The Best Water Filter For Home Use (Pitcher, Charcoal, Under-Counter)

 Humans can survive for weeks without food, but only a few days without water. To say fresh water is important would be an understatement! But as important as it is to drink enough, it’s equally important to drink clean water! Here are the best water filter options for your home.

A high-quality water filtration system is an important part of a healthy home. Plus it’s one of the easiest switches to make for a healthier life. You can easily find great water filters for any home, from countertop units to whole-house water purifiers.

The Best water filtration systems

Already know you want to get a water filter for your home and want to jump ahead? Spoiler alert: here are my favorite options:

• Best water pitcher filter: Clearly Filtered and Soma Water Filter
• Best whole house filter: Radiant Life whole house water system
• Best under the sink filter: Radiant Life 14-stage water purifier
• Best water alkalizer: LifeIonizers

If you’re going backpacking or traveling the Lifestraw is a good portable option.

What’s In Your Water?

If you’re drinking tap water, the answer to that question is 300+ chemicals and pollutants, according to the Environmental Working Group. Test results reveal we have a big problem with our water supply. Among these contaminants are:

Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs)

VOCs, like pesticides, herbicides, and other harmful chemicals. These chemicals are found in most municipal water sources, well water, and other sources due to agricultural contamination. Research links certain VOCs to damage in the reproductive system, liver, kidneys, and more.

Heavy Metals

You’ll also find metals like lead and mercury in some water sources. Areas that still use lead pipes are a big contamination source. These heavy metals can lead to a host of health problems, especially in young children.

Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals

These chemicals may mimic or interfere with the normal hormones in the body. And they’re being found in increasing amounts in the water supply. These chemicals are known to affect animals when they enter the water supply as well.

Increasing evidence shows these chemicals can cause issues ranging from diabetes to PCOS, to cancer. One of the biggest ways these chemicals get into the water supply? Hormonal birth control pills.

Fluoride

This may be the most controversial of the contaminants in water (if something like water contaminants can be controversial!). It’s purposefully added to the water and there’s much heated debate about the benefits/harm. More and more scientists and doctors are speaking out about fluoride.

And even if fluoride has any benefit, it would be directly to the teeth. Drinking fluoride hasn’t been shown to increase oral health. Plus, fluoride is linked to thyroid problems and other disorders when swallowed.

If that weren’t enough, here are a few more common drinking water pollutants and impurities.

• Chlorine bleach (added during city water treatment)
• Corrosion from lead and copper pipes
• Bacteria, viruses, and harmful microbes
• Radioactive pollution
• Iron oxides and sediment (hard water)
• Arsenic
• Nitrogen and phosphorous runoff (from farm fertilizers)

Check Your Water

You can check your local water quality report to see what contaminants are in your water supply. This helps determine what you need to filter out when choosing a filter.

The easiest way to find your local water report is to check your local water company’s website. The report should be publicly available. You can also view detailed water reports for most cities at EWG here.

If you have a well you can have your water tested. If you want to skip testing water, simply opt for a filter that removes all the everyday contaminants.

Choosing The Best Water Filter

So what are the options for those of us not interested in drinking a chemical cocktail every time we pour a glass of cold water? There are options for every home and budget. From filters that just take out the basics like chlorine to ones that remove all contaminants and remineralize the water!

Some filters are ANSI/NSF standard approved. This means they meet certain guidelines to remove specific known contaminants. Looking for these certifications is a good place to start. Some popular options include Aquasana, Brita, and AquaTru.

I’ve tried several dozen of the thousands of options available. Keep in mind this is my own experience and I haven’t tried every option. Here are my top picks and what I’ve tried in order of my least favorite to the filters we use now…