S'well
A design-led brand where the steel exterior does more work than the materials warrant. The triple-walled 18/8 body looks and reads as plastic-free, but the classic screw cap has a plastic inner body with a silicone seal, and the straw and flip lids are largely plastic - so water contacts plastic right at the opening you drink from. There's a glass-bodied line with an all-steel lid that avoids this, but the flagship steel bottle most people buy is "minimal-contact" at best, not plastic-free.
How clear are their specs?
Names the 18/8 body steel, but the plastic inner cap and largely-plastic straw/flip lids are downplayed against the premium steel styling and surface mostly when you read the fine print.
Lead testing disclosure
S'well's help/policies pages state products are "certified to meet all regulatory requirements by an independent and accredited testing facility" and are "lead-free," but name no lab, cite no test numbers or detection limits, and explicitly do not provide testing documentation to customers - a bare claim, not disclosure. No dedicated testing page exists, and no independent test results or public S'well statement on the lead-sealing-dot issue documented in other insulated steel bottles were found.
- manufacturer https://www.swell.com/pages/help bare "lead-free," "independently certified" claim with no lab name, numbers, or documentation provided
Products we recommend
Products to avoid
Documented so you know what to skip — each still has a full breakdown and sources.
