Buyers’ Guide to the 8 Best Shower Head Filters on the Market [2020 Reviews]
written by: Michael Lamew
Table of Contents
- Buyers’ Guide to the 8 Best Shower Head Filters on the Market [2020 Reviews]
- Comparison Table
- Shower Filter Reviews [Upd. 2020]
- #1: Aquasana AQ-4100 Deluxe Shower Filter
- “Best Shower Head Filter for Hair & Skin”
- #2: Culligan WSH-C125 Showerhead with Filter
- #3: Sprite HO2-WH-M Universal Shower Filter
- #4: Culligan RDSH-C115 RainDisc Shower Filter
- #5: Jonathan Product Beauty Water Shower Filter
- #6: Rainshow’r CQ-1000-MS Shower Filter
- #7: WaterChef® SF-7C Premium Shower Filter
- #8: Sprite AE7-CM All-In-One Shower Filter
- Just Missed our Top 8: ZenFresh Filtration Shower Head
- Best Vitamin C Shower Filter:
- Best Ionic Filtration Shower Head:
- Quick Buying Guide: What Exactly is a Shower Filter
- What are the benefits of shower filters?
- What to Look for on the best shower filter?
- Summing it Up
Welcome to our review guide of the best shower filters of 2020.
The water that flows through the pipes of our houses is supposed to be pure and ideal for consuming, but we all know reality these days is far different.
Unfortunately, we still have tons of chlorine to remove from most standard water that is piped into our houses, especially in big cities, not to mention heavy metals and other toxic substances that can make our appearance fade slowly.
We selected some of the best shower filter models in the market for 2020 to give you a glimpse on the solutions you can find around to make your showering an ally of your appearance.
Comparison Table
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Shower Filter Reviews [Upd. 2020]
#1: Aquasana AQ-4100 Deluxe Shower Filter
“Best Shower Head Filter for Hair & Skin”
Coming in at #1, the Aquasana AQ-4100 Deluxe Shower Filter is the industry leader when in comes to attachable shower filters.
It is made of ABS plastic and you have the option to purchase it with the shower head for wall-mounted design or a handheld head with the hose.
Also, you can either get the handheld version only in ABS or with a chrome polished finish. Technically, you also can connect it to your current shower head if there are diverters enabling it.
In the case of the handheld there is no need since it fits the standard pipe size.
The features of the filter system of this shower are also oriented to filter heavy metals like, lead, mercury, and iron. Aquasana is a known pioneer in chlorine removal, as the AQ-4100 Deluxe Shower Filter removes greater than 95%.
#2: Culligan WSH-C125 Showerhead with Filter
At #2 on our list, is the Culligan WSH-C125 shower filter and shower head combo. It is quite accessible and still brings you some great features that other models in our list won’t offer.
The shower head properly has 5 different spray patterns, including a powerful massage jet stream, a smooth full body spray, a rain shower fall and two combinations of these patterns.
The filter here is the standard 6-months of use, or 10000 gallons of water and will filter chlorine and heavy metals, but unfortunately this is another unbreakable set, so you can’t use other shower heads as it works with a set of screwing discs.
On the other hand, this a great wall-mount pack as this shower head is 4-inch wide, the nozzles are made of rubber, quite easy to clean, and the filters can be removed and replaced easily.
It is available on polished chrome finish while the nozzles’ disc is made on ABS plastic.
#3: Sprite HO2-WH-M Universal Shower Filter
At #3 on our countdown, is the Sprite H2O-WH-M Universal Shower Filter.
This showerhead is high-pressure, and wall-mounted styled, with a nozzles’ disc 4-inch wide.
The filter of this Sprite model also takes care of chlorine in the water while it lasts an average of 6 months. On the other hand, these filters are reversible cartridges, meaning, you can turn them around and use them for a while more.
The effectiveness of this usage depends on how heavily treated – or contaminated – your water is, as this will determine how long will last the filter overall.
The pipe connection of this set is also the standard one, meaning you can optionally connect it to a handheld shower and still make some space if your shower stall can’t comport the wall-mount head included here.
This model is made only on white ABS plastic.
#4: Culligan RDSH-C115 RainDisc Shower Filter
This Culligan’s shower filter is another case of a shower head with filter embedded to it and one kind of filter you can’t attach to other heads.
As a complete set though, this model is quite elegant, slim, with a filter that lasts up to 6 months and also can be easily replaced since all you have to do is to screw the nozzles’ disc face.
The filtering system here is also NSF certified. Apart from filtering chlorine of the water, the filter also is structured to work as an anti-clog barrier since the nozzles are made of the same ABS plastic that makes the structure of the shower – they don’t facilitate deposits but they are not easier to clean as other types of nozzles made of rubber or silicone.
