The Hydro Flask Standard Mouth was a close runner-up for the best water bottle following my recent testing of the best water bottles. Here, I’ll share why it’s a great water bottle choice for many users.
The first Hydro Flask water bottle was stamped out in 2009, created by a company then called Steel Technology, LLC, according to Business Wire. While these relative newcomers to the water bottle scene may seem ubiquitous today, it took the better part of a decade after that first release for Hydro Flask bottles to get their due. And their popularity came largely thanks to a truly bizarre phenomenon, the so-called VSCO Girl. There’s a lot to unpack when it comes to this 2019 aesthetic that took teen social media accounts by storm, but per Insider, the short version is that it involved young women wearing baggy shirts and Crocs and carrying around Hydro Flask water bottles. Now that might make some people assume a Hydro Flask bottle is a casual accessory and not well-suited to rugged use outdoors, to bring along on travels or to use regularly every day. Which would be a shame because, odd fads aside, Hydro Flask water bottles are superlative. Bpa Free Water Bottles
The Hydro Flask Standard Mouth won best runner-up in my tests.
The Hydro Flask Standard Mouth Water Bottle sets the standard for this almost-unmatched water bottle brand. I found out what the hype was all about (regarding the bottle, not the oversized shirts and Crocs) during a multi-week testing phase during which I took my Hydro Flask bottle on hikes, on drives and to my desk through the work day. I also repeatedly (intentionally) dropped it on concrete, tested its temperature retention over many hours and compared it side-by-side with 14 other water bottles. The Hydro Flask Standard Mouth was my runner-up not because it’s in any way lacking, but simply because the top pick, the Purist Mover, had a couple of attributes that put it a slight cut above.
Capacity: 24 ounces | Weight: 0.83 pounds | Insulation: Yes | Materials: Stainless steel
The largest size of the Hydro Flask Standard Mouth bottle, which is the one I tested, has a 24-ounce capacity yet it weighs just 0.83 pounds. For a bottle with that much capacity and such excellent insulation, that’s a very impressive weight—few insulated bottles came near this capacity/weight balance. That ideal ratio makes this Hydro Flask vessel a great choice for those who wish to combine durability, insulation and plenty of capacity without unwanted weight.
The Hydro Flask Standard Mouth kept water cold for hours.
I tested every single water bottle under consideration in the same way, and that included a multi-hour temperature test. At 10 a.m., I filled the 24-ounce Hydro Flask Standard Mouth (and all the other water bottles) with 58 degrees Fahrenheit water and sealed it shut. When I checked its temperature with an instant-read thermometer six hours later at 4 p.m., the reading came back 58.5 degrees. And when I took the final reading four hours later, the water within the Hydro Flask was all of 58.9 degrees. The water in all of the uninsulated bottles was room temperature by the time I took the intermediate reading—double-walled vacuum-sealed insulation worked as it should here.
The Standard Mouth bottle may not have the coolest name for a product, but it sure does have some great looks. When you see this bottle, you just want to take it for a hike or a paddling trip; it looks like it belongs on an outdoor adventure. The bottle comes in nearly 20 different colors, it has a simple yet fetching outline and that Hydro Flask logo, somewhat reminiscent of an ancient petroglyph, is unmistakable.
The Hydro Flask Standard Mouth's 24-ounce capacity is perfect for casual errands or big adventures.
Many water bottles make it very clear in their product copy that they are not to be washed in the dishwasher, which is a bummer and a hassle, because let’s face it: Dishwashers do a better job of cleaning and sterilizing things than your two hands and some detergent. Fortunately, the Hydro Flask is completely dishwasher safe, so you can let the intensity of the heat, suds and rinsing clean this product inside and out.
At a glance, the Hydro Flask is comparable to a lot of other water bottles out there. You might not see a world of difference between this bottle and, say, RTIC’s 26-ounce water bottle. You may find it similar to the Yeti Rambler in terms of capacity and insulation. And a 25-ounce S’well bottle could seem a pretty close comp, too. But the 24-ounce Hydro Flask Standard Mouth edges out each of those water bottles in subtle ways. For example, it weighs less than all of those, it comes in more colors, its cap loop is flexible and its rounded lip is more comfortable to drink from. There’s nothing garishly wrong with the competition, nor is the Hydro Flask head-and-shoulders superior in any real way—it’s just a bit better in almost every way.
