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Beverages · Product label guide

Sparkling water: compare ingredients, then choose.

Updated

Compare the exact sparkling-water flavor and its juice or flavoring ingredients.

The short answer

Our picks for sparkling water

WinnersLangers Blood Orange Organic Flavored Sparkling Water and Apple & Eve Organic Cherry Flavored Water Beverage each score 100/100. They tie, so choose on the exact flavor or format you want.

Runners-upAdirondack Spring Water (71), Canada Dry Original Sparkling Seltzer Water (71), and Deer Park 100% Natural Spring Water (71).

Clear noParadise Spring Water, Watermelon (lists artificial dyes, artificial preservatives and corn syrups), Great Value Tropical Punch Flavored Water Beverage (lists artificial sweeteners and corn syrups), Nestle Natural Lemon Flavored Water Beverage (lists artificial sweeteners and artificial preservatives), plus 7 more with a listed group. We also can’t vouch for the 48 products without a verified current label; treat them as “not yet”.

Ranked from 109 of 157 products with current labels. Every product is in the table below; a score reflects labels and claims, not nutrition, allergies or safety.

Compare the recorded labels

Find the ingredients that matter to you.

157 of 157 products

“No …” columns: None found on the label · Listed on the label · Unknown. Diet fit: Fits · Doesn’t fit · Unknown (rules; not medical advice). Claims: verified · not established. Default: most check marks first; not a health score.

Compare product claims and recorded ingredients. Click a column heading to sort.
Buy
100 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · organicProduct details →5
100 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · organicProduct details →5
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimProduct details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimProduct details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimProduct details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimProduct details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimProduct details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimProduct details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimFind where to buy ↗Product details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimProduct details →4
71 / 1009 of 9 groups clear · no organic claimProduct details →4
How the clean score works

No setup needed, and strict: a full 100 needs every additive group clear and a verified organic claim (animal foods also need a verified grass-fed or pasture-raised claim; wild seafood and salt, which have no USDA organic standard, are scored without the organic points, and plant-based milks, cheeses and proteins without the feeding claim). Points: the nine additive groups (seed oils, artificial dyes, MSG, artificial sweeteners, carrageenan, artificial preservatives, hydrogenated oils, corn syrups, banned-abroad additives) share 60 points equally — not found earns a group’s full share, “may contain” earns half, listed earns 0; a verified organic claim is worth 25; a verified grass-fed or pasture-raised claim is worth 15 and counts only for animal foods. No claim, or an expired or unverified claim, earns nothing, so products without those claims cannot reach 100. Unverified or expired ingredient labels receive no score. Equal scores are equal. Ties are ordered by brand. Unknown and stale evidence never passes “Only show matches.” Producer claims and prices do not affect this score. This is not a nutrition, allergy, or safety rating.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Buying links do not influence ingredient results. “Buy on Amazon” opens a reviewed product listing; “Find where to buy” opens the maker’s page. Confirm the package, seller, stock, and current price before checkout. Price observations expire after 30 days.

The full guide · Beverages

Choosing sparkling water: what to check before you buy

Decide whether you want plain sparkling water, a flavored seltzer or a drink with juice. Check for sweeteners, caffeine and added acids in the exact flavor, since a brand can sell several different kinds of drink.

Compare can or bottle sizes and any sodium or sugar listed. Natural flavor is a labeling term rather than a list of its individual flavor components; contact the maker if you need more detail than the package provides.

What the labels on this shelf show

We track 157 products from 63 brands on the sparkling water shelf. 109 have a complete, current ingredient label on record (69%), which is what lets us score them. The other 48 stay unscored until the maker publishes a full label; a missing label is “not yet”, never a pass.

Of the 109 scored labels, 99 (91%) list none of the nine additive groups we check. The group that appears most is artificial sweeteners, listed on 9 labels, followed by artificial dyes on 6. 2 scored products carry a verified organic claim, which adds points. Scores here run from 47 to 100, and the typical label lists 2 ingredients.

What to compare

Plain, flavored or juice
Choose the drink type and check the exact flavor.
Sweeteners and caffeine
Read the list even when the package looks like a standard seltzer.
Can or bottle amount
Compare equal volumes and any sodium or sugar listed.
Flavor detail
Contact the maker if you need more information about a collective natural-flavor listing.

The best picks, in detail

These are the highest-scoring sparkling water products on current labels. Always match the exact flavor and package before you buy.

  1. Langers Blood Orange Organic Flavored Sparkling Water 100/100

    Why it ranks here: no tracked additive group on the label, a verified organic claim. Label: “PURIFIED FILTERED CARBONATED WATER, ORGANIC BLOOD ORANGE FLAVOR.”

    Maker’s label source
  2. Apple & Eve Organic Cherry Flavored Water Beverage 100/100

    Why it ranks here: no tracked additive group on the label, a verified organic claim. Label: “FILTERED WATER, ORGANIC APPLE JUICE FROM CONCENTRATE, ORGANIC CHERRY JUICE FROM CONCENTRATE, NATURAL FLAVORS, ASCORBIC ACID (VITAMIN C)”

    Maker’s label source
  3. Adirondack Spring Water 71/100

    Why it ranks here: no tracked additive group on the label, no verified organic claim. Label: “SPRING WATER”

    Maker’s label source
  4. Canada Dry Original Sparkling Seltzer Water 71/100

    Why it ranks here: no tracked additive group on the label, no verified organic claim. Label: “CARBONATED WATER”

    Maker’s label source
  5. Deer Park 100% Natural Spring Water 71/100

    Why it ranks here: no tracked additive group on the label, no verified organic claim. Label: “SPRING WATER”

    Maker’s label source

What to skip, and why

These scored products list at least one group on their current label. That is the clearest reason to pass if you are avoiding those ingredients.

The 48 products without a verified label are a separate “not yet”: we have no recorded ingredient list to check, so we cannot say they are clean or flagged.

Your preferences, explained

The clean score is strict and needs no setup: nine additive groups not found in a current ingredient statement, plus a verified organic claim (and a grass-fed or pasture-raised claim for animal foods), are needed for 100; a possible match earns half and a missing claim earns nothing. Missing or expired evidence stays unknown. It does not assess nutrition, allergies, contaminants, or safety.

References

  1. Healthy drinks Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
  2. 21 CFR 101.22: spices, flavors, and colors on labels Code of Federal Regulations
  3. Added sugars on the Nutrition Facts label U.S. Food and Drug Administration

An ingredient check is not a nutrition, contaminant, allergy or safety assessment. How we verify labels →