Bottled Water or Tap Water: Which One Would You Choose?

Every living thing needs water to survive! Water is super important for staying healthy, but should you drink bottled water or tap water? The answer depends on things like cost, health, convenience, and the environment. Let’s break it down!

Which One Costs More?

If you want to save money, the choice between bottled water or tap water is clear. Tap water is the better choice. In the U.S., tap water costs less than a penny per gallon, while bottled water can be hundreds or even thousands of times more expensive. If you buy bottled water often, the cost adds up fast! Instead, using a reusable water bottle and a home filter (if needed) can save a lot of money.

Is One Safer Than the Other?

Both tap and bottled water have safety rules, but they’re regulated differently. In the U.S., tap water is tested often by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and reports on its safety must be shared with the public. Bottled water is checked by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has fewer testing and reporting rules.

Tap water in many areas has fluoride, which helps prevent cavities, but bottled water usually doesn’t. However, tap water can pick up harmful substances like lead if it travels through old pipes. That’s why some people use home filters or choose bottled water. For instance, my home tap water is very safe but hard, which means it has a lot of minerals such as calcium and magnesium. I have a reverse osmosis sytem that removes many of these minerals. Unfortunately, it’s not a cheap solution.

Which One Tastes Better and Is More Convenient?

Does bottled water or tap water taste better? Believe it or not, blind taste tests show that a lot of people can’t even tell the difference between bottled and good-quality tap water! Tap water with a filter can taste just as fresh.

Bottled water can be more convenient when you’re traveling or in a place where tap water isn’t safe. But carrying a reusable bottle with filtered tap water is just as easy—and way cheaper. If you’re looking for an inexpensive choice to filter your tap water, the ZeroWater 10-Cup Ready-Pour Pitcher is a clear winner.

What About the Environment?

Bottled water is a big problem for the environment. Making plastic bottles requires fossil fuels, and most of them don’t get recycled—only about 10-30% actually do. The rest end up in landfills, the ocean, and other places where they harm animals and pollute the planet.

Every year, 500 billion plastic bottles are used worldwide. In the U.S. alone, people throw away 35 billion empty water bottles! That’s a huge amount of plastic waste.

On the other hand, tap water doesn’t create plastic waste at all. It’s a much better choice for the environment because it doesn’t require extra packaging, transportation, or disposal. If you want to help the planet, using a reusable water bottle with tap water is the way to go!

So, Which One Is Better?

For most people, tap water is the best choice. It’s much cheaper, better for the environment, and just as safe in most places. If you don’t like the taste or are worried about safety, a water filter can help. Bottled water is useful in emergencies or areas with unsafe tap water, but for everyday drinking, tap water (or filtered tap water) is the smarter option.

What do you think? Which is better for you–bottled water or tap water? Why? Did this information change your mind?

For more information, don’t miss this blog about plastic pollution!