The 10 Best backpacker Water Filters (2023 reviews)

We consider a backpacker water filter to be a worthy investment in the long run. We are here to help you choose the right one for your needs from all the best available products in market today.

Our review process: Show/Hide

Our Top Picks:

Best Overall: Buy: Sawyer Products backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best For saltwater: Buy: Katadyn backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best For Any Family Emergency Preparedness Kit: Buy: Platypus backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best For outdoorsman: Buy: Waterdrop backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best For car: Buy: Membrane Solutions backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best For Hydration Pack: Buy: survivor Filter backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best For removing microscopic bugs: Buy: Grayl backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best For Hose: Buy: FS-TFC backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best With dromlite Bag: Buy: MSR backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best For hunting: Buy: wild Peak backpacker Water Filter READ REVIEW

Best Overall: Sawyer Products backpacker Water Filter

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Sawyer Products line of filter come in a pretty wide variety of styles, so you can definitely find one that suits your individual preferences and needs. It is great way to always have drinkable water while backpacking/camping remotely. Weighing just 3 ounces, the versatile, award-winning sawyer squeeze filter is incredibly simple to use and fits in the palm of your hand. The Ounce reusable squeeze pouches roll up when empty, so they won't take up space in your pack or suitcase. It comes with a couple of 32 oz water bags, a syringe for backwash cleaning, a mesh bag, and tubing and attachments for gravity filtering. These filters must be kept from freezing because ice crystals growing within the fibers can compromise it.

The bags that come with it are very useful and fairly easy to fill up. This is a must have for water purfication system and so easy to use, and also easy to travel with.

• Easy to fill the squeeze bags from a water source
• Perfect for backpackers, hikers, ot any outdoorsman
• Super convenient at a campsite or on a canoe
• Filters fast, great for backcountry camping

Best For saltwater: Katadyn backpacker Water Filter

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Next on the list, we've got yet another filter that manages to win our hearts. It's the katadyn backpacker water filter and it's widely considered as one of the best convenient filter you can buy. The Life Straw is compact, lightweight, and inexpensive, good for survival. It feels solid, and it is VERY simple to disassemble for cleaning. It is designed to extract jet fuel. The impregnated ceramic filter element can last an impressive 50, 000 liter, depending on water quality. It is great compact unit for camping or prepping.

The filter is designed to filter out viruses and sediment contaminants and not pollution. It can be used in a brackish water source. The LS6000 cartridge is a little busier to remove and dry. It gives you the peace of mind knowing that you have a filter that can give you clean drinking water for a very long period of time, if need be.

• Easy to use, easy to clean, easy to transport
• Impregnated ceramic element that 's effective against bacteria and protozoa even in extreme conditions
• Great portable dihydrogen monoxide filtration system
• Compact, robust, simple and a good to go water filtration system

Best For Any Family Emergency Preparedness Kit: Platypus backpacker Water Filter

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If you are looking for a suitable filter for your regular usage, you cannot go wrong with the platypus backpacker water filter. This is the most flexible, hands free, lightweight water filtration option available. It is great for 95% of the backcountry water sources you'll ever encounter. The water is the color of tea from flowing through the alpine bogs, and lots of pine forest. The squeeze types are very light and they are a lot of work to filter water for more than one person.

This product is fast and the water taste excellent and it’s perfectly clear. The water is drinkable after filtering, no boiling required. It is easy to use, and filters fairly quickly with no manual effort.

• Super easy to use and no yucky taste to the water after using
• Excellent solution to filtering while hiking
• Makes a lot of bacteria-free water, quickly, from pools and running water

Best For outdoorsman: Waterdrop backpacker Water Filter

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If you want nothing less than best desirable filter, then waterdrop backpacker water filter is the one you should definitely consider. This water filter works in a variety of ways, including as a straw or an inline filer with pump. The waterdrop filter straw can provide safe drinking water up to 1, 400 gallons ( 5, 300 liters) and ensures the maximum water flow rate of up to 700 ml / min to provide more relaxed outdoor water drinking experience. It eliminates cumbersome fittings and saves space, and brings you pure water with the greatest convenience and comfort.

The filter adopts a 0.1-micron hollow fiber membrane to reduce 99.99% of harmful substance in water. It is easy to absorb water and can quench your thirst instantly. This is great for camping or storing for emergency use. It's easy to use and lightweight. They work great and would be great for those who go camping or hiking often as well.

• Easy to handle and great for packing and taking anywhere
• Small enough to carry around when hiking or really any occasion
• Excellent camp site water source container for a small group
• Filters tap, rain, river water easily

Best For car: Membrane Solutions backpacker Water Filter

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The membrane solutions backpacker water filter's superior materials makes sure that it ages well with use. Chlorine purifies swimming pool water enough to make it drinkable enough to make it drinkable. It’s light weight and easy to store. It’s easy to use, basically just a straw that you can put in any container to filter water. It weighs just 2 ounces and fits in the palm of your hand, pocket, gym bag, backpacks, survival packs and purses. It fits easily into a backpack.

