Data sources
Mineral data sources
BotledWater.com aggregates water chemistry data from official, regulatory and peer-reviewed sources. Marketing copy is never used as a primary data source.
Bottler-published water analyses
Primary source for pH, TDS and mineral concentrations. Taken from the brand's official label, water-analysis PDF or product page.
U.S. FDA bottled water standards
21 CFR §165.110 defines categories (spring, artesian, mineral, purified) and quality standards used to classify U.S.-bottled brands.
EU Directive 2009/54/EC
Governs natural mineral water labeling, source protection and permitted treatments for European brands (Evian, Gerolsteiner, San Pellegrino, Perrier, Acqua Panna, Borjomi and others).
USGS Water Science
Reference values for hardness classification (mg/L CaCO₃), TDS ranges and groundwater chemistry.
EFSA & WHO drinking water guidelines
Used for reference daily intakes of calcium, magnesium, sodium and bicarbonate when contextualizing mineral contribution.
Peer-reviewed water-chemistry literature
Used for general explainers on silica, bicarbonate buffering, carbonation chemistry and TDS measurement methods.
Units & conventions
- • Mineral concentrations reported in milligrams per liter (mg/L).
- • TDS reported in mg/L; values measured at source unless noted.
- • pH reported on a 0–14 scale at standard temperature.
- • Hardness classified per USGS thresholds (soft < 60, moderate 60–120, hard 121–180, very hard > 180 mg/L CaCO₃).
Page last updated: June 2026.
