5.0 out of 5 stars Easy to use water filter

B. · August 9, 2025

Used this on a backpacking trip this past weekend at Gem Lake in WA state. I was very try surprised how well this worked and how easy it was to use. It’s small and compact easy to fit in a small zipper, the water capacity I got is 16oz and worked will for me, the speed of it was depending on how your squeezed the water out, and I felt that the quality was pretty good for what I paid for. I would like to get a larger water bladder as it took me a good 15 min out es to fill up a 3L bladder. Also, I was worried about a weird taste from the filter and surprisingly I did t have an issue. If you do a little liquid iv or gatorlite can help with the taste if needed.

5.0 out of 5 stars Small, great flow, cheap, safe - this is a perfect product

T.F. · September 6, 2014

Wow. I've been hiking the Appalachian trail solo as out-and-back day hikes this year. Over the summer, I started taking 2 water bottles with me for my 12-mile and longer hikes. And I would refill them, unfiltered, from water sources along the trail. My brother pointed out that I as certifiably insane to do such a thing. After some thought, I decided to agree with him.After some searching, I ended with this setup. I wanted something I could take with me that was ultra-light and ultra-small. I usually have my iphone and some trail mix in one pocket of my running shorts, a water bottle in my hand, some backup carbs on the other pocket, ID and cash in the back pocket. That's it. While it's reasonable to do 5 miles this way, or even 8 if you have water at your destination, 12-15 miles requires a refill.And this is how you refill. The filter is tiny, and if you're using clear water from a moving stream or spring, the flow is pretty fast. As fast as my Katadyn hiker filter that I've had for years. After a few trips with this baby, I'm hooked. A couple tips and things I've learned:1) You're carrying 2 water bottles anyway - one to fill from a water source, and one to drink from. I fill the clean bottle with filtered water, and fill the other bottle with unfiltered water.2) The bags are unreliable. I haven't had one break yet, but it's a common thing. So don't rely on 1. Bring a backup. Or,3) Use another bottle with a cap that fits. The package says the filter fits on most water bottles. I have not found that to be the case with 2 different house brands of water bottles. I did find that the house brand 0-calorie clear soda (it comes in peach, blackberry, etc, you know what I mean) bottles did fit. So for 68 cents, I have an unfiltered bottle I can use. I think that soda bottles will reliably fit, but that's just a guess.4) lastly, because the equipment is so small and light, it is easy to lose. I started off on a 15-mile hike last week and 3 miles in discovered that my water bag was gone. I assumed I had left it in the car accidentally or it had dropped on the trail. I went ahead and did the hike anyway, refilling at a clear spring, right at the source, without filtering. I found the bag on the side of the trail on my way back. So use a zipper pocket, bundle the items to something bigger with a rubber band, do something to protect yourself.I have not used this for a camping trip yet, but I would not hesitate to do so. It's amazing. I would make sure to take the backwash plunger with me if I was backpacking, though. I love this system - it simply can't be beat.

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Backpacking Gear

G.M. · May 9, 2017

UPDATE:So I recently added the CNOC Vecto 2L bladder to this rig and got rid of my Survivor collapsible canteens. I don't think I'll be going back. The Vecto has a large opening to fill, and a 28mm bottle cap to dispense. The Mini screws on perfectly and now I can filter 2L at a time with no issues. Loving this.I also have gotten rid of all my Nalgenes from my backpacking/camping setup. I use them for the office now. I have replaced them with Smartwater bottles. The SW bottles weight less than 2 ounces each, cost $1-2 each and fit the Mini. I have also found I can get two 32 oz SW bottles into a single water bottle pocket on my pack. That means I can either carry 4 liters of water without affecting my internal storage. I have come to really value that decision. When a SW bottle wears out or breaks, I can replace it at pretty much any grocery store for less than $2.ORIGINAL REVIEW (May, 2017):Did some back country camping this past weekend and took the Sawyer Mini out with me for the first time. Reviews on it were good and I was looking for ways to cut down on weight and footprint on my old filter system (a pump). The mini is excellent.I've seen a few reviews complaining about the bag it comes with and the time it takes to squeeze "x" amount of water through it. All I have to say is, yes the bag is too small. 16 oz is kind of lame. The quality of the bag? Seems decent enough. I'll end up replacing it anyway with a pair of Survivor Filter collapsible canteens (32 oz each).As far as the filter goes, I tried it on just some regular old tap water to function test it and get familiar before taking it out. I filtered two liters of water through it (2 Nalgenes) and then back flushed it. I was shocked to see the brown much it filtered out of the tap water! I may get a second on and just screw it onto a SmartWater bottle for drinking at work!The system was easy to use. I don't know what kind of rush others are in when backpacking, but I'm not. I move at my pace and take my time. i'm not in a race when I'm backpacking or camping. I don't mind taking a couple minutes to filter some clean drinking/cooking water.The Sawyer Mini works great. I have zero complaints. I appreciate that it comes with the syringe to back flush it and keep it working well. The 16 oz bag is too small, but it works, and unless you're Hulking out on the thing, it should last just fine. That's one piece I'll upgrade, but the filter alone is well worth the cost of the set.

4.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good but lifetime over advertised

S. · August 19, 2025

Never got diarrhea despite drinking from countless streams, including some sketchy ones near horse paths. It didn't last anywhere near its expected lifetime though, nowhere near 100k gallons. Lasted less than a year, about 500 gallons despite being exclusively used with tap water or mountain stream water from the Sierras and being flushed semi regularly.When I got it it was easily filtering water, i patched it in line with my water bladder and would filter for friends. Towards the end of its life, despite being aggressively flushed before the trip, it was struggling to put out a liter every 5-10 minutes with the water bladder being squeezed and required excessive force to get pressure just through the bite valve. For the price it's good though, about what was expected.

