Americans’ love for bottled water
The vast majority (88%) of Americans say they consume bottled water, according to a new national survey of more than 2,000 U.S. adults aged 18 and older conducted online by The Harris Poll on behalf of the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA). And almost 9 out of 10 (87%) of Americans say they have a positive opinion of bottled water as a beverage choice.
Nearly 9 in 10 Americans (89%) say water (any type, from any source) is among their most preferred beverages (up from 83% in 2022).
Americans’ love for bottled water (still and/or sparkling, unflavored and/or flavored) is growing, as 69% say the convenient and healthy packaged drink was among their most preferred non-alcoholic beverages (up from 65% in 2022), compared to soda (regular and/or diet) at 61% and coffee at 60%. That statistic aligns with the fact that bottled water continues to be America’s No. 1 beverage, outselling soda (by volume) for the eighth year in a row in 2023 and is projected to remain on top again in 2024, according to Beverage Marketing Corporation (BMC).
Many bottled water drinkers are also informed about the environmental impact of drink packaging, with 44% correctly choosing recyclable plastic (PET, HDPE, PC) as having the least impact on the environment (compared to glass, carton or aluminum). Glass bottles, paperboard cartons, and aluminum cans all create more waste, emit more greenhouse gases, and use more water and energy to produce.
Nine in 10 Americans (90%) say bottled water should be available wherever other drinks are sold.
If plain bottled water is not available when people are away from home, 68% of those who identify bottled water as among their most preferred beverages say they would choose another packaged drink: soda (18%), sports drink (7%), tea (7%), juice/fruit drinks (6%), sparkling bottled water (6%), functional water (5%), coffee (5%), sweetened bottled water (4%) bottled tea (4%), energy drink (4%), flavored bottled water (2%), and other (1%). One percent say they would stay thirsty. And the remaining 31% would choose water from other sources, with 10% saying they would drink filtered tap water, 11% who would drink water from a water cooler using a refillable or disposable cup, 6% who would drink tap water, and 5% who would drink from a drinking fountain. (Figures do not add up to 100% due to rounding.)
Eleven percent of Americans say they drink only tap or filtered tap water, while 18% said they drink only bottled water. Seventy-one percent of Americans drink both bottled water and tap or filtered tap water. And of bottled water drinkers that have a packaging preference (88%), 75% prefer to purchase plastic bottles, 16% prefer to purchase glass, 6% prefer metal cans and 3% prefer cartons.
“Drinking water—whether it’s tap, bottled, or filtered—should always be encouraged,” says Jill Culora, IBWA’s vice president of communications. “With the high rates of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease in our on-the-go society, bottled water provides a safe, healthy, and, as is noted in your story, convenient beverage choice.”
“According to BMC, people are increasingly choosing beverages with fewer calories, so they are shifting away from less healthy packaged drinks and are choosing the healthiest option – bottled water,” says Culora. “People who make this switch are also helping the environment because not only are bottled water containers 100% recyclable (including the cap), but they also use much less plastic than soda and other packaged beverages.”
Bottled water containers, on average, use almost one-third less PET plastic than packaged soda beverages (8.3 grams vs. 23.9 grams for 16.9-ounce containers). Soft drinks and other sugary beverages need thicker plastic containers due to their carbonation and/or bottling processes.
Bottled water drinkers find many factors important when choosing a beverage, but taste (97%), quality (95%), and safety (90%) are top of the list. Bottled water drinkers also say that features like ready to enjoy (82%), convenient packaging when on the go (81%), and re-sealable containers (79%) are important to them when choosing a beverage. Among those who say bottled water (plain, sparkling or flavored) is among their most preferred beverages, 59% say no calories are important when choosing a beverage, while 67% say the lack of artificial sweeteners is important.
Bottled water containers are 100% recyclable – even the caps. And bottled water is the most recognized and recycled PET plastic container in curbside recycling systems. In fact, bottled water containers make up approximately 53% (by individual package count) of all PET plastic collected in curbside systems throughout the United States. Soda bottles make up only 16% of the PET plastic containers (by individual package count) collected in curbside programs, according to the National Association for PET Container Resources’ 2022 Postconsumer PET Bottle Bale Composition Analysis.
IBWA encourages consumers to make healthy hydration a part of their daily lives and to pick bottled water as their packaged beverage of choice, whether it’s at home, at the office, or on the go. And remember – always recycle all plastic beverage containers.
