Disposable water bottles are a disaster for the planet. Here are our top picks for durable, non-toxic, and reusable water bottles for your next hike or workout.
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Staying hydrated is an underrated health goal. Unfortunately, 75% of us don’t drink as much daily water as we should and live in a state of chronic dehydration. One easy solution is to carry around a water bottle. Here are the best reusable water bottles for zero-waste living, made by more sustainable, eco-minded companies.
The Problem with Single-Use Water Bottles
It’s all too easy to grab a cheap disposable bottle of water every time you’re thirsty, but the impact of all that single-use plastic is devastating for the planet.
An estimated 20,000 plastic water bottles are bought worldwide each second, each of which will take thousands of years to break down (if they ever do). All that plastic really adds up—by 2050, experts estimate there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean.
Buying a reusable water bottle lets you opt-out of the single-use plastic story. Commit to using yours for a year, and on average, you’ll prevent over 150 plastic bottles from landing in the trash. Not only is that better for the environment, but it’s also great news for your wallet.
Get a bottle that lasts for many more years, and you’ll easily offset the energy required to make it by saving on energy and resources required for plastic production and shipping bottled water.
What Makes for a Good Water Bottle?
Deciding to go the reusable route and choosing the right water bottle are two different matters. Not all reusable water bottles work equally well in every situation.
For example, some are made from ultra-lightweight plastic that sweats as soon as it gets cold. Other options provide double or triple stainless-steel vacuum insulation to keep drinks hot or cold for days but are a lot heavier than plastic.
Many brands prioritize screw caps guaranteed never to leak, while others provide sports caps to ensure easy drinking access during workouts.
Deciding which bottle makes the most sense for you comes down to three things:
- Your lifestyle
- Your budget
- Where and how you’ll use your bottle most.
The best bottle for drinking coffee on your commute will very likely perform poorly during a workout. Conversely, the best water bottle for hiking will probably look out of place at the office and not keep your coffee or tea hot.
All in all, you may want to arm yourself with one or more bottles on this list, to satisfy all your day’s drinking needs.
While you’re on the hunt for a reusable water bottle, make sure that the water you’re filling it with is safe and clean. A proper home water filter can go a long way! (or go for the Grayl with built-in filter!)
The Best Reusable Water Bottles
Yeti Rambler Bottle
Highlights: A rugged and durable stainless steel water bottle with customer reviews that rant and rave about its quality.
- Material: 18/8 stainless steel
- Sizes: 26-oz
- Hot/Cold: double-wall vacuum insulation works for hot or cold drinks (chug cap only suitable for cold beverages)
- Dishwasher Safe: yes
- Colors: 19
While pricier than most, glowing customer reviews make it clear the Yeti Rambler bottle makes thousands of users very happy. As with many brands, it’s BPA-free and made from 18/8 stainless steel with double-walled insulation that’s suitable for both hot and cold beverages. But perhaps most notably, it’s entirely dishwasher safe.
The Yeti Rambler is a heavy-duty bottle designed to get bumped around on outdoor adventures. Still, the shape manages to be slim enough that it won’t look out of place at the office. A major selling point for the bottle is a screwtop drinking spout. Remove the spout to fill it with ice or make cleaning easier, and reattach it before drinking to create a narrower opening.
Yeti is also one of the more sustainable outdoor gear brands. The company publishes a detailed annual ESG report that includes a wealth of info on its equitable and sustainable practices. These include:
- Using almost entirely renewable energy (and offsetting the rest)
- Transitioning all polyester (in bottle sleeves, apparel, etc.) to recycled polyester
- Not using PFAS in any products
- Maintaining a high percentage of recycled materials in packaging (and avoiding single-use plastics in 90% of packaging)
- Diverting 84% of manufacturing waste away from landfill
- Launching YETI RESCUES™ in January 2023 and Rambler™ Buy Back in April 2023 as part of its Circularity program.
One negative to note: while the screwtop lid design means this bottle is virtually guaranteed to be leakproof, some customers found the lids were far too hard to take on and off.
