Brita Vs. Pur: Which Brand Makes The Best Water Filter Pitchers?

If you’ve been thinking about buying a water filter pitcher to reduce the contaminants in your drinking water, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of Brita and Pur. As the two most recognizable names in the water filter pitcher space, both brands are trusted for their affordable, easy-to-use pitchers that are ubiquitous across American homes.

Can’t decide which brand’s offerings make the most sense for your household? While reviewing the best water filter pitchers from a variety of trusted brands, I tested the most popular pitchers from Brita and Pur, comparing their design and ease of use, as well as the strength and life span of their filters. Ahead, here’s how the brands’ pitchers stack up.

Brita Vs. Pur: The Filters

The main function of a filter is to reduce contaminants in your drinking water. When you filter out contaminants like mercury, lead, chlorine and other chemicals, you’re not only improving the smell and taste of your tap water—you’re also ensuring that the H2O your household consumes is cleaner and purer.

Pur and Brita each offer two main lines of filters for their water pitchers. Brita has Standard and Elite filters, while Pur has basic and Pur Plus filters—and within each brand, both filter types can be used with almost all pitcher models. (Brita also has a Stream line of filters, which is only compatible with Stream pitchers.) Below, here are the NSF/ANSI standards that each type meets, as well as their estimated life spans:

Brita Standard

• Filter life: 40 gallons
• NSF/ANSI 42: Chlorine, zinc
• NSF/ANSI 53: Copper, cadmium, mercury

See the Brita Standard performance data sheet for more specifications.

Brita Elite

• Filter life: 120 gallons
• NSF/ANSI 42: Chlorine, nominal particulate class I (particles 0.5 to <1μm)
• NSF/ANSI 53: Lead, mercury, cadmium, asbestos, 2,4-D, atrazine, benzene, endrin, ethylbenzene, carbon tetrachloride, p-dichlorobenzene, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), simazine, tetrachloroethylene
• NSF/ANSI 401: Atenolol, bisphenol A, carbamazepine, DEET, estrone, ibuprofen, linuron, meprobamate, metolachlor, microplastics, naproxen, nonyl phenol, phenytoin, TCEP, TCPP, trimethoprim

Note that some filter parameters vary based on the specific water filter pitcher system; see the Brita Elite performance data sheet for more specifications.

Pur Basic

• Filter life: 40 gallons
• NSF/ANSI 42: Chlorine, zinc, nominal particulate class VI (particles 50 to 80μm)
• NSF/ANSI 53: Benzene, cadmium, copper, mercury
• NSF/ANSI 401: Linuron, trimethoprim

See the Pur performance data sheet for more specifications.

Pur Plus

• Filter life: 40 gallons
• NSF/ANSI 42: Chlorine, zinc, nominal particulate class I (particles 0.5 to <1μm)
• NSF/ANSI 53: Benzene, cadmium, carbon tetrachloride, copper, mercury, simazine
• NSF/ANSI 401: Bisphenol A, estrone, linuron, microplastics, nonyl phenol, trimethoprim

See the Pur performance data sheet for more specifications.

To determine the best filter for your household, you first need to consider your tap water quality and the contaminants you’re most interested in filtering out. “It’s important to remember that there is no such thing as a perfect filter that removes every single contaminant,” says registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller. “People should choose the filter that works for their home as well as budget, and one that filters out the particular contaminants that they want to remove.”

If you’re in the market for a basic option, Pur’s basic filter captures more contaminants than Brita’s Standard filter; it also meets certifications for NSF/ANSI standard 401. Meanwhile, those looking for more advanced filtration will likely be happiest with Brita’s Elite filter; not only is it effective against a longer list of contaminants, but it also has a significantly longer life.

Brita Vs. Pur: Pitcher Design

For the most part, Brita and Pur pitchers share a similar design: They have a thumb lever to open the top-fill door, where tap water passes through the filter before emptying into the reservoir below. Per the manufacturer, Brita has 10 pitcher models, including the Tahoe and Wave. (Additional models are available through third-party retailers, such as the popular Brita Everyday Water Filter Pitcher, which you can buy on Amazon.) Meanwhile, Pur has six, one such being the top-rated Pur Plus 7-Cup Pitcher.

