Alternative channels
Mail, text, and in-person payment instructions
Pay by text
No separate text-to-pay enrollment workflow or keyword is published for 2026. The WaterSmart portal does support customer alerts by text, email, or phone, including leak and usage notifications, but the City’s payment instructions do not identify a text message that authorizes a payment or provides a text-to-pay keyword. Customers should use the authenticated portal, phone line, kiosk, or cashier instead of treating an alert as a payment request.
Mail-in address
Hayward Water System, PO Box 6004, Hayward, CA 94540. The City accepts checks by mail and no cash; postmarks are not accepted, so payment must arrive and be processed before the due date.
Counters, drop boxes, and office hours
The Revenue/Cashier office is on the first floor of City Hall, 777 B Street, Hayward, CA 94541, and accepts in-person utility payments Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., excluding holidays; it is closed Fridays. The exterior self-service kiosk facing the City Hall plaza is available 24/7, and a second kiosk near the first-floor guard station is available on weekdays during public hours. Kiosks support English and Spanish, issue receipts, accept cash, checks, and credit/debit cards without processing charges, and credit excess cash to the account rather than making change. Customers may also pay cash at participating 7-Eleven, CVS, Walgreens, and other CheckFreePay locations found through the City’s payment-center locator; the account number or bill barcode is required. The City’s cashier handles starting/stopping service and leak-rebate applications as well as utility billing.