This set of shower filter with the head is finished on polished chrome and is important to note the head of the shower is 5-inch wide, which makes it a good rain shower.
For more highly-rated products like this, check out our best shower faucet systems to give your bathroom a modern update.
#5: Jonathan Product Beauty Water Shower Filter
At #5, one more filtering model with a robust build, this shower filter is developed for wall-mount shower heads, including its own head which delivers up to 4 different spray patterns.
The nice thing about this filter is the fact it is built to filter heavy metals apart from the chlorine, so it is the best choice for places where there is a concern about the release of copper, lead and other toxic elements.
As a plus, this shower filter and its head is made an organic plastic fiber made of carbonized coconut shells, as they oppose the use of any synthetic plastic.
Jonathan is a brand with a lot of products oriented for beauty care, so they have their reasons believing the release of polymers from plastic damages the body.
Also, the filter releases potassium ions to correct the pH of the water to prevent even more damage to the hair and skin.
This filter works with an output connection that fits the standard pipe sizes, so it is possible to attach other kind of shower heads.
#6: Rainshow’r CQ-1000-MS Shower Filter
At #6 on our list, built especially for wall-mounted showers, the CQ-1000-MS has a more sturdy, but sophisticated filter design, even though it makes the shower head far more removed from the wall, which will not be the best option if you got a small shower stall.
The pipe connection is also a standard, so you can connect it to a compatible wall-mounted shower head.
Like all previous models, you have the option to buy the filter with the brand’s own head already attached.
The filter is another product certified by NSF as an efficient chlorine reducer and heavy metals remover. It is available only as a ABS white plastic build.
For more great products like this to level-up your bathroom, check out our best-rated rain shower head on the market.
#7: WaterChef® SF-7C Premium Shower Filter
At #7, we have the WaterChef SF-7C Premium with a filtering system affixed. The SF-7C is an unusual handheld shower since its filtering is a sturdy non-built-in filter that makes the water filtering in two stages. It first will pass through the filter, which works like most filters for rain showers and wall-mounted ones, and then will be released for the hose.
This is not only a filter but a combo with the handheld shower, which makes it really great because you can, theoretically, adjust it to rain shower too or other kind of handheld showers if you use the right diverter.
The handheld shower head that comes with this model has 5 different spray patterns, so it can rival many other handheld models and become a very welcoming bonus in this pack.
The hose of the handheld shower is 60-inch long, made on stainless steel, while the shower head itself is made on ABS plastic with a polished chrome finish.
The nozzles however are made on rubber, with anti-clog feature to do not accumulate deposits.The filtering technology of this filter is patented as ThermalGuard™, and is certified by the NSF/ANSI Standard 177 for Chlorine Reduction.
#8: Sprite AE7-CM All-In-One Shower Filter
Different from all models we have seen so far, the Sprite All-in-One is a wall-mounted shower head with a filtering system attached to it, which means you are getting a shower unit here and it won’t work with other shower heads but Sprite’s one.
While it is made of brass and finished on polished chrome, it is a more affordable purchase since the filter lasts for less time, up to 6 months or 10 thousand water gallons.
Our previous models last at least 9 to 12 months. Once the filter is wasted you have to change the cartridge, which at least happens in a much more simple way with this model.
The built of the Sprite All-in-One is made of screwing parts, so it gets very easy to change any part, including the filter.
It is important to note the shower head has many different spray patterns, up to 7 different options, which is a lot compared to what many shower head models offer.
You can easily change the spray pattern through the dialer on the face of the disc of nozzles. As a complete shower set, it offers a 2.5 gpm rate of water flow.
For more high-quality products like this one, check out our top-rated shower towers of 2020.
Just Missed our Top 8: ZenFresh Filtration Shower Head
For last, a model of shower filter that is really ideal for those who don’t want to waste too much space in the shower stall and specially, those who are bound to handheld shower heads and don’t want to change that.
The ZenFresh shower filter is specially designed for handheld shower heads as the filtering happens in the hose.
Actually, the head and the filter are part of a same unit, so it will not be possible either to attach other handheld heads to the nozzles’ disc end.
This filtering is quite effective while you can see how is it going, in other words, how long it is lasting.
The filter here is made of mineral ionic beads, they treat the water and as they are getting wasted, they change color to a dull aspect.
While the manufacturer doesn’t make clear if you can change the beads or not for this model, they can be easily bought to make the shower head last longer, otherwise, you have to purchase a new one after 1 year and a half approximately.
While this doesn’t sound like a good deal, this is the most accessible model of our list, and it cost almost the same as many filter cartridges of other models.
The only let down of the ZenFresh shower filter is the fact it will only remove chlorine.
Other models are not treatable by the filter.
