Best Sparkling Water

Jan 18, 2024

We tried seven popular brands—including Topo Chico, LaCroix, and Liquid Death—to find out which ones delivered the most seltzer satisfaction

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What’re you drinking? These days, you’re more likely than ever to hear "seltzer" as the answer. Sparkling water (or seltzer; we’ll use the term interchangeably in this piece) is already a nearly $30 billion industry and is expected to keep growing, according to market research firm Grandview Research.

We’re noted sparkling water fans around here—check out reporter Perry Santanachote's article about the environmental impact of her La Croix habit for some reassuring news if you, too, guzzle the bubbly stuff by the boatload. But just because we regularly partake doesn't mean we know what the best sparkling water is. So seven Consumer Reports staffers, including me, and the seltzer pit who is my husband tried seven of the most popular sparkling waters (plus tap from the SodaStream) to assess the best of the best. If you’re going to fill your belly with carbon dioxide, it should be quality.

As it turns out, the classics aren't always superior.

Check our review of the best soda makers and find out whether a seltzer maker is worth the investment.

It may be better known for its ginger ale, but Canada Dry's plain seltzer is no schlub. This dependable seltzer is appropriate for all occasions, whether that's on its own, in a cocktail, or with a dash of bitters and a slice of lemon. It has a plethora of medium-sized bubbles that are neither too fine nor too aggressively large, which is a big reason it's such a versatile can.

Aileen McCluskey, an evaluator and a coordinator of content production at Consumer Reports, calls Canada Dry "pure tasting" and "very bubbly and easy to drink." Catherine Roberts, a CR health reporter and an evaluator, says this sparkling water "has notes of citrus—maybe lightly lemony? It's really tasty. The bubbles are sharp on the tongue."

As my husband and I made our way through the leftover cans after we completed our blind tastings, the Canada Dry was one of the first to go. Our favorite way to drink it? In an aperitivo and soda mixed drink: over ice, pour 2 ounces of aperitivo, such as Campari or Faccia Brutto (which is what we used), and top with about 6 or so ounces of seltzer, adjusting to suit your tolerance for bitterness. Garnish with a slice of orange, if desired, and if you’re feeling real fancy, a sprig of mint. Easy, low-alcohol summer drink complete.

La Croix is one of the top-selling sparkling waters on the market, and it's easy to see (and taste) why. With a retro-cool can design, stiff bubbles, and an agreeably neutral flavor, La Croix Pure makes a great standby (as evidenced by my recycling bin and my seltzer budget, though 90 percent of the blame lies with my husband).

Lacey Browne, an evaluator and a visual editor at CR, calls La Croix "bouncy and enthusiastic." "It's an experience. The bubbles linger and fade pleasantly," she says, and envisions drinking it at a long table on a breezy summer day. I enjoy La Croix with a dash of Angostura bitters and a slice of lemon, any time of year.

Looking for bubbles? You’ve come to the right place. Polar Seltzer Original is the bubbliest of the sparkling waters we tried; depending on your personal taste, you may find them delightful and energetic, or domineering and aggressive. For me, it brings to mind white water rapids more than ice, which is to say, it has a lot going on, and white water rafting is a great sport that's certainly not for everyone.

Amanda Lecky, the deputy editor of print products at CR and an evaluator, says Polar is "almost foamy" and "has a lovely effervescence," while Lacey says that though she enjoyed this sparkling water, the intensity of the bubbles overwhelmed any flavor. Antonella Pomilla, a CR senior market analyst and an evaluator who says she’d buy this seltzer, points out that it's "gassier—burping!" That's also my one complaint about the Polar: As someone with a very sensitive digestive system, this one makes me blow up like a balloon. If you’re lucky enough not to have this problem, enjoy this sparkling water in the bubbly cocktail of your choice. Perhaps a Tom Collins or, for those who aren't drinking, a Hibiscus Fizz?

In comparison to the white water rapids that are Polar Seltzer, Liquid Death Sparkling Water is a gentle stream. Its bubbles are assertive, but soft, without its competitor's belligerent energy. It comes in a tall can, out of which it's best enjoyed; if poured over ice, it's at risk of going flat if not consumed quickly. Drinking it from the can, however, is its own pleasure, especially if you have youthful nostalgia for tallboys of Pabst Blue Ribbon.

Antonella says the Liquid Death tastes "premium" and "less fizzy" than other seltzers in our evaluation. "It's crisp and clean," she says. As for how she’d enjoy it, "straight is fine—chilled is definite." I personally adore Liquid Death not only for its flavor and its hilariously intense branding but also because its subdued bubbles make it easier on my stomach without tasting flat. Score.

Topo Chico's sparkling mineral water contains an abundance of tiny bubbles. Its texture reminds me a bit of a small strip of Velcro: lightly spiky, pleasurably prickly. "This has tiny, sharp, pointed bubbles," Lacey says. "To me, smaller bubbles mean more refined." She and Catherine agree that the flavor of the seltzer itself takes a back seat. "Flavor is very neutral—in a good way, nothing weird," Catherine says. "The neutral flavor would be great in a cocktail or mixed with a strong fruit juice."

