste. MaltaToday reported an average of around 500 parts per million of chloride in the blended water, a level the WSC says has no ill effects on health. Raising the share of desalinated water lowers the salinity, and the utility has done so over the past decade.
So the honest summary is this: the water is treated and monitored, the taste divides people, and taste is what drives the bottled-water habit.
How much bottled water Malta drinks
The habit is measurable. A 2023 comparison reported by BusinessNow, based on Statista and University of Geneva data, put bottled water consumption in Malta at about 274 litres per person per year, the highest in Europe and close to four times the EU average of 74 litres. If you see six-packs stacked in every supermarket trolley, that is why.
For a student, the habit has a cost and a weight. Bottles add a line to the weekly shop, and carrying six litres up three flights of stairs in August is the moment many students decide to try the tap, or a filter, instead.
Three things that change the picture in your building
The water leaving the treatment plant is one thing. The water reaching your glass also depends on the building:
- Roof tanks. Many Maltese buildings store water in a tank on the roof. Ask your landlord or host family whether the kitchen tap is fed straight from the mains or from the tank, and when the tank was last cleaned.
- Old pipes. In older flats, run the cold tap for a few seconds in the morning before you fill a glass or a kettle.
- Hot water. Do not drink or cook with water from the hot tap, which sits in a boiler.
If you rent, these are fair questions to put on your viewing checklist alongside the ones in our guide to renting a flat in Malta.
What students do in practice
- Drink from the tap where it is mains-fed and you like the taste. Many students do, and it saves money every week.
- Use a filter jug. It improves the taste for a one-off cost plus cartridges, and it cuts the number of bottles you carry up the stairs.
- Buy large bottles, not small ones. Five- or six-litre bottles cost far less per litre than single bottles from a kiosk. Our guide to grocery shopping in Malta explains where the weekly shop works out cheapest.
- Carry a refillable bottle in summer. July and August heat makes dehydration a real risk on beach days and long walks.
- Cook with tap water. Pasta, rice and tea are the easy wins even for people who prefer bottled water for drinking.
Water is a line in your budget, small but daily. The monthly budget for students in Malta shows where it fits.
Save water, too
Desalination runs on electricity. The ELT Council, the government body for English language schools, reminds students in its guidebook that much of Malta’s water is produced by reverse osmosis, which uses a lot of electricity, and asks them not to leave taps running. Short showers and a full washing machine are the local norm, and your landlord or host family will notice if you ignore them.
When to see a doctor
If you have stomach symptoms that last more than a day or two, or a fever, go to a health centre or a pharmacy rather than guessing at the cause. The guide to healthcare in Malta for students explains where to go and what your insurance covers.
The bottom line: Malta’s tap water is treated to drinking standard and most of it now comes from the sea. Taste it, ask how your building is supplied, and choose. Plenty of students drink it every day; plenty prefer a filter or bottles. Both choices are reasonable.
