Thinking of Buying a LifeStraw Go Water Bottle? Read This Review First!

Apr 22, 2025

21 People Read

If you haven’t heard yet of LifeStraw, you owe it to yourself to go to their website and check them out. Today, I'm reviewing the LifeStraw Go Water Filter Bottle, also known as the Go Series. I’m going to come right out and say at the forefront that I like this company and their products. The reason I like LifeStraw so much is that they not only sell water bottles, but they have created a whole technology that has been proven to prevent, or at least greatly reduce, sickness caused by unclean drinking water all around the world. Yet, they are still not without their short-comings, as you will see below.

So, what is LifeStraw technology, first of all? According to their website, they use “advanced hollow fiber membrane technology” which prevents unwanted pollutants from getting through, including bacteria, parasites, and even microplastics. LifeStraw sells this filter technology in water bottles, such as the one I purchased (see picture above), but they also sell a variety of water dispensers, pitchers, and even filtered “straws” that one can use to drink directly from bodies of water, such as rivers or lakes. LifeStraw’s technology isn’t something they’re just trying out and hoping it works. According to their website, they use independent lab testing and they also have their own “fully equipped ISO certified water laboratory capable of performing cutting edge tests on microbiological performance longevity, turbidity and other performance indicators.”

There have been multiple independent studies done already on the effectiveness of LifeStraw technology, including one study that took place in the country of Sudan, which showed a “statistically significant decline” in diarrhoeal (fancy name for anything related to or causing diarrhea) admissions at the local hospital following the provision of LifeStraw technology. And another study out of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill showed that LifeStraw reduced bacteria from water at above the target of 99.9999% and the reduced viruses at 90-99%. I’m no scientist, but that seems like a pretty good number!

From the removal of parasites and bacteria, to the reduction of viruses, microplastics, and chlorine, LifeStraw is a product that addresses most of the concerns I have with drinking water, not just in the Third World, but right here where I live as well. As a result, I was happy to pick up my first LifeStraw product, the LifeStraw Go Water Bottle, 22oz.

Here’s my Pros and Cons.

PROS:

- The filter technology. For all the reasons mentioned above, which include LifeStraw’s ability to filter out at an extremely high level many pollutants (parasites, bacteria, chlorine, etc.), this is the main benefit of this product, in my opinion.

- Durable. The BPA-free plastic is durable, though due to the filter ability I’d best even if it was leaking microplastics and other chemicals the filter would likely take it out. Nevertheless, the bottle is sturdy.

- Lots of different options for sale. If this model isn’t your thing, LifeStraw have multiple variations, including variations on size and stainless steel bottles as well. As referenced above, they also have all sorts of filters and water containers.

- The price. While they may be slightly more expensive from some bottle on the market, when you consider the technology that goes into their filters they are actually really pretty reasonably priced. The bottle I have is for sale at $44.95, and Amazon has them on sale two for $75.95 or one for $34.56. And the filters can be replaced for $24.95 and last up to 26 gallons of water.

CONS:

- Not every LifeStraw product filters the same things. This wasn’t something I was aware of at first, but, to their great credit, they have a helpful spreadsheet on their website that shows which of their products filters which things. So, just be aware that the water bottle is much more limited in what it filters than, for instance, LifeStraw’s home water filtration products.

- Limitation of what is filtered. I know, I just said above that the filter is a Pro, so how can I now say it is a Con too? Well, I’m more taking this as an opportunity to highlight what is lacking in the LifeStraw Go Series bottles. You should at least be aware. So, according to their website, this bottle will not eliminate PFAS (“forever chemicals”), lead, antibiotics, herbicides, or multiple other chemicals that are cited. They also do not remove fluoride from the water. Is the filter still pretty great, maybe so, but do not rely on it to remove all the nasty stuff that is in your drinking water. To do that, you’re going to need something else.

- Harder to draw in water through the straw. This is just the inevitable result of having a hefty filter that you’re trying to suck water through, it just takes a bit more force. I didn’t find it really that difficult myself, but my 9-year-old son noticed it more and found it kind of annoying. Anyway, if you had the water already filtered through a system at home then you could just fill up a bottle and not have to worry about it, but with a filter straw it just is what it is.