Like Perrier and San Pellegrino, Topo Chico is a naturally sourced mineral water, which means the naturally carbonated water is collected from a particular spring (in Topo Chico's case, the Cerro del Topo Chico near Monterrey in Northern Mexico). Because of its slightly more delicate carbonation, Topo Chico would taste excellent paired with a sparkling wine such as a Campari Spritz. Add olives on a pick for sophisticated flair.

Whether you find the sparkling water from the SodaStream good or not depends largely on where you live. I’m in Philadelphia, which has moderately hard to hard water that smells and tastes like chlorine; I don't have a water filter, which means I’m filling my SodaStream bottle straight from the tap.

The water in Yonkers, N.Y.—where Consumer Reports is based and where we performed the blind taste test for most of our evaluators—is moderately hard to hard, according to HydroFlow USA, a manufacturer of water conditioners, and the water used in the evaluation was filtered first. This gives it a more neutral taste, and as a result, our Yonkers evaluators liked this seltzer a bit more than my husband and I did in Philly. In our blind taste evaluation questionnaire, under the question "Do you like the flavor?" I wrote, "No. Tastes like tap." While I do have a sensitive palate, I’m no supertaster. Unfiltered Philly water really just tastes like that, and no amount of carbonation can cover it up, unfortunately.

Our Yonkers evaluators have pretty diverse takes on the sparkling water from the SodaStream. Catherine describes it as having a "coolish" flavor and "minty" aftertaste, though she wishes it were more carbonated; Aileen calls it "a little fruity" and "very flat": "Not very enjoyable. Flat, a bit oily," she says. "Wouldn't really drink this. Maybe if it's all that's available, but did not like."

Another thing to add: The amount of carbonation in the SodaStream sparkling water depends mostly on how long you carbonate the water (once your can of CO₂ starts getting low, however, you’re going to be limited in how bubbly you can make your seltzer).

SodaStream instructions say to hold down the aeration button for three to five sets of 1 to 2 seconds each. We chose a middle-of-the-road sparkling time, with four sets of about 1-second aerations. Likely because of the product instructions (which suggest multiple sets of brief aerations), it's difficult to get a precise amount of carbonation; in my experience, multiple efforts resulted in different textures and mouthfeel, despite apparently aerating for the same amount of time.

Despite operating since the late 19th century, and in theory accumulating over 100 years of expertise making great sparkling water, this can was not our favorite. "I feel like this is airplane seltzer," Antonella says. "Pass." Multiple evaluators say this sparkling water is metallic or tinny. Other notes include the words "sour" and "boring." "The flavor is a little chlroriney, a bit like drinking carbonated pool water," Catherine says. "The aftertaste is swimming pool!"

This sparkling water is decidedly tamer than most of the others. Its bubbles are small and scanty, and its flavor is—as noted by multiple evaluators—decidedly more minerally than others. One's preference for a more mineral-forward sparkling water is, of course, a matter of taste, but none of our seltzer guzzlers professed an inclination for the Perrier. Daniel Wroclawski, an evaluator and a home editor at CR, came closest, saying that "the texture is good, but the bubbles don't feel as defined," and that "the odd flavor builds the more you drink it."

Lacey, perhaps, puts it best. "I would buy it if I were desperate and stuck at a gas station in the Midwest with no other choices," she says, pointing out that her parents live in Indiana (where there's a dearth of sparkling water options at the gas stations). Would she buy it? "Maybe not."

This is another company that started in the late 19th century but dissatisfied us despite its pedigree. In my evaluation, I wrote, "it's okay. Salty?" It's definitely a more mineral-forward sparkling water, which the company sources from a spring in the foothills of the Alps and adds carbonation to later. Though the company says its water has a "slightly bitter note, which has made it famous and unmistakable throughout the world," many of our evaluators mostly think it just tastes flat. "Does this even have CO₂ in it?" Catherine asks. "The mouthfeel is very disappointing and unappealing." Putting it over ice, she says, would just be "sad."

This sparkler's best setting is as a palate cleanser alongside an espresso. The water is sipped before and after drinking the espresso, in order to cleanse the palate and allow the flavor of the espresso to shine. Lacey says that this "barely carbonated" water is "for a beginner, maybe a child who doesn't want their water ‘spicy,’" or prickly and intense. Otherwise, we’d say it's safe to skip.

Consumer Reports staff getting bubbly.

People have been delighting in the fizz for thousands of years. In ancient Rome, people believed that mineral springs—including those with water that is naturally carbonated—could cure tumors, joint pain, skin diseases, and other ailments, according to the Science History Institute. But it wasn't until 1772 that Joseph Priestley detailed his process for adding carbon dioxide to water, in one of the first known records of artificial sparkling water.

Soon thereafter, a British doctor named John Mervyn Nooth unveiled "the Nooth apparatus," which aerated water and became the model for carbonators used in drugstores. In the 1780s, there emerged a new carbonation technology on the scene: a seltzer bottle, then called a syphon, invented by the Swiss amateur scientist and jeweler by the name of Jacob Schweppe.

