In recent years, the presence of heavy metals in milk has emerged as an important public health issue, owing to their potential detrimental effects on milk quality. The present study aimed to assess the occurrence and levels of heavy metals in raw cow, goat, and sheep milk obtained from eastern Algeria. Sixty milk samples were analysed for Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni and Fe using atomic absorption spectrometry. Results demonstrated that Fe (5.49 ± 21.93) was the dominant metal in cow milk, followed by Cu (0.86 ± 0.02) and Cr (0.56 ± 0.05). In goat milk, Fe (9.77 ± 0.69) and Cu (2.79 ± 0.04) were highest, while in sheep milk, Cu (1.99 ± 0.04) exceeded Fe (1.78 ± 0.16) and Cr (0.79 ± 0.07). Several investigated trace elements, including copper, chromium and iron, exceeded the established maximum residue limits (MRLs). In contrast, Ni was mostly below the detection limit, but Cd was present in goat and sheep milk with low concentrations. PCA explained 57.6% of the total variance. Meanwhile, the non-carcinogenic risk assessment showed that the estimated daily intakes of all investigated metals were below their respective oral reference doses (RfDs). THQ values remained < 1, whereas TTHQ exceeded the safety threshold for goat and sheep milk, particularly in children