This model is all made on ABS plastic, and the shower head offers only 1 spray mode but with a jet spray pattern in the middle and a smoother full body spray in the outer set of nozzles. The hose is not included.
Best Vitamin C Shower Filter:
Sonaki Vitamin C Shower Filter
If you’re looking for 2020’s best vitamin c shower filter, Sonaki has got you covered.
Did you know that taking showers can lead to greater exposure to toxic chemicals contained in water supplies?
This is because common water supplies often contain Chlorine, and other chemicals, which can be inhaled when you’re taking hot showers when the water evaporates.
For this reason, Sonaki has done the liberty of creating a shower filter that removes 99.9% of all chlorine and chloramines present in the water, along with other harmful/unwanted chemicals.
It does so through it’s patented vitamin c filter design.
While the Sonaki releases vitamin c directly into the water, to remove unwanted chemicals, other more standard filters simply, “hold”, the unwanted chemical, leading to less removal.
Don’t let you current shower damage your hair, or skin any longer, and switch to soft water for life.
Best Ionic Filtration Shower Head:
Luxsego Ionic Shower Head
If you’re looking for the best ionic shower head in 2020 look no further than Luxsego’s Ionic Shower Head with Hose.
So how does ionic filtration work?
Glad you asked.
Ionic filtration works by passing the water through chambers, filled with bead-like spherical resin materials (in this case: Infrared mineral balls = orange, Anion mineral balls = black), and exchanging ions.
Ions in the incoming water are exchanged with the ions on the mineral balls, resulting in softer water, without all the Chlorine, and Chloramine.
As you probably know … soft water is excellent for improving skin health, and hair health.
So if you’re looking to rescue your body from hard water, and it’s harmful chemicals, the Luxsego Ionic Shower Head is an excellent solution.
Quick Buying Guide: What Exactly is a Shower Filter
While we talked a lot about the differences between these models and what they offer, we didn’t address deeply what are shower filters we did specifically with the last model of our list, which is only one type of filter.
There are many types of shower filters that will in one way or another work as a barrier for the water before it reaches, at last, the nozzles of your shower head, but all of them are resumed to two categories: either the Granular-Activated carbon filters or the KDF filters.
One example of the latter is the handheld filter we just checked on the ZenFresh review, as it is a set of minerals that will react with chlorine and release non-harmful compounds instead in the water.
However, there are many different possible combinations of these minerals that are mostly lab-synthesized.
The granular-activated carbon filters are the most traditional filters, you see them on all the other models as it works with layers of carbon, charcoal, sometimes bamboo carbon and many other elements possibly combined.
For example, the Jonathan’s model, made of carbonized coconut shell, is a specific compound that can effectively remove a lot of heavy metals from the water. The set of different filtering compounds combined and how they work in synergy to purify the water is what will determine how long the filter will last.
What are the benefits of shower filters?
Everybody craves for a shower filter when the mirror alerts: faded, dull hair or dry and irritated skin are just some of the signals that the water you are showering on has excessive chlorine.
To make the water consumable, most big cities where the treatment of water is harder due to pollution, have to boost the water with more elevated concentrations of chlorine. It is like a swimming pool in the end, and your appearance is the one to suffer.
Once the water goes through the filter, it takes charge of the purification process: the water comes disinfected to your shower and the filter removes the chlorine so you can shower on pure water.
You can check the reviews of buyers after purchasing shower filter to notice their consensus to evaluate the product: great hair, great skin, so there it is a great shower filter.
Most users also look for shower filters to handle this situation and the results later are always evident.
What to Look for on the best shower filter?
As you have seen in the reviews, there are shower filters quite versatile, compatible with any shower head you want to use, while others are a complete set with its own shower head and others can’t be separated at all from the head.
You must always consider your preferences concerning this kind of profile, and considering the price likewise as some sets that are unbreakable can end up being expensive if, let’s suppose, you end up not enjoying the showerhead, but still appreciate the filtering system.
Don’t forget about the shower stall dimensions and how a filter system can steal space from the area.
Consider its own dimensions and position of installation. For last, the long-lasting filters are for sure the best option always, but you must likewise consider the ones that can filter more chemicals from the water, depending on your needs.
The difference of prices on the filter cartridges is something else to consider.
Summing it Up
There you have it.
On this page, you’ve seen the best shower filters that 2020 has to offer.
If you’re still wondering which one to choose, go with our #1 rated Aquasana AQ-4100.
It removes 90% of chlorine from your shower water for healthier skin, hair, and air!
Then an added bonus; its shockingly low price tag.
Looking for more clever ways to take your bathroom to the next level?
Perhaps some helpful articles like how to save water in the shower, or maybe, you’re interested in seeing our low flow shower head reviews.
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