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Microplastics & PFAS in bottled water

What the main studies measured, which brands they named, and what regulators say.

93%of 259 bottles had microplastics (2018)1
240,000plastic particles per litre, mostly nanoplastics, in 3 unnamed brands (2024)2
9 of 47waters had total PFAS above 1 ppt (2020)3

Microplastics: what was found

2018, SUNY Fredonia and Orb Media. 259 bottles of 11 brands, bought in 9 countries and stained with Nile Red dye. 93% showed microplastics: on average 10.4 particles per litre larger than 100 µm, and 325 counting particles down to 6.5 µm. The most common confirmed polymer was polypropylene (54%), a common bottle-cap plastic.1

2024, Columbia University (PNAS). A laser method that identifies single particles below 100 nm found about 240,000 plastic particles per litre on average in three popular US brands, about 90% of them nanoplastics. The brands were not named.24 Another scientist questioned the study’s lab blanks; the authors replied in the same journal.56

Brands named in the 2018 study

Average particles per litre in each lot (≥6.5 µm, after lab blanks), as published.1

BrandLot bought inParticles/L
Nestlé Pure LifeAmazon.com (US)
Beirut
Bangkok		2,277
49.3
468
GerolsteinerFredonia, NY (plastic)
Amazon.com (glass)		1,410
204
BisleriChennai
Mumbai
New Delhi		826
213
3.72
AquaJakarta
Bali
Medan		37.1
705
404
E-PuraMexico City
Tijuana
Reynosa		686
20
37.3
AquafinaAmazon.com (US)
Chennai		252
174
EvianAmazon.com (US)
Fredonia, NY		197
58.2
DasaniAmazon.com (US)
Nairobi		165
74.6
WahahaJinan
Beijing
Qingdao		156
66.7
67.1
MinalbaSão Paulo
Aparecida de Goiânia
Rio de Janeiro		40.1
12.5
150
San PellegrinoAmazon.com (US)30.3

Gerolsteiner was the only lot in glass: 204 particles per litre, against 1,410 in its plastic lot. All bottles had plastic caps.1

PFAS: what was found

2020, Consumer Reports. 47 US bottled waters (35 still, 12 sparkling), 30 PFAS. Most still waters had some PFAS, but only two were above 1 part per trillion (ppt); sparkling waters were more often above it.3

Above 1 ppt total PFASppt
Tourmaline Spring Sacred Living Water4.64
Deer Park Natural Spring Water1.21
Topo Chico Natural Mineral Water9.76
Polar Natural Seltzer Water6.41
Bubly Blackberry Sparkling Water2.24
Poland Spring Zesty Lime Sparkling Water1.66
Canada Dry Lemon Lime Sparkling Seltzer Water1.24
La Croix Natural Sparkling Water1.16
Perrier Natural Sparkling Mineral Water1.1

In a later retest, Topo Chico averaged 3.9 ppt.7 Nestlé said its own tests of Poland Spring, Deer Park and Perrier did not detect PFAS; La Croix and Polar questioned how CR added up the totals.3

2023–2024, US FDA. 197 bottled waters bought at retail: 10 had detectable PFAS, none above the EPA limits for tap water.8

What the rules say

  • Microplastics: no limit for bottled water. WHO (2019) found no reliable information suggesting a health concern, with limited data.9 The FDA says the evidence does not show that levels in food pose a risk.10 California has defined microplastics in drinking water and adopted a test method.11
  • PFAS, US tap water: EPA’s 2024 rule sets 4.0 ppt each for PFOA and PFOS, and 10 ppt for PFHxS, PFNA and GenX.12 In May 2026 EPA proposed giving systems until 2031 for PFOA and PFOS and dropping the other limits; neither proposal is final.13
  • PFAS, US bottled water: the FDA standard does not list PFAS yet;14 the FDA says it is working on a regulation.15 The bottled water industry group IBWA asks members to stay below 5 ppt for one PFAS and 10 ppt for several.3

Read with care

  • The studies count different particle sizes with different methods, so their numbers cannot be compared directly.
  • Each tested a few lots, years ago. A brand’s source, plant or packaging can change, and bottles from one lot varied widely.
  • A brand missing from a study was not tested; that does not make it free of microplastics or PFAS.

What you can do

  • If PFAS matters to you, still waters were mostly at or under 1 ppt in Consumer Reports’ tests.3
  • Check the brand’s own water quality report; each Waterphile water page links to it.
  • For tap water in the US, utilities must tell customers their PFAS levels from 2027.12

FAQ

Which bottled water has the least microplastics?

No study ranks today’s brands. In the 2018 Mason study, San Pellegrino (one lot, about 30 particles per litre) and Minalba (about 63) had the lowest brand averages, and Nestlé Pure Life (about 930) and Gerolsteiner (about 807) the highest. Results varied a lot between bottles and lots, and the lots were bought in 2017–2018.

Is there nanoplastic in bottled water?

A 2024 PNAS study of three US brands, which it did not name, estimated about 240,000 plastic particles per litre on average, about 90% of them nanoplastics (smaller than 1 micrometre).

Is there PFAS in bottled water?

Sometimes, at low levels. Consumer Reports’ 2020 tests found total PFAS above 1 part per trillion in 2 of 35 still and 7 of 12 sparkling waters. The FDA’s 2023–2024 tests found PFAS in 10 of 197 samples, none above the EPA drinking-water limits.

Are microplastics in bottled water harmful?

Not known. WHO (2019) found no reliable information suggesting a health concern but called the data limited, especially for nanoplastics. The FDA says current evidence does not show that levels in food pose a risk.

Long read: what the two microplastics studies actually counted.

Sources

  1. Mason SA, Welch VG, Neratko J. Synthetic Polymer Contamination in Bottled Water. Frontiers in Chemistry, 2018
  2. Qian N et al. Rapid single-particle chemical imaging of nanoplastics by SRS microscopy. PNAS, 2024
  3. Consumer Reports: What’s Really in Your Bottled Water? (24 Sep 2020)
  4. Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, 9 Jan 2024
  5. Materić D. Nanoplastics measurements must have appropriate blanks. PNAS, 2024
  6. Qian N et al. Reply to Materić. PNAS, 2024
  7. Consumer Reports: Topo Chico Cuts PFAS Levels by More Than Half
  8. US FDA: Testing results for PFAS in bottled water (14 Apr 2025)
  9. WHO: Microplastics in drinking-water, information sheet (2019)
  10. US FDA: Microplastics and nanoplastics in foods
  11. California State Water Resources Control Board: Microplastics in drinking water
  12. US EPA: PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation
  13. US EPA: Proposed PFAS rescission rule (May 2026)
  14. US FDA: 21 CFR 165.110 Bottled water
  15. US FDA: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)

Information only, not medical advice. Checked 26 Oct 2026.