Amazon Basics 10-Cup Pitcher Review

With help from the water pros at Tap Score, we put this budget pitcher through a series of lab tests to see what it could catch and what slipped through. Does it offer the best filtration? No. But is it a cheap, convenient way to improve the taste and quality of your water? Absolutely.

Our Amazon Basics 10-Cup Pitcher Experience

We'll dive deeper into the nitty-gritty of Amazon Basics' filtration performance in just a moment, but first, here's a quick look at how it fit into our daily lives. What we appreciate most about this pitcher is that it's cheap and simple. No complicated plumbing install and no shelling out hundreds of dollars. Just fresh filtered water in a handy pitcher.

The Amazon Basics didn't take up much space in our fridge. And refills were fairly quick and easy, though we wish it had a flip-top lid to speed things up. We also loved the covered spout, which kept lingering fridge odors from sneaking their way into our clean water.

Ultimately, we think the Amazon Basics Pitcher is a great fit for renters, apartment dwellers, and small households who want cleaner water without complications. It's easy to use and affordable, making it a simple upgrade choice; though heavy water users may want something larger. As a bonus, it's compatible with Brita filters, making replacements easy to find, but it won't fit higher-performance PUR or ZeroWater filters.

Lead & Metals

The Amazon Basics Pitcher does an ok job at removing metals. It didn't eliminate everything, but it made a solid dent, which may be all some users need.

It caught over 90% of lead and uranium in our tests, which is much better than other budget pitchers we tested. It also removed over 80% of copper, mercury, and cadmium in tests conducted by the Water Quality Association. That's a meaningful reduction and may be enough to bring your levels down to the EPA's “safe” zone. But if you have severe contamination, this pitcher may not be enough.

Among these metals, lead is the most common concern. It typically enters our water through old pipes and can be harmful even at very low levels. So ideally, we'd like zero in our cup. The Amazon removed 97%, which is a huge improvement, but it isn't certified for lead removal and may not be the best choice for high-risk homes. It also reduced uranium by 94%, a toxic, radioactive metal linked to cancer.

The Amazon failed to catch arsenic and lithium, though. Arsenic is one of the biggest concerns for private well owners, and lithium is increasingly receiving attention from water researchers. Most budget filters struggled with both, so the Amazon Pitcher is not alone. For complete metal protection, a reverse osmosis system is the best option.

Forever Chemicals (PFAS)

The Amazon 10-Cup Pitcher removed 87% of PFAS from our drinking water. PFAS are a family of thousands of “forever chemicals” that build up in our bodies and cause long-term health effects. That's a huge risk reduction and again, better than most budget options. But because most higher-end options nabbed 100%, the Amazon scored slightly below average in this metric.

For this test, we added two common “forever chemicals” to our water, PFNA and PFBA. Each one is trapped in a slightly different way, giving us a more complete picture of how well each filter can handle a range of PFAS contaminants. The Amazon Basics captured 100% of PFBA, but only 85% of PFNA, indicating that it's more effective against some PFAS compounds than others.

If you live in or near a city, chances are there's a lot of PFAS in your drinking water, according to this map. Considering the price, the Amazon Pitcher offers solid protection. While some premium filters performed better, the Amazon made a meaningful dent without the added costs.

Microplastics

The Amazon Basics also scored slightly below average in microplastics removal.

Microplastics are found in nearly every water supply, at least to some degree. Because they're not federally regulated, even municipally treated water can contain crazy amounts. While we're still not entirely sure what health outcomes they may have, we do know that they can accumulate in your brain, heart, and reproductive organs, raising concerns about long-term exposure.

While the Amazon Pitcher removed the largest varieties of microplastics, it struggled to remove the smaller particles. Because its internal pores are too large, it lets most of those tiny, biologically risky plastics right into your cup. While the Pitcher is made with BPA-free materials, if microplastics are a concern for you, there are better options.

Fluoride & Nitrates

Like most pitchers we tested, the Amazon Basics scored below average in fluoride, nitrate, and sulfate removal. Contaminants like these generally require a more complicated reverse osmosis system to capture, so its poor performance here isn't necessarily a con.

A little background — nitrates are mostly a concern for formula-fed babies and pregnant women, though they've also been linked to various cancers. If you live near farmland and drink from a well, you're at the highest risk. While the Amazon Basics Pitcher removed some (58%), it's not enough for households with a heavy nitrate burden.

For fluoride and sulfate, we saw 0% reduction. Fluoride is commonly added by water treatment facilities to improve dental health and is typically within the EPA's “safe” level in US water. Sulfate can affect taste and cause a temporary laxative effect. Most households should be fine with these two, but if either is a concern, the Amazon Basics isn't the right tool for the job.

Taste & Chlorine

While you can't expect the Amazon Pitcher  to remove every impurity, it does noticeably improve the taste. By removing 100% of chlorine, it gets rid of that awful “pool water” flavor. It's not quite the polished flavor of a filter that removes more contaminants or remineralizes, but it's a clear upgrade, earning it an average score in our taste metric.

This isn't just our opinion; it's the opinion of hundreds of Amazon reviewers. Over 85% of reviewers report that their water has improved flavor, particularly when it comes to chlorine. So, if you drink city water that's been disinfected with chlorine, the Amazon Basics will help turn that harsh-tasting tap water into something you'll actually want to reach for. To be fair, it's impossible to please every palate, but this one comes close.

Daily Use & Upkeep Cost

For small households, the Amazon Pitcher is relatively easy to live with and super cheap to maintain. Setup is simple, filters are quick to swap, and it tucks neatly into most refrigerators. You'll have to keep up with refills and remove the lid each time, which isn't completely effortless, but it still beats a high-maintenance, space-hungry setup. Overall, this landed the Amazon Pitcher about average for daily use & upkeep costs.

Getting started with the Amazon Basics is simple: just clean the pitcher, flush the filter a few times, and you're ready to go. It takes up minimal space in your refrigerator and features a spout cover to keep your filtered water free of lingering food smells. You'll need to wash the pitcher from time to time, but that's easy enough to do.

The biggest downside of any pitcher-style filter is having to refill it multiple times a day. If you go through tons of water, those refills get old fast. The Amazon Basics also required removing the lid each time. It's manageable, but we prefer a flip-top lid. On the plus side, it was one of the faster pitchers we tested, taking 8 minutes to filter 1 gallon of water, which helps offset the small hassles. For faster filtration, you'd need to switch to a faucet-mounted or under-sink system.

After about 40 gallons, it's time to replace the filter. For a 1-2-person household that uses filtered water for drinking and cooking, you'll need to change the filter every month or two. If you're in a larger household with high water demands, filters will need to be replaced every couple of weeks, which can become a chore. The filter indicator will automatically let you know when 2 months have passed since your last change, but heavy users will need to swap it out sooner.

At about $4 a pop, the Amazon Basics filters are among the cheapest options out there. If you just need filtered water for 1-2 people, the Amazon Basics Pitcher is one of the most affordable filtration systems we've tested, costing less than $50 a year to keep up. For larger groups, the Amazon Pitcher is less economical, though still cheaper than much of the competition.

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Should You Buy the Amazon Basics 10-Cup Pitcher?

If you drink city water and you're looking for a simple, low-cost way to improve the taste and safety, the Amazon Basics is a solid choice. It won't remove 100% of concerning contaminants like lead and PFAS, but it makes a solid dent, which may be all some households need. If you drink from a private well, live near farmland, or have concerns about excessively high levels of heavy metals in your drinking water, the Amazon Basics isn't heavy-duty enough to address serious contamination.

What Other Water Filters Should You Consider?