The Best Water Filters for Hiking and Backpacking (2024)

Outside editors testing Lifestraw's Peak Squeeze last summer Photo: Evan Green

Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! >","name":"in-content-cta","type":"link"}}">Download the app.

Water filters are one of those pieces of gear you don’t mess around with—there are few worse outcomes to a backpacking trip than a surprise parasite. To ensure you don’t bring home an uninvited guest, we dove deep into this year’s offerings to find water filters that not only keep you healthy, but do so quickly, efficiently, and with minimal finger numbness.

All gear in this guide was tested by multiple reviewers. When you buy through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission. This supports our mission to get more people active and outside. Learn more.

$19 at REI $20 at Backcountry

Weight: 2.1 oz

Pros and Cons⊕ Compact⊕ Lightweight⊕ Affordable⊕ Easy to clean in the field⊗ Katadyn-brand reservoir isn’t up to snuff⊗ Short lifespan

We love squeeze filters for their lack of moving parts, compact size, and low price point. But the do come with drawbacks, chiefly in-the-field cleaning and de-clogging. But with Katadyn’s BeFree, all you have to do is swish it in water, clean or dirty, and you’re clear—no syringes or backflushing required.

It’s also fast: A two-handed grip blasts out water at nearly two liters per minute. “The water squirts out as fast as you can suck,” says former Backpacker editor Casey Lyons. The BeFree condenses the hollow-fiber filter into a low-bulk package that fits in the neck of a soft-sided bottle. We used it in Colombia and found it so quick and handy that the group-size gravity filter we brought stayed in its bag, while everyone opted to use their BeFree. The 42 mm filter design means your correspondingly wide bottle or bladder opening will have an easy time dipping and scooping from lakes and other non-flowing water.

Katadyn sells its BeFree filter with a number of soft reservoirs, but over years of filtering, multiple testers have deemed them too thin for field use and prone to pineholes. We found ourselves regularly packing Seam Grip to patch leaks, like the one we sprung after jamming the soft bottle in our pack on a climb up Colorado’s Longs Peak. Luckily, the 42 mm screw-on filter fits many popular reservoirs and bottles, including some of our favorite—and noticeably thicker—soft-sided options from Hydrapak.

$30 at REI $30 at Amazon

Weight: 1.7 oz

Pros and Cons⊕ Small⊕ Lightweight⊕ Compact⊕ Comfortable⊗ Average lifespan

LifeStraw’s minimalist straw filter goes up against a handful of small, lightweight, and extremely similar backcountry squeeze filters like the Sawyer Mini, Platypus QuickDraw, and even LifeStraw’s own Peak Straw. Thanks to solid stats across the board, the Solo has become one of our favorites in a crowded category.

Smaller and lighter than its popular big sibling, the Peak Straw, the Solo is actually a clever repurposing of the same filter used in the majority of the brand’s newest lineup: By adding a removable bottom cap and a more comfortable tethered top cap to sip from, it’s now able to switch between gravity/squeeze-filter and straw filter mode. It retains standard threading for use with a variety of Smartwater-type water bottles and bags.

When tested against competitors, the Solo had the most comfortable mouthpiece and one of the fastest tested flow rates at just over two liters-per-minute when squeezed. The elimination of the standard hose connector on the “dirty” end facilitates a faster flow rate for sipping, but also means that the Solo can’t be used as an inline filter, a deal-breaker for some backpackers.

Compared to its older sibling, the Solo is smaller, lighter, and more ergonomic, and the $5 price difference between a Peak Solo and Peak Straw seems worth it, albeit puzzling, considering that it uses the same tech but less material. Hot tip: folks who already own a LifeStraw product utilizing the Peak Series microfilter can simply purchase the top and bottom caps, essentially converting it into the Solo.

This filter won’t win first place among the competition for any single attribute. It’s not the lightest, fastest, or longest-lasting straw filter. That said, while most straw filters come with at least one hangup, the Solo is stellar in nearly every regard.

$100 at REI $100 at Backcountry

Weight: 15.9 oz

Pros and Cons⊕ Lightning fast⊕ Durable⊗ Heavy⊗ Limited by bottle size⊗ Expensive replacement cartridges

We’re well-documented fans of hiking gear that’s simple and efficient. The Geopress is both: This super handy water purifier is extremely easy to use and maintain, and it also doubles as a regular drinking vessel, negating the need to bring a separate bottle on the trail.

The Geopress is perhaps the easiest and fastest filter we’ve ever used: no pumping, squeezing, or waiting. You simply fill the empty vessel with dirty water, then insert the central cylinder and push down using your body weight. Using vacuum pressure, this forces the water up through the filter, which removes viruses, bacteria and protozoa. The process takes about 8 seconds, and you’re left with 24 ounces of clean water to drink.

The Geopress is armored in thick, grippy TPE and silicone that keep the filter protected and aids in getting a handle on the vessel as you filter. It’s more durable than most filters, making it a smart pick for adventure travel. A silicone one-way valve allows users to add electrolytes or flavorings to the water without compromising the filter medium. That means you don’t have to worry about accidentally “backflushing” lemon-lime powder into your snazzy $25 filter.

The main downsides? It’s heavy and bulky, even factoring in that it allows you to bring one less water bottle. We probably wouldn’t take the Geopress or its smaller sibling, the Ultrapress, on a backpacking trip, but for day hikes and travel it’s hard to beat.

$390 at REI $390 at Backcountry

Weight: 1 lb. 1 oz.

Pros and Cons⊕ Filters viruses⊕ Self-cleans⊕ Very fast⊕ Freeze-proof⊗ Heavy⊗ Expensive

Let’s say you treat 100 liters of water a year in the backcountry. That’s a lot—at least 25 days of backpacking, in most conditions. Now let’s say you have a partner, and you filter water for them, too. So 200 liters a year. At that rate, the Guardian’s filter will last 50 years with zero cleaning.

