Staying properly hydrated can be a tall order. One thing that might entice you to drink a little more? A great water bottle. This could be a smart water bottle, a one-gallon water bottle, or one meant for hiking. If you prefer an old-school water intake, a reusable glass water bottle can offer a fresher taste than plastic or stainless steel. Luckily for us, there are a ton on the market—so we decided to test them. Our absolute favorite was the Takeya Sure-Grip Glass Water Bottle, which has a nice shape and super drinkable straw without being overly bulky. Plus, it survived our drop test, among several other gauntlets we put each bottle through. But it’s not the only glass water bottle worth considering.

The Best Glass Water Bottles

With a thick silicone bumper at the base and a very thin layer that covers the rest, this Takeya bottle seemingly has the most minimal protection of all the bottles we tested—but it ended up passing every test with flying colors. It was also comfortable to carry, one of the lightest bottles we tested, and has ergonomics that make it ideal for the desk, car, or on the go.

First, the durability: All the other bottles we tested have some exposed glass, but the Takeya’s thin silicone layer covers the whole thing seamlessly. It also provided some anti-slip traction when grasping the bottle around the body.

Speaking of carrying, the handle allows two fingers to loop through, which makes it easier on the wrist. It’s also one of the lightest bottles and felt comparable to a plastic bottle, which was a nice change from some of the heavyweights we tested. Plus, the mouth is wide enough to easily fit ice or fruit, but the bottle itself is narrow enough to fit in a car cup holder. It’s the everyman of water bottles—I’d be happy to sip it at my desk all day, but can also see taking it to a yoga class or bringing it on errands. 

My one qualm is that the bottle is only 22 ounces, so thirstier folks might find themselves refilling it multiple times a day to hit their water goals. And although it survived our drop test, it’s still made of glass. As such, it’s best not to play “toss the water bottle” over a Costco floor or bring it as your only water source on a hike. 

Other Glass Water Bottles To Consider

Most glass water bottles have some plastic components, particularly in the lid. The Contigo Purity bottle, however, uses a stainless steel lid. It also survived both our dishwasher and drop challenges thanks to the silicone sleeve that covers it, and you can fit a smaller ice cube through the mouth. The silicone strap that both attaches the lid to the bottle and doubles as a handle felt sturdy, too. But the stainless steel lid makes a pretty grating sound when you unscrew the lid (which, yes, will take two hands). It also left behind a metallic smell at the mouth of the bottle—so if you’re avoiding stainless steel bottles for their slight metallic smell or taste, this one might be a bust. That said, it’s a solid water bottle, and a good option for someone who wants to divest their lips from plastic altogether.

At just $16.99, the Ello Syndicate is the most budget-friendly bottle on our list. It checks a lot of boxes: It’s dishwasher safe, can survive a drop, and is easy to swig from. The mouth has a solid feel, and it can fit smaller ice cubes if you’re hoping for a cold drink. It also has an extra locking mechanism for the lid for when you need to be sure it won’t spill in a backpack or in the car, and you could open the bottle one-handed. It fits in a regular car cup holder, too.

Ello fell short of the top pick because its silicone carrying strap feels like it won’t last very long—it bounced and strained when I toted it around when it was full. It also lost points because it’s top-heavy, which makes it easy to accidentally knock over when you’re just reaching for a sip. Still, it makes a good budget option for someone looking for their first glass water bottle.

The PurifYou bottle has a crisp, distinctive design, slightly wider-than-a-disposable-bottle mouth, and sturdy handle. It survived both our drop test and a trip through the dishwasher. But it fell short because the sturdy handle was too narrow for our taste—it’s pretty heavy when full to be carried by a single finger for more than a short distance. However, it was easy enough to wrap a hand around, so could be carried by the bottle itself rather than by the handle. It also didn’t quite fit into a car cup holder, was too small for ice, and really needs two hands to be opened. Those complaints certainly aren’t a dealbreaker, but it kept it from being our favorite.

Are Glass Water Bottles Healthier Than Other Bottles?

Glass water bottles, like any water bottle, are a good way to drink more water. But they’re probably not dramatically better than any other kind. 

A glass water bottle may be preferable to a stainless steel or plastic bottle, though. For one, glass water bottles tend to have a cleaner taste than other options. This is because the polymers that make up plastic have a distinct scent, and stainless steel bottles can smell, well, metallic. (And can develop rust over time.) Glass, which is made of sand, limestone, and soda ash, has a neutral, non-chemical smell. Some bottles on this list are made of borosilicate glass Dielectric Materials for Wireless Communication, 2008 “Borosilicate Glass” View Source , which contains boron dioxide and allows it to withstand temperature fluctuations better than regular glass, but does not have a particular smell either. 

A glass water bottle is also a good option if you’re trying to avoid plastic. Plastic is not an especially recyclable material once the life of your water bottle is over. Glass is 100% recyclable, although the U.S. doesn’t always do a great job at it. Stainless steel is 100% recyclable, too. 

That said, glass water bottles aren’t the best if you need a vessel to take everywhere you go. That’s because even the hardiest variations of glass are still glass—that is, they’re much more likely to break than a stainless steel or plastic option. For this reason, we recommend glass bottles as a home or office staple. For occasions that call for more movement, go with something that can take a hit.

Are BPA and BPS a Concern in Glass Bottles?

