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FilterScored

Water · Best-of

Best Water Filter for Pharmaceuticals and Emerging Compounds

Bottom line

In our scoring the best water filter for pharmaceuticals is one certified to NSF/ANSI 401 for emerging compounds. Among our scored units the Aquasana AQ-5200 leads our certified set.

Pharmaceuticals and personal-care compounds reach drinking water at trace levels, and the EPA sets no maximum contaminant level for most of them. NSF/ANSI 401 was created specifically to certify reduction of 15 such compounds, including ibuprofen, estrone, and bisphenol A. We rank only filters with a verifiable NSF/ANSI 401 certification on an official database.

How we score: We require a verifiable NSF/ANSI 401 certification for emerging compounds on an official database, then rank by composite score.

  1. 17.2
    Aquasana AQ-5200 Under-Sink

    The Aquasana AQ-5200 Under-Sink is a under sink water filter. It is third-party certified (WQA) to reduce lead, chlorine taste and odor, chloramine, PFOA, PFOS, VOCs, mercury, asbestos, cysts, MTBE, microplastics, pharmaceuticals. Running cost works out to about $0.148 per gallon.

    • Certified to reduce: lead, chlorine taste and odor, chloramine, PFOA, PFOS, VOCs, mercury, asbestos, cysts, MTBE, microplastics, pharmaceuticals
    • Cartridge life: 500 gallons
    • Cost per gallon: $0.148
  2. 24.1
    Epic Smart Shield Under-Sink

    The Epic Smart Shield Under-Sink is a under sink water filter. It is third-party certified (IAPMO) to reduce chlorine taste and odor, lead, VOCs, chloramine, mercury, cysts, pharmaceuticals. It is also marketed for PFAS, PFOA, PFOS, microplastics, for which we found no accredited third-party certification (so we award no certification credit; this is not a finding that it fails to reduce them). Running cost works out to about $0.177 per gallon.

    • Certified to reduce: chlorine taste and odor, lead, VOCs, chloramine, mercury, cysts, pharmaceuticals
    • Cartridge life: 651 gallons
    • Cost per gallon: $0.177

FAQ

What does NSF/ANSI 401 cover?
It certifies reduction of 15 emerging or incidental compounds found in water at trace levels, including the drugs ibuprofen and naproxen, the hormone estrone, the plasticizer bisphenol A, and the repellent DEET. A filter needs this specific listing to earn credit here.
Do reverse osmosis systems remove pharmaceuticals?
Reverse osmosis reduces many of these compounds, but we still look for the NSF/ANSI 401 certification so the claim is verified rather than assumed.

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