Lifefactory Glass Water Bottle
Highlights: Reusable glass water bottle option that’s completely dishwasher safe.
- Material: glass, grippy silicone exterior
- Sizes: 12, 16, 22-oz
- Hot/Cold: not insulating but safe for hot and cold beverages
- Dishwasher Safe: yes
- Colors: 15+
If you’re looking to skip steel and plastic altogether, Lifefactory makes just about the perfect glass water bottle to use instead. The glass bottles feature tight-fitting polypropylene caps and a silicone sleeve for protection. The transparent design makes it obvious when you need a fill-up, and the silicone sleeve is grippy and comfortable to hold. The entire bottle is dishwasher safe, and the relatively wide mouth makes filling it with ice easy.
On the negative side, glass by nature will be heavier than other materials, making this bottle more cumbersome to carry. It also has minimal insulation properties and won’t do much but keep beverages at room temperature.
Lifefactory makes its baby bottles using borosilicate glass that is resistant to thermal shock. That means you can put boiling water in the baby bottles and freeze the bottles too. This isn’t the case with the regular water bottles from Lifefactory, so avoid sudden temperature changes and extreme temperatures. Even leaving the bottle in a very hot car can damage it.
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Hydro Flask Standard Mouth Flex Cap Water Bottle
Highlights: A popular, instantly-recognizable reusable water bottle made from pro-grade stainless steel.
- Material: 18/8 pro-grade stainless steel, powder coat finish
- Sizes: 18, 21, 24 oz
- Hot/Cold: double-wall vacuum insulation works to keep drinks cold for 24 hours, hot for 12
- Dishwasher Safe: yes, but not recommended
- Colors: 12+
This top-rated bottle is instantly recognizable. The insulated steel design means it can keep drinks at temperature for hours—both hot and cold. The powder coating over the 18/8 stainless steel makes the bottle easy to grip, and it tends to resist chipping better than standard paint. A leakproof screw-top lid comes standard, but you can also choose spout or straw lids.
Throughout its supply chain, Hydro Flask takes steps to reduce its environmental impact and promote sustainability. Hydro Flask has a longstanding closed-loop recycling program for its products and packaging materials, for instance, and it works with more sustainable and ethical suppliers.
Hydro Flask also powers its factories using mostly renewable energy, has robust water conservation measures in place, and prioritizes safe and fair labor practices.
You COULD dent this bottle, but it’s going to take a lot more effort than it does for standard aluminum models, and there’s no risk whatsoever of shattering as with glass. While it’s technically possible to wash Hydro Flasks in the dishwasher, this will break down the bottle’s seals over time and isn’t recommended.
Hitch Water Bottle
Highlights: Attractive 2-in-1 stainless steel water bottle that comes with a barista-approved cup inside from a company taking great steps towards sustainability.
- Material: silicone, double-walled stainless steel, TPE foot
- Sizes: 18-oz water bottle, 12-oz coffee cup
- Hot/Cold: vacuum insulation keeps drinks cold for 12 hours, hot for six.
- Dishwasher Safe: yes
- Colors: four
If you’re just as likely to carry around a coffee cup as a water bottle, then Hitch offers something that’s hard to find—a stainless steel water bottle with a barista-approved cup inside, complete with a lid. Store the cup within the bottle, or twist it onto the top to easily carry your coffee and water in one hand. The entire unit is vacuum insulated, BPA-free, able to fit in most cupholders, and safe for the dishwasher. Expect it to keep beverages cold for 12 hours and hot for six.
As a company, Hitch measures and offsets 100% of its carbon footprint through a partnership with Climate Neutral. With every order of a Hitch bottle, the company funds the planting of one tree and the removal of one kg of plastic from the ocean. And, thanks to the company’s Rehitch program, the brand will recycle your cup at the end of its lifespan and give you a discount credit to buy a new one.
One thing you sacrifice with Hitch is capacity, as the water bottle only holds 18 ounces—less than any other brand on this list. The included coffee cup has a capacity of 12.
Purist Mover
Highlights: Stainless steel reusable bottle finished with glass on the interior, blending the benefits of both materials in a convenient form.