While there’s variety in terms of color and capacity, the main difference lies in the brands’ filter-life indicators. With the exception of the basic Pur 7-Cup Pitcher, Pur pitchers have a built-in LED filter-life indicator light that emits from the top of the pitcher after you finish pouring; it’s powered by a snap-in module underneath the lid. And before you wash a Pur pitcher, it’s important to remove this module.

With Brita pitchers, the filter-life indicator varies by model. The brand’s most basic, the Brita Everyday Water Filter Pitcher, doesn’t have an indicator. Instead, it includes a sticker where you can record the date you inserted the filter to help remind yourself when to change it. In most models, though, the indicator is an LED light near the spout that activates after you pour from the pitcher; it transitions from green to yellow to red as filter life declines. Others have a push button for filter status on the fill door. When activated, an LED light illuminates next to three filter status options: 100%, 25% and 0%.

During testing, I much preferred the bright, crisp colors emitted by Brita’s LED module. With the Pur models, I found the LED light to look a bit hazy, making it difficult to discern the green light from the yellow light.

Brita Vs. Pur: Water Taste

When you pour a tall glass of chilled, filtered water, you want to be refreshed—not disgusted by an off-putting taste. If a water filter pitcher meets NSF/ANSI standard 42, which pertains to taste and odor, there’s a good chance the H2O it yields will be cleaner. Exactly how much better it will taste, though, depends on your tap water quality and your taste buds. All Brita and Pur filters meet this NSF/ANSI standard 42, and during testing, the brands’ pitchers yielded cleaner-tasting water. That said, all of the glasses of water I poured had a slight chlorine taste. To determine which pitcher’s water was the most palatable, I conducted a small-scale blind taste test. We agreed that the Brita Elite filter produced the best-tasting water of the bunch. The Brita Standard filter and the basic Pur filter, meanwhile, scored the lowest.

Brita Vs. Pur: Ease Of Cleaning

It’s important to regularly clean your water filter pitcher so that you don’t end up with a slimy biofilm, which is accumulated bacteria that have essentially glued themselves to the interior of the pitcher. For the most part, I found both Brita and Pur models to be easy to thoroughly clean. That said, whereas Pur pitchers are dishwasher-safe, Brita’s need to be hand-washed. If you want the convenience of loading your pitcher in the dishwasher (minus the filter and the module for the LED filter light), then a Pur pitcher makes the most sense. If you prefer hand-washing, both of the brands’ offerings disassemble easily and don’t have tight nooks and crannies that are difficult to clean.

Final Thoughts

Based on the above criteria, I believe that Brita water pitchers have the most to offer. Not only are there more models to choose from, but the brand’s Elite filter has the greatest filtration capabilities and life span. At the end of the day, though, you can’t really go wrong: Both brands’ pitchers are effective at filtering out contaminants from tap water. Though I believe the very best water filter pitcher comes from another brand, Zerowater, both Brita and Pur impressed me during testing. Here are the top options from both brands.

Though this pitcher isn’t Brita’s cheapest model, its value can’t be beat. For $42, you get a large 10-cup pitcher and the brand’s advanced Elite filter, which captures PFAS and lasts for about six months (or about 120 gallons of filtered water, whichever comes first). It’s also easy to keep track of the filter life, thanks to its LED indicator light.

At the end of testing, I named this 7-cup model the best slim water filter pitcher. Owing to its slender design, it’d make a great pick for anyone with a smaller fridge. Not only is the plastic housing sturdy, but it’s also dishwasher-safe. It also comes with Pur’s premium Plus filter.

My Expertise

I’m a product reviewer and writer with six years of experience, and I specialize in researching and testing home products and appliances. More specifically, I tend to cover products that can improve the health and comfort of your home environment. For Forbes Vetted, I’ve tested and reviewed portable air conditioners, tower fans, standing desks and, most recently, water filter pitchers. Since I’ve long been concerned about the quality of the tap water in my Florida home, I was eager to see which models were capable of removing impurities and contaminants from my drinking water.