10 Best Faucet Water Filters in 2022 (Pur, Waterdrop, and More)

From water filters you attach to your faucet to the ones you keep under the sink, the following lineup will give you numerous options and water filtration specialties to choose from.

Not all water filters are created equal; some filter out harmful chemicals and germs from your water supply while others make your water taste better. No one filter can remove all contaminants from your water. The buying guide below will detail the different faucet water filter types to get you started. 

A few examples of the particles blocked by water filters include dirt, sand, silt, sediment, chlorine, lead, cryptosporidium microorganisms, and fluoride. There are different technologies used to block these contaminants, such as reverse osmosis or the use of carbon and ceramic filters. 

Reverse osmosis is considered the best at removing contaminants, including particles like arsenic and perchlorates that are too small for other filter types to catch. These water filters use household water pressure to force water through a semipermeable membrane before passing through filters.

Reverse osmosis removes a wide range of contaminants, although it can be very slow to operate. The process usually creates three to five gallons of wastewater for every gallon filtered. The filtration system also requires periodic bleaching and the membrane and filters need to be replaced.

 
Reverse osmosis is the pricier and bulkier option and is best suited for those with spacious under-the-counter space and tap water that needs extra filtering. You can add extra cartridges to the system to increase its perks, such as deionization and UV filtering. 

On the other hand, carbon filters can remove common contaminants, including pesticides, disinfection by-products, lead and cryptosporidium, without being too bulky or complicated to install. These filter types usually contain activated carbon fiber, carbon block, or ceramic filters to block contaminants.

CTO carbon blocks utilize compressed granular activated carbon to remove chlorine, pesticides, odor, and fine impurities from water. It is one of the cheapest filter types, although the filter cartridge's service life is shorter than the rest. ACF has small, low-volume pores to absorb and filter out pollutants faster and more efficiently.

Lastly, a ceramic filter is more focused on antibacterial treatment of water for drinking. It removes chlorine and suspended pollutants plus the taste and odor in non-purified water. On the other hand, ceramic filters may fail in blocking out inorganic salts and heavy metals. 

While manufacturers often incorporate one or two of these filter types to maximize its benefits, no single filter will provide pollutant-free water. Therefore, we recommend checking with your building manager or local water company beforehand for a list of possible water contaminants reaching your home.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also provides information on how to test and treat water accordingly. From there, you can choose a particular filter to address your water supply needs.

When you have an idea of what kind of filtration your water needs, you can choose the filtration system's location. It can be attached to your existing faucet or kept under the sink. 

With an under-the-sink system, you don’t need to attach anything to your existing faucet. You attach one hose to your cold-water supply and another to your faucet line. In between, you have the filter compartment.

 
This option reduces clutter on the countertop, but it could rob cabinet space underneath. It may also require professional plumbing or drilling a hole through the sink or countertop to install. These systems are known to filter out a wide range of contaminants efficiently, given there are multiple filtration media in place. 

With a faucet-mounted system, you can easily switch from filtered to unfiltered water to prolong the filter's service life. The downside is they can slow down your water flow once the vessel gets filled with collected particles.

 
Faucet-mounted filters are also more challenging to pair with a specific faucet size, so we recommend measuring your existing faucet specifications and matching that with a faucet-mounted filter. Some filters have a male adaptor that won't match a faucet with a male attachment. 

The overall dimensions of the filter might also block valuable space on a smaller sink. Take note that faucet-mounted filters often don’t fit a pull-out or handheld faucet.

The first requirement of a good water filter is NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) certification to ensure the product meets strict public health protection standards. 

Other third-party laboratories that certify water filtration products conform to NSF’s safety standards and include the CSA Group, Underwriters Laboratories (UL), and the Water Quality Group (WQA). 

When you see their certification seals, you can expect standards are upheld for consumer safety.

When it comes to maintaining your faucet filter, look at the maximum service life in months of use or capacity in gallons. Some can effectively filter out water for 36 months or 19,000 gallons, whichever comes first. Meanwhile, most faucet-mounted types typically last three months or about 200 gallons. 

 
When a particular filter has reached the service limit, a replacement is needed. With that in mind, we recommend checking in advance if replacement filters and cartridges are readily available for purchase.

On top of replacements, some systems require periodic bleaching or cleaning to ensure they operates optimally. Cleaning and maintenance are other crucial considerations because they should match your lifestyle, household size, usage frequency, and availability.

While we're on the topic of sinks, you might be interested in trying out the following items that will make your dishwashing experience more efficient and convenient. 

Author: Hana Otsuka

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