7 Best Water Coolers of 2023

Photo: Avalon

Initially only seen in offices, water coolers have found their way into homes, as they continue to gain in popularity because of their many advantages.

A water cooler conveniently provides ready cold water without having to pull a bottle out of the fridge. This also means that your fridge gets less opened, saving your energy costs thereby.

This best water coolers review focuses on helping you make the best possible choice by providing you with a list of the top water coolers in the market, plus helpful guides.

7 Best Water Coolers – Review

IMAGE	PRODUCT	FEATURES
	1. Clover B7A-Black (Best Overall)	Unique and durable HDPE construction Includes an adjustable cold thermostat Dispenses both hot and cold water Features stainless steel water reservoirs
	2. Avalon A1WATERCOOLER (Best Budget)	Holds up to 5-gallon bottles Stainless steel reservoir Features a child safety lock Dispenses both cold and hot water
	3. Avalon A4BLWTRCLR (Most Versatile)	Offers water in three temperatures Sleek design with a stainless steel finish Includes a night light for convenience
	4. Nutrichef PKTWC10SL (Most Compact)	Small and lightweight water cooler Easily fits on most countertops Includes a child-safety lock Dispenses both cold and hot water
	5. Primo 601087 (Simple & Nice)	Water cooler with a simple and average design Dispenses both cold and hot water Uses a stainless steel reservoir Includes a night light feature
	6. Brio CLBL420 (Modern & Trendy)	Modern cooler with 3 temperature dispensing Features a hot water child-safety lock Easy and convenient bottom-loading design Accepts 3 and 5-gallon jugs
	7. Whirlpool 8LIECH (Stylish Design)	Very neat and stylishly designed water cooler Features a bottom-loading design Includes a self-cleaning feature Comes with indicators for every condition

1. Clover B7A-Black – Best Overall Water Cooler

Photo: Clover

• Capacity: 0.9 gallons per hour (50 degrees F)
• Dimensions: 12 x 12 x 38 inches
• Weight: 35 pounds

Metals are prone to corrosion and its effects, and the same goes for water coolers. Clover offers you, for this reason, a 100% plastic construction, made from High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE).

It eliminates the problem of rust and corrosion, is lighter-weight, and easier to clean and keep up. This unit produces both cold and hot water, plus it comes with an adjustable thermostat to set the cold water’s temperature between 35.6 and 53 degrees F.

The cold and hot water reservoirs are both of stainless steel. The hot water gets controlled by an automatic thermostat and dispenses water up to 185 degrees hot.

This offer is for the black Clover B7A, which looks rather uninteresting when compared to other more stylish water coolers, but its HDPE construction makes it very durable and one of the best water coolers. It also comes with a 1-year warranty.

Pros:

• Features a one-piece polyethylene blow cabinet
• Includes an adjustable thermostat for cold water
• It dispenses both cold and hot water
• The manufacturer backs it with a 1-year warranty

Cons:

• It comes in an unappealing black color
• It’s a relatively costly water cooler

2. Avalon A1WATERCOOLER – Best Budget Water Cooler

Photo: Avalon

• Capacity: 0.5 gallons per hour
• Dimensions: 15 x 14 x 47 inches
• Weight: 37 pounds

Avalon presents its A1 water cooler, a sleek and modern unit that offers all the important features you need, including a low and affordable price. Plus, it additionally looks great anywhere.

With its child safety lock, your kids get protected from accidentally releasing hot water and hurting themselves. With the three indicator lights, you know when the unit is on, or when it’s cooling, and when it’s heating.

Although Avalon recommends just 3 and 5-gallon jugs with this water cooler, you can also use 4-liter jugs without any issue. It’s sturdy design, however, make it one of the best 5-gallon water coolers out there.

The cold tank has a 0.8-gallon volume and will dispense up to 0.5 gallons per hour at 47 degrees Fahrenheit. The hot tank is only 0.26-gallon large but will dispense up to 1 gallon of 185 degrees F hot water per hour.

