Tap water safety in North Macedonia 🇲🇰

👍 In general, the water may be safe to drink in North Macedonia.

World Health Organization (WHO)

According to the WHO, tap water is safe for consumption for 86% of the country.

There is a divide between rural and urban areas, tap water is safe to drink in 99% of urban areas, while it's only safe to drink in 69% of rural areas.

Lonely Planet

Tap water is generally safe to drink in North Macedonia (you'll see plenty of public fountains around Skopje and in rural villages), but check with locals before filling up your water bottle, just to be on the safe side.

Centers for disease control and prevention (CDC)



According to the Numbeo water drinkability and accessibility index, tap water has a score of 57.44 / 100 (100 being best).

Numbeo considers this score to be "Moderate"

Advantages of drinking (filtered) tap water

1 adult could save about 307$ per year in North Macedonia by drinking tap water instead of buying bottled water.



Even though drinking water might be considered safe, if you plan to travel to North Macedonia, consider talking to your local contact to verify that. Old pipes could be leaking toxic material or water in that specific location could contain heavy metals or bacteria.