The straw is lightweight and comes with a cap for each end to keep things tidy and clean so it can last a long time on a shelf. It is great to throw in a bag for camping or hiking. It is easy to carry light, easy to use, and effective.

• Lightweight, and can filter quite a lot of water
• Easy to use and handy for the weight
• Great size and light weight, perfect for backpacking
• Must have for survival and hiking

Best For Hydration Pack: survivor Filter backpacker Water Filter

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This survival water filter has a fast flow rate of 500ml ( 17 oz per minute. It can be used directly from fresh water source, pumped into an attached cup, or pumped into any portable hydration pack. It is one of the lightest and most compact water purification filters on the market, a water filter camping, hiking and backpacking approved.

This part has a floating foam device around tubing to keep it afloat while filtering and away from direct contact with the sediment. The Replaceable carbon filter improves taste and removes chemical pollutants. This part can not be removed and is enclosed in the ab housing. It is great for backpacking or kayaking. It is very simple and easy to use.

• Super good and portable water filter
• Compact size, very well made product
• Good investment for long term

Best For removing microscopic bugs: Grayl backpacker Water Filter

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The grayl backpacker water filter should be able to handle its purpose and duties with ease. It is great for long days spent near water. It is tall but comfortably thin. It provides a large pressing surface when flat. It is pressed through the purifier media, and electroadsorption permanently binds any waterborne pathogens. It is also great to have on hand when camping, fishing or any other instance when one is out and might find themselves without access to clean water, should an emergency arise. It is great for removing microscopic bugs and debris from dirty water, but stop short when it comes to viruses and chemicals.

The base diameter is 2.95in (7.5cm), so it easily fits in backpack side pockets and cup holders. It is easy to use and the bottle does not leak.

• Pouring water in the top does not protect against bacteria, protozoa or virus
• The best way to get clean water from freshwater streams and other natural sources
• Ultra portable size so great for keeping on hand in all kinds of situations
• Come in a variety of colors that work well for many color enthusiasts

Best For Hose: FS-TFC backpacker Water Filter

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Next on the list, we've got yet another filter that manages to win our hearts. It's the fs-tfc backpacker water filter and it's widely considered as filter that has the most suitable features. If you need to drink water from a stream this is an excellent tool to siphon and filter that water to make it drinkable. It is made with Medical Grade Materials (Medical Grade PP Cotton, Coconut Shell Activated Carbon, High Quality Activated Carbon Fiber, Medical Grade Hollow Fiber UF Membrane) so you know this will last a very long time and is made with good quality materials.

This system will filter 8, 000l or 2113.376 gallons of water. It filters down to 0.01 microns which is adequate for the majority of pathogens one needs to worry about. The water can be rendered safe and still have that dark hue to it, and the only way to remove it would be a more elaborate filtration system, just think of it as tea water. It fits into a zippered pouch.

The capability of turning this filter into an RO system, makes it a cut above several in its class. It is easy to use, small to store, faster than gravity-fed systems, and more versatile than straws.

• Small, convenient, light, and no waterborne diseases
• Compact for backpacking & easy setup/use
• Comes with clear, easy to understand instructions
• Great filter for sediment and grit

Best With dromlite Bag: MSR backpacker Water Filter

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We would, of course, be remiss if we didn't mention msr backpacker water filter for daily purpose. Light is Right in the mountains but you need durable, this is what you get with MSR & their Hyperflow Microfilter. Not only is it small and light enough that you'll never notice it, but it pumps so easily and fast, you'll easily end up overflowing the container. It has produced clean water very quickly on many backpacking trips.

This filter is a lot easier to deal with than the katadyn ones, but its clogging a lit sooner than expected given the money forked over for it. It helps if the mouth of the water bottle is on the wider side. The carrying case is a nice touch.

• Good space and weight saving design
• Works well and pumps water super fast
• New and hot release

Best For hunting: wild Peak backpacker Water Filter

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Wild Peak offers a variety of filter for personal choice and yet maintaining quality in all the variants. It is an outstanding and practical gift for your friends or loved ones, but for every outdoor enthusiast or disaster survivor, you need clean water to sustain life. Wild Peak's Life-1 is designed to go with you anywhere that local water may be unsafe. It is a hollow fiber uf membrane with anti-microbe beads and activated carbon filters made from coconut shell. It removes 99.9999 % of all unicellular microorganisms, such as salmonella, cholera, e.coli and removes 99.9 % of all protozoa, such as giardia and cryptosporidium.

It works well and is very valuable to have in a survival situation. It comes with so many organic, inorganic and microbiological contaminants threatening your water source, filtering it before use makes eminent sense. It is perfect for camping, hiking, hunting, natural disasters and world traveling.

• Bpa free and meets all usa epa drinking water standards
• Useful when out of potable h2o
• Effectively filters up to 4, 000 liters (1056 gallons) per straw