Pros:

• Designed to hold 3 or 5-gallon bottles
• Offered at a low and attractive price
• Comes with a child safety-lock feature
• The internal reservoir is of stainless steel
• Dispenses both cold and hot water efficiently

Cons:

• Its construction material gives it a cheap look
• There are faster dispensers than 0.8 gal/hr

3. Avalon A4BLWTRCLR – Most Versatile Water Cooler

Photo: Avalon

• Capacity: 0.7 gallons per hour
• Dimensions: 13 x 12 x 41 inches
• Weight: 42 pounds

The Avalon A4 bottom-loading water cooler is an impressive unit, featuring a stylish design. It includes a stainless steel finish, a night-light feature, and three waterspouts, among other innovative features.

You can get cold water, hot water, and room-temperature water at any time, but the dispense button isn’t automatic as with many dispensers, where you just need to push a lever with your cup for the water to flow. Here, you’ll always need to press the button on top of the unit.

The hot water button on top also features a child-safety feature to prevent children from accidentally dispensing hot water, and four indicator lights show you when the unit is on, and when it’s cooling, heating, or has an empty bottle.

Its downsides include its relative higher price, then say, the cheaper Avalon A1WATERCOOLER. But, given its plenty of extra features, it seems worth its price. Avalon backs it with a 1-year warranty.

Pros:

• Offers cold, hot and room-temperature water
• Includes a night-light for convenience
• Sleek design with stainless steel finish
• Backed by the manufacturer’s warranty

Cons:

• You must separately press the dispense button each time
• There are cheaper comparable offers

4. Nutrichef PKTWC10SL – Most Compact Water Cooler

Photo: Nutrichef

• Dimensions: 22 x 13 x 13 inches
• Weight: 10 pounds

Some people may have little space in the home or office and therefore, need to think creatively to maximize space. If you’re in such a situation, then a compact countertop water cooler like this might be exactly what you need.

It measures just 22 x 13 x 13 inches. So, you don’t need to set some ground space aside for it because it can easily fit on any countertop or any other raised platform. If you need to save space, then this is one of the best water dispensers you can get.

The housing is plastic and gives this water cooler a budget look, but this doesn’t matter much because it’s also a budget water cooler and the lowest-priced unit in this review.

It dispenses hot and cold water, is compact, lightweight, and comes with a child-safety lock.

Pros:

• Designed to easily fit on any countertop
• Dispenses both cold and hot water
• Includes a child-safety lock
• Lightweight, compact, and easy to move around

Cons:

• The plastic housing gives it a cheap look

5. Primo 601087 – Simple & Nice Water Cooler

Photo: Primo

• Dimensions: 36 x 11 x 13 inches
• Weight: 26 pounds

Here’s another one of the best water coolers for home use that you’ll find. It looks great, works great, and comes at a good price.

You get a LED night-light, a stainless steel drip tray and a stainless steel reservoir to support its high-quality design. It accepts both 3 and 5-gallon jugs, and preferably from Primo, as they also sell water jugs.

Combining black plastic and stainless steel in the housing is nice, but there should have been more areas with a stainless steel finish, especially around the upper area with the controls.

You’ll also need to separately press the buttons each time you need to get water, unlike some other dispensers that include the button mechanism around the spout for automatic switching. This unit comes with a 1-year warranty.

Pros:

• Simple design combines black plastic and stainless steel
• Features a stainless steel reservoir for good-quality water
• Dispenses both hot & cold water
• Includes a night-light feature
• Backed by a 1-year manufacturer’s warranty

Cons:

• You always need to press the buttons extra to dispense
• It’s only available in black and stainless steel

6. Brio CLBL420 – Modern & Trendy Water Cooler

Photo: Brio

• Dimensions: 41 x 13 x 14 inches
• Weight: 40 pounds

If you’re looking for the best water cooler when it comes to style, then this Brio Essential unit will most probably make your day. This is because it looks truly engineered with precision.

It mixes plastic, stainless steel, and clean curves to create an impressive unit that will fit beautifully into the best of living and office spaces.

In addition to look, it offers three temperature modes, including cold, hot, and room-temperature water. Being a bottom-loading water cooler also means no lifting, no tilting, and no spilling of water.