This new beverage became popular, particularly among sailors and other sea voyagers, who (incorrectly) believed it could prevent scurvy and other diseases. It had the bonus of tasting better than the stagnant still water that the boat-bound were used to drinking.

In the U.S., seltzer became popular among immigrants in New York City, particularly Jewish immigrants, according to a 2022 research article published in Gastronomica: The Journal for Food Studies. Many of these immigrants lived in tenements, where fresh, clean water wasn't readily accessible. Unable to obtain the clean water from the new Croton Aqueduct that supplied water to wealthy New Yorkers, Jewish New Yorkers instead opened seltzer firms—by the dozens.

By 1899, nearly a quarter of all freestanding food stalls on the Lower East Side exclusively sold seltzer, and 90 percent of all seltzer firms were owned by Jewish producers. When the city didn't provide accessible clean water to immigrants and other folks in the tenements, they provided it for themselves.

If you get tonic water and sparkling water mixed up in your cocktail recipe, you’re going to notice. Tonic water is sweetened seltzer with quinine, a bitter flavoring extracted from the bark of the Andean fever tree. It's typically mixed into gin and tonics. Club soda is sparkling water with added minerals, such as sodium chloride (aka salt), sodium bicarbonate, and disodium phosphate, that give it a subtly salty taste. Mineral water is similar in flavor to club soda, but the minerals are naturally occurring and never artificially added—although carbonation, as we see with the San Pellegrino, may be added later.

In theory, you can substitute club soda, sparkling water, and sparkling mineral water for one another in drink recipes. That said, as our evaluations discovered, there can be quite a difference in texture among them, so your results may vary depending on which particular product you choose.

Photo: Consumer Reports Photo: Consumer Reports

If you’re replacing your Mountain Dew habit with a can of plain La Croix, please keep doing so. Mountain Dew has sugar and calories (a lot of them); La Croix has none. It is, as the packaging proclaims, "Innocent!" Or almost, anyway.

When carbon dioxide is added to water, it also adds some acidity. In one 2007 study, researchers found that soaking teeth in flavored sparkling water for half an hour began to erode them. Assuming you’re not soaking your dentures in Pamplemousse La Croix regularly, this is unlikely to happen to you to the same degree. The closer to plain water, the better for your teeth (that regular Mountain Dew is likely to be worse). Still, after a long time of drinking seltzer, you could see some impact.

"Drinking small amounts of unsweetened carbonated water is not harmful to your teeth," says Lior Tamir, DDS, a dentist in San Mateo, Calif. "Drinking large amounts regularly, especially if sweetened, can create significant wear on the teeth." Some folks should be particularly careful, too, he says: "Tooth erosion can reduce the life span of dental restorations such as veneers or ceramic restorations as erosion around the margin can create space where debris can build up and cause cavities." Yikes.

Drinking seltzer with food whenever possible can help, and don't swish it.

Moving on past the mouth: What about the digestive system? It's a mixed bag. Seltzer can improve digestion and constipation, but it can also cause bloating and gas. Folks with irritable bowel syndrome or acid reflux, or who are prone to gas, may want to lay off the sparkling water.

Some sources say to consider the sodium when picking a seltzer, and indeed, a couple of our evaluated picks, such as S. Pellegrino, have small amounts of sodium that can add up if you’re really chugging it, or if you’re already subject to limitations on your dietary intake.

That said, Amy Keating, a dietitian at Consumer Reports, says unflavored seltzer still makes a good alternative for people who don't like plain water. "I wouldn't worry so much about sodium as the daily limit is 2,300 mg, so it would take a lot of mineral water to really add up to a significant amount," she says. Keating adds that "140 mg is considered ’low sodium’ for a single food, so that would be about nine to ten 12-ounce bottles or cans a day." If you’re still concerned, check the nutrition facts of your favorite seltzer before clicking "purchase" on your haul.

And a final note: In 2020, Consumer Reports found that many bottled and canned water products, including La Croix, Topo Chico, Polar, Canada Dry, and Perrier, contain PFAS. (PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are so-called forever chemicals that have been linked to numerous health issues, such as immune system suppression and increased risk of certain cancers.) In 2021, Topo Chico reformulated its sparkling water and lowered the amount of PFAS in its product. You can read more about that here.

This product evaluation is part of Consumer Reports’ Outside the Labs reviews program, which is separate from our laboratory testing and ratings (though some Outside the Labs reviews may incorporate limited testing data from CR's labs). Our Outside the Labs reviews are performed at home and in other native settings by individuals, including our journalists, with specialized subject matter experience or familiarity and are designed to offer another important perspective for consumers as they shop. While the products or services mentioned in this article might not currently be in CR's ratings, they could eventually be tested in our laboratories and rated according to an objective, scientific protocol.

Like all CR evaluations of products and services, our Outside the Labs reviews are independent and free from advertising. If you’d like to learn more about the criteria for our lab testing, please go to CR's Research & Testing page.

Angela Lashbrook

Angela Lashbrook is a multimedia content creator at Consumer Reports. She has been with CR since 2021 and covers a wide range of topics, but she is particularly interested in anything health- or parenting-related. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and her dog, a Libra named Gordo.