5.0 out of 5 stars Simple, lightweight filter - great for day hikes

K.B. · July 30, 2025

I bought this to filter water on long day ohikes. Worked perfectly for my needs and I loved being able to fill the water bag from a stream or river and have clean water by squeezing it into my water bottle. I especially like the compact size and different options for use. Very easy to use.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great little filter.

M. · November 1, 2025

Worked great for my weekend hikes. I used smartwater bottles to connect to.

Preis/Leistung

A.G. · April 22, 2020

Wir haben viele YouTube Videos geschaut um das richtige für uns zu kaufen.Die Literzahl der Benutzungszeit und das Preis Leistungsverhältnis hat uns überzeugt.Aber Achtung er filtert natürlich weniger als der Kohlefilter heraus.Bitte nicht überstürzt am nächst liegenden Bach benutzen, das Wasser darf nicht vom Menschen verunreinigt sein.

Backflow in caso di utilizzo intenso

F. · July 30, 2019

Buon prodotto. Il filtro tuttavia necessità di essere pulito (backflow) ogni paio di giorni, pena una riduzione significativa del flusso/aumento pressione.

Fantastic

J. · July 24, 2022

So, this is probably the best in this class of water filters. I have a LifeStraw, a LifeStraw water bottle, an MSR (I think) travel filter (awful). This Sawyer is the best of them.There is no messing about with it, it just works. It comes with a collapsible pouch, which is nice because it makes it easier to drink from if you squeeze the container. It will also connect to standard disposable water bottles, if you prefer that or happen to have one. It comes with a straw, which is nice, so you can drink directly without the pouch, but you are pretty much lying on the ground to make that happen.One thing about the pouch, because it's flexible, if you submerse it in water, it will collapse and push the air out without taking water in. So, you just have to inflate it with your mouth, and try to scoop water into it. Kind of a pain in the butt.Also, if there is any air in the container when you attach the filter, you can't just drink from it like a straw, because you will just get air. So, bottoms up!I also have a Platypus 2L bag which this does plug into. Not sure if I can use it in-line, but I can definitely use it as a gravity filter with this Sawyer, so that's a nice option.As for flavour, I haven't tried it with really dirty water yet, just clean flowing streams, here in Ontario, but it is delicious. This is the best for the price point.

Works well

L. · October 1, 2022

I am very happy with my purchase!

Excellent bit of kit - Beware if tempted to use other manufacturer's bottles with it.

M. · May 26, 2016

The Sawyer Mini is an excellent bit of kit for those occasions where one cannot carry enough drinking water, and where weight carried is a prime consideration. There’s not a lot that can be added to Sawyer’s technical overview of the unit, suffice to say, provided that it is used correctly, it works. – Competently, and with a minimum of fuss!A couple of points worth noting are: -1) Some reviewers suggest that Sawyer’s collapsible water bags are very difficult to fill, unless there is a strong flow of water. The simple way to ensure that the bottle fills easily, regardless of whether there is strong water flow or not, is to “inflate” the bottle before presenting it to the water supply - by blowing into it as if you were blowing up a balloon.Of course this advice comes with the caveat that your mouth will come into contact with the bottle’s outlet, which may carry contamination from previous fillings with unfiltered water. Only the user in the particular circumstance involved can decide whether there might be any riskinvolved.2) It has been suggested that the threads of the Sawyer filter are the same as those of other makes of collapsible bottle such as Platypus,and of various plastic drink bottles.I cannot comment on the use of plastic drink bottles, but I can say definitively, that the threads of Platypus collapsible bottles are NOT exactly the same as those of the Sawyer Mini.Although a Platypus will actually screw onto the Sawyer, it will only do so with a very slight “cross threading”. In the case of the Platypus bottles I’ve tried, this resulted in a slight seepage of water from around the unfiltered “neck” side of the Sawyer. Meaning that unfiltered watercould easily end up in whatever filtered water container was being used at the time. The seepage increases when squeezing the Platypus in order to speed up liquid flow through the filter.Personally I’ve not had any real problems in using Sawyer’s own bottles, although I find the 32oz. is much to be preferred over the 16oz.The one small gripe I do have, and the distinct advantage a Platypus bottle would have, (assuming a perfect connection to the Sawyer could be made), is that the Platypus range includes a fully transparent bottle, so its content can be seen and inspected for any obvious debris or other matter. It also makes it easy to see whether the inside of the bottle has been properly cleaned and dried before long term storage.EDIT (27 May 2016)One reviewer has given a one star rating which, on the basis of his comments, I think is inappropriate.I have made a comment on that particular review, but copy that comment here, as I think it has some general relevance: -The Sawyer Mini is designed to filter out bacteria and protozoa. It is not designed for, and will not, remove dissolved solids, (which consist of minerals, salts, metals, cations, and anions dissolved in the water), Neither will it filter out chemicals in general, nor any associated tastes or smells.Totally pure water is virtually electrically non-conductive, whereas any "non-pure" water will have some measureable degree of electrical conductivity. TDS meters use this conductivity in order to display the amount of dissolved solids present in the sample being tested.Since dissolved solids won't be filtered out by the Sawyer Mini, it is unsurprising that filtered/non-filtered TDS meter results would be the same. To give the product a one star rating based on an assumption that it should be doing something it was never designed for, is, in my opinion, not justifiable.There is plenty of information on the Mini's technical specification, along with numerous FAQ's as well, on the Sawyer website. Elsewhere, there is plenty of online information to be found on Total Dissolved Solids in drinking water.Reverse Osmosis, Activated Carbon type filters, Deionisation, and Distillation, are all options that will remove some, but not necessarily all, dissolved solids.