Filter jug brands
Who makes what, where they are actually sold, and what each is genuinely good at. Availability varies enormously by country — a brand nobody near you stocks is not a brand you want to depend on for cartridges.
Brita
major
The jug that made the category. Roughly half the filter jugs in the world are Brita, and the cartridge you need depends on which Brita company made your jug.
19 jugs · 6 cartridge families · Germany / United States
ZeroWater
major
Five-stage ion exchange that takes total dissolved solids to a reading of 000, and a TDS meter in the box so you can watch it happen.
6 jugs · 1 cartridge family · United States
PUR Plus
major
The main American alternative to Brita, and the one with the stronger contaminant-reduction certifications.
4 jugs · 2 cartridge families · United States
Philips Water
major
Micro X-Clean cartridges, and instant filtration taps that skip the waiting-for-it-to-drip stage entirely.
2 jugs · 1 cartridge family · Netherlands
BWT
premium
Adding magnesium back into the water on the way through, on the argument that filtration strips out things worth keeping.
3 jugs · 2 cartridge families · Austria
Waterdrop
challenger
The Chubby — a retro-styled jug that got popular on looks and turned out to filter well.
3 jugs · 1 cartridge family · United States / China
LifeStraw
premium
Bringing hollow-fibre membrane technology from its emergency water filters into a kitchen jug, so it removes microbiology as well as chemistry.
2 jugs · 1 cartridge family · Switzerland
Aarke
premium
The Purifier — stainless steel and glass, priced like an appliance, designed to be seen.
1 jug · 1 cartridge family · Sweden
Clearly Filtered
premium
The most aggressive contaminant-reduction claims in the jug category, backed by published third-party lab reports.
1 jug · 1 cartridge family · United States
Laica
challenger
Bi-Flux cartridges and a strong position in southern Europe, where the water is hard and the coffee matters.
2 jugs · 1 cartridge family · Italy
Aquaphor
challenger
Aqualen fibre cartridges, and a following in central and eastern Europe out of proportion to its profile elsewhere.
2 jugs · 1 cartridge family · Estonia
Dafi
value
Making the best-known third-party cartridge that fits Brita MAXTRA jugs, at roughly half the price.
2 jugs · 1 cartridge family · Poland
Amazon Basics
value
Own-brand replacement cartridges for both Brita families, at the lowest price on the page.
0 jugs · 2 cartridge families · United States
Epic Water Filters
premium
Solid-block carbon in a jug, and publishing performance data against a long contaminant list.
1 jug · 1 cartridge family · United States