The Best Water Filters for Bikepacking

Sawyer ranks its flow between the Squeeze and the Mini, and says it needs backflushing more often than the Squeeze. FarOut's 2019 tests found it close to the Squeeze on Sawyer's own pouch but slower with other containers. On a bike the saving over the Squeeze is about 28 g by Sawyer's figures, which buys a little room in a small frame bag.

Owners on Amazon US gave it 4.6 stars from 2,030 ratings in October, with about 5 percent at one or two stars. Amazon's review summary describes flow as mixed, and the durability complaints are mostly about pouches splitting at the seam. One owner reports the O-ring falling out, so check it sits in place before each fill.

Sawyer rates its filters for 32 to 140°F and says ice may damage a wetted membrane without any sign, so a filter that may have frozen should be replaced. Keep it in a pocket by day and the sleeping bag at night once frosts start. Like every Sawyer, it does nothing about viruses or chemical contamination.

The compromise is flow. Sawyer ranks it slowest of its three squeeze filters and says it needs backflushing most often. FarOut's 2019 tests measured it about 30 percent slower than the full Squeeze, and under half the Squeeze's rate on gravity, which is obvious once you fill four litres at a resupply.

Owners on Amazon US gave it 4.7 stars from 41,345 ratings in October, with about 1 percent at one or two stars, and weight is the most praised feature. It is the cheapest Sawyer by a few dollars, and Sawyer rates its life at up to 100,000 gallons, far beyond touring use. The pouches are the part most likely to fail.

Sawyer rates its filters for 32 to 140°F and says ice may damage a wetted membrane without any sign. Its Mini page states plainly that there is no warranty for a frozen filter, so on cold nights it sleeps in the bag. Like every Sawyer, it does nothing about viruses or chemical contamination.

Flow is the reason to choose it over the smaller Micro and Mini. Sawyer ranks the Squeeze fastest of the three and says it needs backflushing least often, and FarOut's 2019 tests found it faster than the Micro with every container tried. When filling three or four litres at a stream, those minutes add up more than the extra grams do.

The SP129 kit on Amazon US comes with two 32 oz pouches, a drinking straw and inline adapters. The pouches are the weak part of the system, and most low-star owner reports describe a pouch splitting rather than a filter failing. One owner's filter cracked when screwed onto a pouch, which Sawyer put down to overtightening, so finger-tight is the rule.

Sawyer rates it for 32 to 140°F and says there is no reliable way to tell whether a used filter has frozen, so it sleeps in the bag on cold nights. Its warranty covers manufacturer defects for the life of the filter, excludes accessories, and is void after a wetted filter freezes. Owners on Amazon US gave it 4.7 stars from 10,482 ratings in October.