All 15 of the water bottles I tested were toted, dropped, rolled, sipped from, temperature tested, washed and dried, heavily used and slightly abused. For starters, I simply made the Hydro Flask my go-to water bottle during a couple of normal days. I filled it with ice water in the morning before heading to my desk. I refilled it when it was empty, and I brought it along when I hopped in the car to run some errands. Nothing wild, but it performed perfectly.
Next, I brought the Standard Mouth along on a hike, appreciating the few ounces of weight it saved in my pack compared to other options. Its 24-ounce capacity was more than sufficient for staying hydrated on a moderate day hike, and it will remain my go-to water bottle for hikes for the foreseeable future.
To test its durability, I dropped it from around hip height onto a concrete driveway not once, not twice, but thrice. The Standard Mouth came out with barely a scratch and with zero loss of its seal or its insulation capacity. I know the latter because, as noted, it was one of the top performers in the insulation test.
I have more than a decade of product and gear testing experience, and I have written countless reviews for outlets including Forbes, U.S. News & World Report, The Daily Beast and Business Insider. I am also the creator and head writer for the outdoor gear and lifestyle site Dad Gear Review. I brought all the years of testing and reviewing experience into play as I used the many water bottles under consideration, evaluating them based on their own merits, on how they performed in real-world scenarios and by comparing and contrasting them against one another.
I focus on tax law including tax planning and tax controversy matters. My goal is to help taxpayers get compliant and stay out of trouble.
I earned my J.D. and LL.M. in Taxation from Temple University School of Law in Philadelphia, PA. While at law school, I interned in the federal estate and gift tax attorney division of the IRS, and participated in the review and audit of federal estate tax returns.
I started writing using the moniker Taxgirl years ago and love making complicated information accessible to taxpayers and tax professionals.
I hate lists of awards but do have a few that I'm particularly proud of, including the Philadelphia Business Journal \"40 under 40\" and being named one of the Global Tax 50 by the International Tax Review for my \"tireless and passionate tax reporting.\"
I love to travel with my family and spend much of my time explaining to the kids why we can’t move to Europe—this week.
Want more taxgirl goodness? Pick your poison: follow me on twitter, hang out on Facebook and Google, play on Pinterest or check out my YouTube channel.
I focus on tax law including tax planning and tax controversy matters. My goal is to help taxpayers get compliant and stay out of trouble.
I earned my J.D. and LL.M. in Taxation from Temple University School of Law in Philadelphia, PA. While at law school, I interned in the federal estate and gift tax attorney division of the IRS, and participated in the review and audit of federal estate tax returns.
I started writing using the moniker Taxgirl years ago and love making complicated information accessible to taxpayers and tax professionals.
I hate lists of awards but do have a few that I'm particularly proud of, including the Philadelphia Business Journal \"40 under 40\" and being named one of the Global Tax 50 by the International Tax Review for my \"tireless and passionate tax reporting.\"
I love to travel with my family and spend much of my time explaining to the kids why we can’t move to Europe—this week.
Want more taxgirl goodness? Pick your poison: follow me on twitter, hang out on Facebook and Google, play on Pinterest or check out my YouTube channel.
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Erica Finamore is a New York City–based editor who has more than a decade of experience covering home decor, lifestyle, and gifting content. She has worked at Real Simple, Food Network Magazine, HGTV Magazine and InStyle, among other publications, and has written for sites including Cosmopolitan.com, Apartmenttherapy.com and Refinery29.com.
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I’m a senior fashion editor covering women's and men's fashion, accessories and fitness apparel. My writing has appeared in T: The New York Times Style Magazine, Vogue and The Wall Street Journal. Prior to joining Forbes, I wrote two books, including The New Beauty: A Modern Look at Beauty, Culture, and Fashion, and I currently hold certificates in the history of design from Sotheby’s Institute of Art and fashion styling from the Business of Fashion. I grew up in Rhode Island, studied art history at Brown University and was—and remain—a sneaker obsessive with far too many pairs of white sneakers.
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I am a Berlin-based editor and writer reporting on fashion, design and creative culture.
I am a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, relationships, home, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Women’s Health, Prevention, Health, Yahoo Life, and more. I have a master’s degree from American University, live by the beach, and hope to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.
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I am a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, relationships, home, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Women’s Health, Prevention, Health, Yahoo Life, and more. I have a master’s degree from American University, live by the beach, and hope to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.
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