For cons, it’s not self-cleaning, and you can get cheaper water-cooler offers. It offers many impressive features, however.

You get a child-safety lock to prevent hot water accidents, an energy-saving design, indicator lights, and it comes backed by a 1-year warranty from the manufacturer.

Pros:

• Delivers cold, hot, & room-temperature water
• Comes with a built-in child-safety lock
• Bottom-loading and accepts 3 & 5-gallon jugs
• Backed by a 1-year warranty

Cons:

• It’s not self-cleaning
• There are cheaper offers

7. Whirlpool 8LIECH – Stylish Water Cooler

Photo: Whirlpool

• Capacity: 1 gallon per hour
• Dimensions: 15 x 12.6 x 40.5 inches
• Weight: 38 pounds

This offer from Whirlpool combines all the nice features that you can desire in a water cooler to produce a stylish, modern, easy-to-use, and self-cleaning system that anyone will love.

Its stainless steel finish sets it apart and its bottom-loading system makes it a sleek water dispenser that doesn’t have a bottle on top. It’s 40.5 inches high, 12.6 wide, and 15 inches deep.

Whirlpool promises 41-degree F cool and 194-degree F hot water from this unit, making the company one of the best water cooler brands.

For cons, there are cheaper water cooler offers, such as the Avalon A1WATERCOOLER.

There are five LED indicators, including one for power, another for the heater, a cooling indicator, an empty bottle, and a self-cleaning indicator. It’s backed by a 1-year warranty.

Pros:

• Stylish design fits perfectly into most modern decors
• Includes a self-cleaning feature for your safety
• Bottom loading design makes it easy to keep up
• LED indicators always let you know what’s happening

Cons:

• Cheaper offers are available

Water Cooler vs. Water Dispenser

These two phrases often get used interchangeably, and although they nearly have the same meaning, there’s still a little difference worth pointing out between the two.

Following is a detailed look at both types:

Water Dispenser. A water dispenser is any appliance that dispenses water. This includes both water coolers and non-cooling dispensers. Water dispensers can come in many forms and may or may not need electric power to work.

In addition to water coolers, other types of water dispensers include vacuum flasks, plumbed dispensers with purification, wall mounted, tabletop and freestanding water dispensers.

Water dispensers are mostly in use when the available tap water has issues like bad taste or is heavily chlorinated. A water dispenser provides the solution by offering clean drinking water.

Water Cooler. As a type of water dispenser, water coolers stand out from the rest because they cool their water before dispensing it.

This requires electricity and a small chamber inside the water cooler to hold and cool the water first, then keep it cool until someone presses the dispense button to get cold water.

A water cooler frees the fridge because you’ll have to open it less often, and it also provides water at the press of a button, which is totally convenient for lots of people.

Since they’re already electric-powered, many water coolers also add the extra feature of providing hot water at the press of a button, which is great for brewing a quick cup of tea or coffee.

How to Buy the Best Water Cooler

Photo: Primo

Water coolers have evolved over the years to become an entirely unique class of home appliance. This makes it necessary to know the important aspects to look out for when choosing one and they are as follows.

1. Top vs. Bottom Load Water Coolers

Here is a major difference between water coolers, and it all boils down to looks. The top-loading water cooler has the water bottle on top and with its spout facing downwards. This is a simple system, and it needs less technology to make it work.

The bottom-loading types offer enough space inside the water cooler to store the water bottle. The water then gets pumped from it through a hose and up to the water reservoir. Bottom loaders tend to cost more as well.

Choosing between these two types of water coolers is a matter of personal preference as you’ll have to decide between a sleek bottom-loading look at a possibly higher price and a more down-to-earth top-loading look at a fairer price.

2. Capacity

Most water coolers are compatible with standard-sized water bottles, which are usually available in 2, 4, and 5-gallon sizes. If you are unsure of the bottle size that a water cooler supports, then it’s better to make sure of it first before buying it.

