2,113
gallons of water per item, global average
One item: one pair of jeans (about 1.8 lb cotton)
The same volume as
🥛
33,814
Glass of Water (8 oz)
🍶
16,907
Water Bottle (16 oz)
About this figure
One pair of jeans, made from roughly 1.8 pounds of cotton, embeds about 2,100 gallons, most of it for growing the cotton. Source: Water Footprint Network (Mekonnen and Hoekstra). Figures are global-average total water footprints (green, blue and grey water) per item. They are not California-specific and are on a different basis from the crop sheets, which show California irrigation water applied per serving.
Sources
Global-average water footprints per item: Water Footprint Network (Mekonnen and Hoekstra) for cotton, leather and paper goods, applied to typical item mass; item-specific life-cycle assessments for the smartphone, silicon wafer, desktop computer, car, disposable diaper and bottled water, as named on each sheet.
Figures as of September 10, 2026.
How to cite
Everyday Goods Water Fact Sheet: Pair of Jeans. conciseVerbosity, September 10, 2026. https://api.conciseverbosity.com/water-facts/goods/jeans.html