Is it better for my health to drink tap water or bottled water if I am in NYC?

It’s an age-old travelling question: “Can I drink the tap water here?”

It’s likely the locals will reply with a frustrated grunt, “Of course, we have been drinking it our whole lives.”

While it pays to be wary in some cities, the same cannot be said of New York. The city’s tap water, sourced from the pristine Catskill and Delaware watersheds, undergoes a meticulous treatment process before it reaches your tap. Rigorous purification methods are employed to ensure that the water not only meets but exceeds stringent quality standards set by regulatory authorities.

According to a health bulletin from the local government, only five US cities have water so clean that it doesn’t need filtration, New York being one of these.

The convenience of bottled water comes at a cost, both to your wallet and the environment. The production, packaging, and transportation of bottled water contribute to plastic waste and carbon emissions. Environmental concerns, coupled with the financial burden of regularly purchasing bottled water, will prompt many to reconsider their choices.

When faced with the tap or bottled dilemma in the city that never sleeps, rest assured that tapping into NYC’s meticulously treated and monitored water might just be the healthiest choice for quenching your thirst, while also being the cheapest.