- Material: 304 stainless steel exterior, interior glass finish
- Sizes: 10, 18, or 32-oz
- Hot/Cold: keeps drinks hot 12 hours, cold 24 hours
- Dishwasher Safe: No
- Colors: 6
At its core, a good water bottle needs to serve you drinks in their purest form. That’s the philosophy behind Purist—a water bottle brand with a glass interior guaranteed to never hold onto unwanted flavors or odors. Each bottle has a stainless steel exterior with a non-breakable glass lining that works for both hot and cold drinks. Reviews indicate this bottle really delivers—even kombucha and cold brew coffee won’t leave a lingering odor.
Customers can choose from three bottle sizes and three lids:
- Element – standard option, leakproof, insulated, with an integrated handle
- Union – lids offer a sports mode with a soft stopper that locks in open and closed positions (not suitable for hot beverages)
- Scope – tops have a rotating outer ring that is safe for hot drinks and lets you sip from every angle.
While the minimalist design of Purist bottles is sure to attract attention, they do lose a few points for convenience. They aren’t dishwasher safe and must be handled carefully during cleaning to ensure you don’t damage the glass interior. You’ll also pay more for this bottle than almost any other brand we looked at.
Stojo Collapsible Silicone Water Bottle
Highlights: Unique among its competitors, Stojo silicone water bottles are collapsible for easy transporting when they’re emptied.
- Material: food-grade silicone, #5 recyclable plastic
- Sizes: 20-oz
- Hot/Cold: not insulating, but suitable for hot and cold drinks
- Dishwasher Safe: yes
- Colors: 11
If you want your water bottle to take up next to no space when not in use, then a collapsible Stojo travel cup is an innovative solution. These 100% silicone bottles are BPA-free and made from recycled materials.
They won’t keep things hot or cold, but they are microwave and dishwasher safe and fold down to less than half their size when not in use.
Despite their slim profile, the bottles hold an impressive 20 ounces. The lid and main bottle come apart to make for easier cleaning. And, despite their flexible shape, the bottles remain sturdy when set on tables.
The Stojo water bottles are made with:
- LFGB Certified silicone (for the cup, tab, and straw, model depending)
- BPA-free, polypropylene lid and heat sleeve
- No phthalates, leads, or glues.
Note: LFGB silicone is typically a higher quality silicone that has passed more rigorous tests (than FDA food-safe silicone) allowing it for sale in France and Germany.
Some customer reviews say the bottles have a subtle plastic taste and smell that takes a while to go away.
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Grayl Geopress Water Purifier Bottle
Highlights: One of the most expensive options on our list, but it comes with a built-in water filter that’s sold in replaceable cartridges for when they’ve reached their limit.
- Material: TPE TopoGrip with removable cartridge
- Sizes: 24-oz
- Hot/Cold: only suitable for cold water
- Dishwasher Safe: no
- Colors: 5
When it comes to backcountry camping, a standard water bottle isn’t going to cut it. The Grayl Geopress does double duty by keeping you hydrated and filtering the water in the first place.
This innovative design couldn’t be easier to use:
- Pour in water from any freshwater source
- Press down on the filter
- Drink with confidence.
The filter is rated to filter heavy metals, waterborne pathogens like E. coli and salmonella, and other pathogens. (For all you nerds: the filters meet or exceed NSF/ANSI protocols 42 and 53 for sediment, pathogen and chemical removal.)
The Grayl filter bottle boasts an impressive output of 24-oz per eight seconds, meaning there’s almost no lag time from when you find water to when you’re drinking it. The bottle’s replaceable cartridge (view on REI) is rated for 350 cycles or three years of use and takes only seconds to switch out.
The bottle itself is built to withstand rugged use. Drop it full onto concrete from up to ten feet up, and it will withstand the impact without damage.
Takeya Originals Spout Bottle
Highlights: Heavy-duty reusable water bottle capable of keeping drinks cold for up to 24 hours, and warm drinks hot for up to 12.