Normally we try to avoid clogging water filters at all costs. When gunky water gums up some filters, they’re done, and even models that can be cleaned are a hassle to maintain when water is really bad. But during trips on which we pumped some 1,000 liters, from the silty Colorado River to Turkish ponds filled with moss, mud, and goat poop, we couldn’t get the Guardian to clog. How’s it work? With every stroke of the pump, 10 percent of the water backflushes the filter, so it’s self-cleaning. We never detected any slowing of the flow (it’s fast, about 2 liters per minute). “The lever handle is way easier to use than traditional pump style handles,” said one tester.

The hollow-fiber filter is unusual in two ways: It eliminates viruses in addition to other pathogens (rare for this type of filter); and can withstand freezing temperatures (down to 0°F) without damage. Credit that cold-proofing to the filter’s unique physical and chemical makeup (in other words, it’s proprietary).

The fact that this model was released in 2015, is the only pump-style filter we consider to be worth the effort, and still tops our list is a testament to how efficient and well-designed the Guardian is. (That’s not to say it couldn’t use an upgrade; it’s notorious for leaking when overtightened.) There are certainly lighter, more compact, and cheaper options available, but if you want to clean bottle after bottle of the world’s gunkiest water, this is your filter.

$90 at REI $90 at Backcountry

Weight: 8.2 oz

Pros and Cons⊕ Durable⊕ Easy to handle⊕ Large capacity bladder⊕ Dual-purpose⊗ Lots of small caps⊗ Retains QuickDraw’s non-standard threading⊗ Short lifespan

Platypus’s QuickDraw filter has been an Outside favorite since its debut in 2020 for its compact size and fast flow-rate (as a squeeze filter, it comes in at a close second to the BeFree.) The brand’s larger 3-liter bag and QuickDraw filter combo (it also comes in a 2-liter option) is the most versatile configuration yet, with a setup that transforms into a gravity system and attachments for all sorts of drinking vessels.

The 3 Liter Gravity Filter System scored major points with our team for its ease of use and ergonomics: Critical for a bag of this size, it’s easy to grip and hold when wet thanks to a small handle near the collection mouth. (On the flip side, we found the 35-millimeter-wide mouth to be a tad small for filling in lakes and streams.) Our team also liked the larger, removable thermoplastic polyurethane strap at the other end, which makes hauling and gravity hangs easy, and doesn’t absorb water like most nylon versions. While the outer layer of the 3-liter bag is a soft, pliable polyurethane—as is the case with many competing products—Platypus uses a polyethylene lining to minimize the plasticky taste often associated with hydration bladders.

Platypus includes a universal bottle adapter connected to the quick-connect hose, which is compatible with wide-mouthed vessels like Nalgenes and standard Smartwater-type water bottles. Some misses in the adaptability department? Standard water bottle mouths are connected only with a “press-fit,” as opposed to threading, which we felt was not sufficiently secure during filtering, and three separate caps for the filter and adapter was a lot to keep track of.

As is consistent with other configurations of the QuickDraw filter, it never clogged on us during the testing season in Washington State, even after two testers ran an estimated 150 liters through the filter—including a hefty dose of silty glacial runoff. That said, the claimed lifespan is very short, limping in with a measly 1000 liters, while its closest competitor has double the longevity.

At just over eight ounces and approximately the size of a typical burrito when rolled up, the whole setup easily packs away on day hikes and overnight trips. For larger groups, Platypus still makes four- and six-liter versions of its older GravityWorks filters, but they are limited to gravity filtration and lack many of the new system’s features. All in all, the Quickdraw 3L Gravity Filter is an ideal setup for hiking in small groups and occasional solo trips.

Our team of seven testers and a handful of Backpacker editors evaluated a total of 25 filters across a variety of water sources to find the best water filters for this season’s gear guide. We tested in clear lakes and streams in the Olympic Mountains, rushing streams and stagnant pothole lakes in the Washington Cascades, turbid glacial runoff at Mt. Rainier, scummy lake water in Olympia, Washington, and high and low elevation lakes and streams in the Idaho Sawtooths. We looked at variables including flow rate, ease of use, packability, durability, weight, and functionality in order to make the best comparisons between products.

When selecting a filter, the main factors are the number of people you’ll be providing water for, how many days you’ll be hiking, and how dirty your water sources are likely to be.

Squeeze and Press-Style Filters: For an adventure with just 1-2 people, a pump, squeeze, or press-style filter will get the job done. Squeeze and press-style filters are also great for day hikes. Some of our favorite squeeze filters (Katadyn BeFree, Lifestraw Solo, Platypus Quickdraw, Sawyer Mini) make for excellent backup filters thanks to their light weight and water bottle compatibility.

Inline Filters: These sit between your bladder and your drinking hose, are easy to use while in motion, but cumbersome to deal with for cooking or groups.

Gravity Filters: Larger groups may want to consider a gravity filter, which allows you to passively filter significant quantities of water at once.

UV-Based Purifiers: UV-based purifiers (which don’t filter particulates) can be a quick and easy option if you’ll be near sources of clear water. They’re also a common piece of equipment if you’ll be traveling out of the country where viruses are a concern.

No single filter can cover every situation, but fortunately, there are lots of options to choose from.

Dan Hu grew up in Hawaii and has lived in Washington State since 2013. A healthcare professional by training, he spends his free time hiking and backpacking in the Pacific Northwest and writing about his adventures.

When you buy something using the retail links in our stories, we may earn a small commission. We do not accept money for editorial gear reviews. Read more about our policy.