In the Boroux vs Rorra vs Culligan countertop filter matchup, WIRED’s updated testing gives three different answers depending on what buyers care about: Boroux for most households, Culligan for certified filtration claims, and Rorra for convenience.
The comparison focuses on large stainless steel, gravity-fed water systems, the kind that sit on a counter and use filter elements rather than plumbing or electricity. WIRED said it has been testing stainless systems since March and added the Culligan MaxClear Gravity Water Filter System in a July 2026 update.
The timing is not accidental. WIRED said rising concern over microplastics has pushed some consumers away from plastic filter pitchers and toward systems that remove, or nearly remove, plastic contact points for filtered water. The publication cited research showing daily bottled-water drinkers ingest tens of thousands of additional microplastic particles.
Which stainless steel water filter did WIRED rank best?
WIRED named the Boroux Legacy Water Filter System its best gravity filter for most people. The review praised its balance of usability, appearance, filter life and third-party testing, while noting that setup and filter priming can be tedious and that the unit is bulky.
According to WIRED, Boroux has certification through the Water Quality Association to NSF criteria for particulate and microplastic reduction, as well as lead-free manufacturing. WIRED also said independent testing showed performance against chlorine, PFAS and lead, and its own testing found the system cut total chlorine by more than 95 percent in chloramine-treated water.
The review gives Culligan a different win. WIRED called the Culligan MaxClear Gravity Water Filter System the best-certified stainless steel gravity system it had tested and the best pick for filtration performance. The tradeoff, according to the review, is slow filtering and higher filter replacement costs over time. Its listed upfront price was lower than the others in the comparison.
Rorra’s Countertop Water Filter was named the most convenient option. WIRED described it as a newer system backed by celebrities and built by serial entrepreneurs, with sensors that track both filter condition and water level. It was also the priciest model listed in the group.
How do gravity water filters work?
Gravity-fed filters put untreated water in an upper chamber and let it pass down through filter media into a lower reservoir. The appeal is capacity and simplicity: no under-sink installation, no pump, no power brick lurking behind the toaster like a tiny infrastructure project.
WIRED’s testing also keeps the downsides in view. These systems take up real counter space, can be awkward to refill, filter more slowly than many smaller options, and do not chill water because they do not fit in a refrigerator. The review said they may still suit larger households, coffee drinkers and people who cook often because an overnight fill can cover much of a day’s use.
Why Berkey still hangs over the category
The stainless gravity filter category is tied to Berkey, which WIRED said became prominent in the United States after its maker began in 1998 as a distributor for the older British Berkefeld system. Berkey’s black activated-carbon filters are currently caught in a dispute with the Environmental Protection Agency.
WIRED reported that the EPA issued a stop-sale notice in 2023, saying Berkey’s antimicrobial claims meant the filters were being sold as unregulated pesticides. Berkey’s maker, New Millennium Concepts, has challenged the order in court and has endorsed Phoenix filters, which WIRED said it is still testing.
WIRED also noted that Boroux’s filters are functionally similar to the original Berkey black filters and are made by Clearbrook, identified in the review as the original manufacturer of those Berkey filters. That makes the category less neat than the marketing suggests, which is usually where consumer tech gets annoying and useful at the same time.
This story draws on original reporting from WIRED.