Some of us have heard that plastic can contain bisephenol-A, or BPA, a chemical common in clear plastic food containers and water bottles which has been associated with several conditions, including obesity, diabetes, and reproductive disorders. Many companies that produce plastic bottles now market their products as BPA-free, but research suggests that replacement bisephenols Current Biology “Replacement Bisphenols Adversely Affect Mouse Gametogenesis with Consequences for Subsequent Generations” View Source can also have harmful effects. For example, BPS is sometimes used as a substitute for BPA, and has been associated with similar conditions as well as gestational diabetes Nutrients “Bisphenol S in Food Causes Hormonal and Obesogenic Effects Comparable to or Worse than Bisphenol A: A Literature Review” View Source . 

Despite these concerns, major organizations like the European Food Safety Authority don’t currently view BPAs and their alternatives as a problem for human health. But if you’d like to avoid them anyway, glass does not contain BPA or its alternatives—so a glass bottle may be your best bet. However, reusable glass water bottles often have some components that use plastic (such as the lid or a straw attachment), so if you’re hoping to go entirely plastic-free, you’ll need to purchase accordingly. One of our test options below is entirely plastic-free. 

Is It Better To Drink Out of Stainless Steel or Glass?

It’s a personal preference. From a chemical perspective, neither glass or stainless steel tend to leach chemicals into drinking water (just check that the stainless steel isn’t lined with plastic, epoxy, or resin, which are sometimes used to mask the taste of metal and may leach their own set of chemicals). Stainless steel is practically indestructible from a day-to-day use perspective, so if you’re carrying your bottle around with you or are prone to knocking it off of surfaces, it may be a better solution—it’s no fun spending money on a bottle just to have it break. But if you’re bothered by the taste of metal in a stainless steel bottle, and you’re willing to be careful with your elbows, glass has the most minimal health concerns.

Whatever bottle you choose, make sure you’re cleaning it regularly per the manufacturer’s cleaning recommendations. Like, every single day, actually—bacteria love a moist environment. 

What Are the Pros and Cons of Glass Water Bottles?

How We Found The Best Glass Water Bottles

Meet Your Guinea Pig

I’m Colleen Stinchcombe, a health writer who likes to weed through the wellness BS to find tips that actually make a difference. I can always use help drinking more water. 

Our Testing Process

We identified six glass water bottles that are reviewed well by major publications and popular on social media, which The Nessie purchased for testing. We spent weeks putting them through the wringer: filling them up, drinking from them, toting them around town, running them through a dishwasher cycle (if they claimed to be dishwasher safe), shaking them to check for leakage, shoving them into cup holders, testing how well they retained cold water. Ultimately, I pushed them off the counter onto a wood floor to mimic the experience of accidentally knocking your bottle from the top locker onto the ground at SoulCycle. 

The Glass Water Bottle Buying Guide

If you’re in the market for a water bottle, or if you know you don’t like the taste that can come along with stainless steel or plastic water bottles, glass can be a great option. Just know you’ll need to take a little more care not to drop them or knock them against surfaces, as it’s still possible to break even the bottles that passed our tests—after all, they’re still made of glass.

Beyond that, you can consider some of the same features we did:

• Durability: Glass is inherently more fragile than plastic or stainless steel bottles, but a good bottle shouldn’t need to be totally wrapped in bubble wrap to survive. We pushed the water bottles on our list off of a counter to see which could roll with some of life’s punches. Spoiler: not all of the bottles did, but ones made of borosilicate glass tended to fare better. 
• Ease of use: Taking a sip should be as effortless as possible, and the shape of the bottle shouldn’t make it challenging to hold without dropping. Bonus points if the bottles let you add a little flair to your drink, like ice or chopped fruit, and if they’ll fit in several scenarios, like your car’s cup holder or a backpack bottle pocket.
• Ease of cleaning: Clean-tasting water is only possible if you can keep your glass bottle, well, clean. Most of the bottles we tested were dishwasher safe, and some had wide enough mouths that scrubbing them out should be no problem.

Glass Water Bottles You Can Skip

Not being able to recommend this bottle is a bummer. Of all the options, it’s the one that made the best desk companion—its straw is super easy to drink from, it has a wide mouth that made it easy to add ice cubes or fruit, and it actually seemed to increase water intake. Unfortunately, this borosilicate glass bottle had a fatal flaw: it completely shattered during our drop test. Like, into a million little pieces might still being lingering on the floor.

It also isn’t dishwasher safe, so we didn’t even put it through a cycle. Admittedly, a big bottle has some heft to it—we tried the 42 oz version, but it comes in up to 64 oz—and would be harder to knock off a surface anyway. (It felt a little bit like carrying around a kettlebell.) It works as a dedicated desk bottle (especially above carpet or another soft flooring), but if you’re clumsy or hoping to schlep your bottle around town with you, other bottles on this list are less risky.

The bkr Big Smooth passed our dishwasher test. The lid also stayed on tight throughout vigorous shaking, with nary a leak to be found. But as one of the most expensive options on the list, we expected more durability. Instead, it also cracked significantly during our drop test, spilling water everywhere. The bottle also didn’t quite sit right—it was a little too wide to hold comfortably in one hand but needed to be picked up to drink from, the mouth opening felt a little too small, and it didn’t fit in a car drink holder. This means this bottle is a pass, despite its aesthetic appeal.