- Material: powder-coated exterior, insulated 18/8 stainless steel interior
- Sizes: 18, 24, 32, 40-oz
- Hot/Cold: Double wall vacuum insulation keeps drinks cold for 24 hours, hot for 12 hours
- Dishwasher Safe: no
- Colors: 12+
Thanks to its stainless-steel construction and double-wall vacuum insulation, this heavy-duty bottle will keep drinks cold for up to 24 hours. Takeya bottles offer an ultra-easy-access sports top for drinking one-handed, meaning it’s a smart choice for the gym if ice-cold drinks are a priority for you (It will also keep beverages hot for 12 hours). But unlike other sports-focused bottles, the Takeya looks classy enough to keep on your desk at work.
Users also love that you can lock the cap once you flip it open, meaning that it won’t hit your face as you take a sip. You can also purchase bottles with a straw lid for easier drinking as you drive.
Choose from four sizes ranging from 18 to 40-oz to ensure you get the right size without unwanted bulk. Just note that cleaning this bottle can be cumbersome as it’s labeled as hand wash only, and the sports lid may start to leak over the long run. If it does, take advantage of Takeya’s lifetime warranty.
Contigo Autoseal Water Bottle
Highlights: A 100% spill-proof reusable water bottle made from stainless steel, albeit incapable of being washed in the dishwasher.
- Material: stainless steel
- Sizes: 24, 32-oz
- Hot/Cold: double-wall vacuum-insulated keeps drinks cold for 24 hours, hot for six hours
- Dishwasher Safe: Only the lid
- Colors: 20+
For those who need their bottles to be 100% spill-proof, Contigo Autoseal is hard to beat. A button on the side opens and closes the tightly locked top on these stainless-steel bottles, making them easy to manage with one hand. And, because the drinking spout is completely covered when not in use, you don’t have to worry about the mouthpiece getting grimy.
Leigh has a stainless steel Contigo coffee/tea mug that is arguably too good at keeping tea hot! Even while visiting Ottawa in minus 25 C, her Contigo coffee mug kept tea piping hot for several hours.
So, while we haven’t tried the insulated water bottle first hand, we’re confident Contigo’s design would perform just as well. Plan on these bottles keeping your drinks cold for over 24 hours and your tea or coffee hot or at least very warm for six hours!
You can choose from various colors, though most are mere accents for the brushed stainless-steel finish. That can actually be an advantage in the long run, as painted metal bottles tend to chip over time.
The biggest drawback? Cleaning. Only the lid is dishwasher safe, and even so, the unique drinking design means the mouthpiece is notoriously tricky to keep clean.
Make sure to check you’re getting the stainless steel bottle as Contigo also offers a very similar looking plastic version of this bottle.
Simple Modern Insulated Water Bottle
Highlights: Subtle, mostly branding-free water bottles capable of keeping drinks cold for up to 40 hours. Available in wide variety of sizes and colors. Made in the US, using solar power!
- Material: stainless steel
- Sizes: 14, 18, 22, 32, 40, 64, 84, 128-oz
- Hot/Cold: double-walled, vacuum insulated interior keeps drinks cold for up to 40 hours
- Dishwasher Safe: No
- Colors: 30+
While somewhat nondescript in styling, Simple Modern bottles are a one-stop-shop if you want water containers in every size for an affordable price. They range from 14 to 128-oz (a whole gallon) and feature stainless steel construction with double-walled insulation.
Each bottle fits the same size screw top, regardless of size, making it simple to have several at home that you swap between. Some people may find the narrow neck to be a design flaw, as it limits the size of the ice that fits inside.
Depending on the size purchased, your model might come with multiple lids: a handle lid, straw lid, and chug lid (only the handle lid is suitable for hot drinks).
Simple Modern makes a greater attempt to be sustainable than most water bottle manufaturers. For instance, the company:
- Recycles unused or damaged materials and packaging components
- Uses product packaging that is fully recyclable
- Installed solar power at its US facilities
- Makes its bottles in the US.
S’well Water Bottle
Highlights: A sleek and classy reusable water bottle made of stainless steel for those that prefer a more fashion-forward option.