Another figure to pay attention to is the amount of water that it can dispense per hour. Most manufacturers will give this figure in either liters or gallons per hour, and it’s important to know depending on how large your family is.

3. Filtration System

If you plan on buying pre-filled bottles of water, then filtration might be less of an issue because these pre-filled bottles usually come with very good water.

On the other hand, if you plan on filling the bottle by yourself using tap water or any other water source, then getting a water cooler or a dispenser with a filtration system is advisable.

These water coolers filter the water first, before storing it in the reservoir, where it’s refrigerated to a cold temperature and ready for drinking.

4. Child Locks

This feature is mainly helpful on dispensers that offer hot water. It helps to prevent the accidental discharge of hot water by children while making it easy for an adult to get the hot water. You should really consider it if you’ve got little kids at home.

5. Quality & Price

Many water coolers share an equal level of manufacturing quality, but where the differences come in is in the different extra features that some brands come with.

If you’ve got no need for extra features, then you can simply get yourself a water cooler with standard features at a good price, else you may need to pay a premium price for any special feature that you’re after.

6. Ease of Use

Most of the water coolers out there are easy to use, so there’s no need to worry because they’re easy to figure out. What you should definitely consider, though, is how easily you can handle the water bottle. If it’s too heavy, then consider getting a smaller bottle.

7. Extra Features

Extra features are what sets a water cooler apart from the rest, and they are plenty, including a water filtration system and a rack for cups.

You can also consider larger drip trays and stainless steel reservoirs, which prevent the water from getting a ‘plastic taste’, that’s often an issue with water coolers that come with plastic reservoirs.

How To Clean & Maintain a Water Cooler 

Photo: Primo

You need to clean your water cooler regularly to support good hygiene. The recommendation is to clean it with every change of the bottle, or at the latest, every six weeks.

Some water coolers are self-cleaning but if yours is not, the following is a simple step-by-step guide to quickly clean your water cooler and keep your family healthy.

1. Mix the Solution

You need a water and bleach solution to clean the water cooler. You can also use water and vinegar. If using bleach, add a tablespoon to each gallon of water and if using vinegar add 1 part to every three parts of water. You can add a tablespoon of lemon juice to ease the vinegar smell.

2. Unplug the Water Cooler

It’s best to turn off the switch first before unplugging the water cooler from the power source.

3. Remove the Water Bottle

For top-loading water coolers, this simply means removing the bottle from the top. Bottom-loaders will need that you remove extra cabling or hoses. When done, drain the reservoir, so there’s no more water in the water cooler.

4. Clean the Interior

Using a soft cloth and the solution you made in step one, clean the reservoir and let the solution sit for a few minutes, but not for longer than five minutes.

5. Rinse the Interior

Now, rinse the reservoir by filling it with clean water and passing it through the tap. You need about 1-2 gallons of water for rinsing or simply fill the reservoir and empty it about four times. You can collect the wastewater using a bucket.

6. Clean the Exterior

Once the interior is clean, it’s time to wipe the exterior with the same soft cloth. Don’t forget to lift the drip tray and clean it out.

7. Clean the Bottle & Reinstall Everything

Also, wipe the bottle clean and then reinstall it into the water cooler, then plug the power cord back in and install any other necessary part.

8. Test to make Sure it Works

To complete the installation, you need to switch it back on and dispense some water to make sure that everything works well, and that’s it.

Conclusion

We’ve reached the end of this water coolers review, and you’ve seen all the great offers out there, including the stylish ones, the energy-efficient ones, and the budget options.

What you end up choosing is up to you because it has to meet your needs, and it’s only you that know those needs.

For an overall great water cooler, the Clover B7A-Black is a great option with its 0.9-gallon per hour capacity and high-density polyethylene construction.

In case you’re on a budget, the Avalon A1WATERCOOLER might fulfill your needs with its simple design and 0.5-gallon per hour capacity.

And if you’re pressed for space, then consider the compact counter-top Nutrichef PKTWC10SL.

Sources

1. What to Know before Buying a Water Cooler or Dispenser – The Spruce
2. How to Clean Your Water Cooler: Step-by-step Guide – Newair