Background: Advanced water treatments that involve a series of steps are unthinkable in ruralrnareas, where a dispersed population is found. It is also extremely costly for investment inrndeveloping countries. For this reason, we investigate the comparative performance of naturalrnplant coagulants in removing turbidity and microbial load as compared to alum and chlorine forrnhousehold water treatment, with the additional benefit of preventing water-borne diseases.rnObjectives: The main objective of this study was to investigate the efficiency of MoringarnStenopetala and Opuntia Ficus Indica cladodes as natural coagulants for household waterrntreatmentrnMethods: Batch coagulation and microbial reduction experiments were carried out on surfacernriver waters found in Jimma, Ethiopia with having initial different turbidities. The seeds ofrnMoringa stenopetala (Baker f.), and Opuntia ficus indica cladodes were used for this study. Thernturbidity removal efficiency and microbial quality were tested using a jar test, and Membranernfiltration techniques respectively. Relevant parameters affecting the effectiveness of coagulationrn(optimal dose of coagulants, pH, storage duration/conditions, temperature, and conductivity)rnwere also investigated. rnResults: The turbidity of river water were 32.1, 78.1, 132 and 78NTU, and their optimum dosesrnfor M.stenopetala was 20mg/l, 40mg/l, 50mg/l, 70mg/l, and for OFI cladodes were 50mg,rn100mg/l.100mg/l and 0.5gr/l respectively. Their turbidity removal efficiency was found to bernfrom 87% to 98.99% when treated with M. Stenopetala, and from 68% to 96.01% when treatedrnwith OFI at optimum doses in 3h settling time. About 97% of all types of microbial loadrnremovals were observed for both M. stenopetala and OFI.rnConclusion: The findings showed that M. stenopetala plant species meet the requirements ofrndrinking water quality in terms of microbial standards and maximum allowable limit of turbidityrn(â‰¤5 NTU) if they are used for household water treatment, but the result of OFI was insufficient tornfall within guideline values.