- Material: 18/8 food-grade stainless steel
- Sizes: 9, 17, 25-oz
- Hot/Cold: triple-layered, vacuum insulated construction keeps drinks cold for 24-48 hours, hot for 12-24 (depending on size)
- Dishwasher Safe: no
- Colors: 40+
For those looking for a classy, fashion-forward water bottle that can match any outfit, it’s hard to beat the dozens of designs available from S’well. These bottles claim to keep drinks cold for a stunning 41 hours, thanks to triple-walled insulation with high-grade 18/8 stainless steel. They also work for hot beverages, though you may find the screw caps lacking for this purpose.
Some users will love that the narrow mouth makes for easy drinking. However, the size can make it challenging to fill the bottles with ice, and hand cleaning can be cumbersome.
S’Well doesn’t seem to have any sustainability programs or focus on eco-friendliness, unlike many other brands on this list. And, ironically, because S’well puts such a focus on aesthetics, it may actually promote unsustainable consumption – nobody needs a water bottle to match every outfit. (S’Well started this trend long before the Stanley tumbler phenomenon.)
CamelBak Eddy
Highlights: A cheap and versatile reusable water option free from BPA and sturdy, making it a solid pick for children with a habit of losing their possessions.
- Material: BPA-free polypropylene plastic made with 50% recycled materials
- Sizes: 20, 25, 32-oz
- Hot/Cold: not insulated, only suitable for cold drinks
- Dishwasher Safe: yes
- Colors: 12+
Cheap and versatile, these lightweight plastic bottles have an updated easy-bite straw cap that makes it easier to drink without tipping the bottle or unscrewing the lid. Every component is top-rack dishwasher safe. You can choose from a range of sizes, including 14-oz ones designed for kids.
Personally, I’d avoid plastic water bottles for children (and myself), given the chemicals lurking in plastics, the shorter lifespan, and the overall environmental impact.
That said, reusable plastic water bottles do have a place, such as when:
1. Weight is a really important consideration (such as on an expedition)
2. Mobility challenges make plastic bottles easier to use
3. There are budgetary constraints
4. You or your child tend to lose water bottles a lot.
Overall, the Camelbak Eddy is a good choice, made by a longstanding company that at least makes a nod towards sustainability.
Each bottle is made with Polyester Renewal Technology, which guarantees that they contain at least 50% recycled material. The plastic is free of:
- BPA
- BPF
- BPS.
Unfortunately, Camelbak says nothing about phthalates or other possible chemicals in the recycled plastic or virgin plastic.
Note that these bottles lack insulation. They only work with cold or room temperature water, and because of the interior straw design, it’s not recommended you stick them in the freezer. The plastic exterior will also sweat when it’s cold.
Make sure you buy the newest model of the Eddy, with the redesigned bite valve to allow for 25 percent more water flow. Those who don’t like straws can choose from two other cap designs: one standard screw top and one that acts as a sports cap.
Camelbak also offers an insulated stainless steel water bottle that is much more durable, sustainable, and healthy, and won’t sweat when cold.
Nalgene 32oz Wide Mouth Water Bottle
Highlights: The quintessential plastic water bottle pick that comes across as nearly indestructible.
- Material: BPA-free plastic
- Hot/Cold: No insulation, only suitable for cold
- Dishwasher Safe: yes
- Colors: 20+
The quintessential plastic water bottle, 32-oz Nalgenes can’t be beat from a value standpoint. The bottles are made from BPA-free Tritan plastic that won’t shatter, no matter how many times you drop them on the sidewalk.
When empty, this bottle is almost weightless, and the wide mouth opening makes it easy to add ice (you can purchase sipper inserts if drinking from the large opening is a challenge). Clean-up is easy, as the entire bottle is dishwasher safe. The loop strap also makes it easy to hook this bottle to a carabiner for easy carrying—but note that this strap is the part of the bottle that’s most likely to break.
Though this bottle is an ideal choice for hiking and travel, the squat size and lack of insulation can be cumbersome for daily use. Don’t expect it to fit in any cupholders or keep your ice from melting.