Ultralight, Collapsible, Tubeless, Filter-Ready, 2L Reservoirs
Two liter-sized ultralight water bladders are an incredibly useful piece of gear for backpacking, and we highly recommend adding one to your kit. They stow away small, weigh only a few ounces, and double your max capacity when the time comes to camel up. From dry camping on a ridge to thru-hiking in the desert, ultralight water bladders make it all possible. Here’s what to look for:
- Weighs ~3 oz or less
- Capacity of ~2L (not more)
- Fits your preferred filter
- No drinking tubes
Shopping for bladder and filter combo? Choose the Sawyer Squeeze x Cnoc VectoX 2L.
Scroll to the bottom for a full breakdown of our criteria. And while you’re here, don’t miss our full review of Sawyer x Cnoc, and other hydration content, including guides to a complete storage system, filters, soft flasks, water bottles, sustainable bottles, and shoulder strap sleeves.
You make Adventure Alan & Co possible. When purchasing through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no additional cost to you. Here’s why you can trust us.
Quick Picks for Ultralight Water Bladders
- Best Overall: Cnoc VectoX 2L
- Runner-Up: Cnoc Vecto 2L
- Top Pick: HydraPak Seeker 2L
- Best < 2 oz: Evernew Water Carry System
- Top Pick, < 2 oz: Platypus Platy 2L
- Least Expensive: Sawyer 2L Pouches
L to R: Platy 2L + Quickdraw, Cnoc VectoX + Sawyer, HydraPak Seeker + 42mm Filter , Cnoc Vecto + BeFree
Comparing Ultralight Water Bladders
Mobile users rotate device for full width table view
| Model | Price ($) | Capacity (L) | Weight (oz) | Volume to weight (L/oz) | Lid Threading (mm) | Ease of Filling |
| Sawyer Pouch 2L | 7 | 2.0 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 28 | hard |
| Platy 2L | 20 | 2.3 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 28 | hard |
| Evernew 2L | 15 | 2.0 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 28 | hard |
| HydraPak Seeker 2L | 27 | 2.1 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 42 | easy |
| Cnoc Vecto 2L 28mm | 24 | 2.1 | 2.8 | 0.8 | 28 | easiest |
| Cnoc VectoX 2L 28mm | 25 | 2.1 | 3.3 | 0.6 | 28 | easiest |
| Cnoc Vecto 2L 42mm | 24 | 2.1 | 3.1 | 0.7 | 42 | easiest |
| Cnoc VectoX 2L 42mm | 25 | 2.1 | 3.3 | 0.6 | 42 | easiest |
The 5 Best Ultralight Water Bladders
Cnoc Vecto & VectoX, 2L
The Cnoc VectoX is the most popular ultralight water bladder on the PCT because it is the easiest to fill, most durable, and interfaces perfectly with the Sawyer Squeeze Filter. Its secret sauce is in the fold-over top opening, which allows for an extremely fast and easy fill up from just about any water source. The closure is reliable and never leaks when properly sealed.
Cnoc VectoX vs Vecto: The X in VectoX refers to “eXtra durability”, and is identical to the original Vecto, only it’s built with a thicker TPU body for an additional half ounce of weight. This increases puncture and abrasion resistance, and is generally preferable.
Both Vecto and VectoX can be purchased with a 28mm neck to fit Sawyer Squeeze and Platypus QuickDraw style filters, or a 42mm neck to fit Katadyn BeFree filters. Combining VectoX and Sawyer Squeeze is widely considered to be the most reliable system possible, and the default choice of PCT thru hikers. While the BeFree isn’t quite as reliable or long-lasting as Sawyer, the fact that it doesn’t protrude as far makes the entire system much more user friendly and easier to handle. That combo is preferable for short-to-moderate length trips when multi-month reliability is a lower priority. If you don’t already own a filter, you can now purchase the Sawyer Squeeze bundled with the Cnoc VectoX, and read more about this match-made-in-heaven collab.
Stats for VectoX 2L 28mm
- Price: $25
- Weight: 3.3 oz
- Lid: 28mm or 42mm options
- Pairs Best with: Sawyer Squeeze
- Pros: Lightweight. Top opens for easiest fill up. Durable. Options to fit all filter heads. Trusted by thru-hikers.
- Cons: Heaviest.
PS: It’s pronounced K’nok
HydraPak Seeker, 2L
There’s lots to love about the HydraPak Seeker 2L, starting with the fact that it’s a smidge lighter than all versions of the aforementioned Cnoc Vecto series. We love that it comes with a handle, which makes carrying and filling up easy, which is especially nice in cold weather when you don’t want to get your hands wet. If you get cold hands easily, this might be the best option. That being said, fill-up is a bit slower than with the full open top of Vecto. Notably, Seeker works great with HydraPak’s own 42mm filter head, or a Katadyn BeFree, but cannot fit a Sawyer Squeeze or Platypus QuickDraw.
- Price: $27
- Weight: 2.7 oz
- Lid: 42mm
- Pairs best with: HydraPak 42mm Filter Head
- Pros: Lightweight. Handle makes it easy to fill, easy to carry.
- Cons: No 28mm option. Top doesn’t open.
Evernew Water Carry
The 2L Evernew Water Carry is the best option in the under-two-ounce genre, thanks to a couple of user friendly features. Conceptually, it’s the same ultralight polyethylene, Sawyer-Squeeze-accommodating design as the world famous “Platy” (see below). But for just .2 ounces more weight, the lid gets a leash to prevent loss, and the body has a built-in shock cord strap that is used for roll-up mode to stow while empty. Both of those bonuses, and the fact that it’s $5 less expensive than Platy, make it our top UL pick.
- Price: $17
- Weight: 1.5 oz
- Lid: 28 mm
- Pairs best with: Sawyer Squeeze or AquaMira
- Pros: Ultralight. Good lid grip. Built-in lid leash. Built-in shock cord for stowing rolled up.
- Cons:Hard to fill up with tiny opening. No option to fit 42mm filter heads. 15% heavier than Platy & Sawyer.
Platypus Platy, 2L
Platy 2L is the original ultralight water bladder, and it’s still the best option in its weight class. At just 1.3 oz, it weighs less than half as much as the Cnoc Vecto and HydraPak Seeker. The downside to this design is that it has a small opening, which makes the fill-up process arduous. Unless you’re sourcing from waterfall, plan on wet hands and many swipes through water to fill up 2L. Notably, the Platy works best with Platypus’s own QuickDraw filter for brand cohesion, and great with AquaMira but is incompatible with 42mm filter heads like BeFree. A few other benefits are that it stands up right on its own, and actually holds up to 2.3L if desired.
- Price: $20
- Weight: 1.3 oz
- Lid: 28mm
- Pairs Best With: AquaMira or Platypus Quickdraw
- Pros: Ultralight. Good value. Durable. Stands upright.
- Cons: Hard to fill up with tiny opening. No option to fit 42mm filter heads.
Sawyer Pouch, 64 oz
For the least expensive option weighing just 1.3 oz per bladder and costing only one third as much as our aforementioned top Ultralight pick, grab a $15 pair of Sawyer Squeeze 64 oz pouches. These 2L ultralight water bladders stand upright on their own, and were a fan favorite that used to be sold packaged with the Sawyer Squeeze filter unit. While they have since been replaced by a pair of 1L pouches, Sawyer users from a decade ago look back on the them fondly.
While we’ve taken them around the world with great success, they are generally considered less durable and more cheaply made than other options like Platy 2L, and can prone to springing a leak at the neck in the event of over-zealous squeeze filtering. That being said, they’re ideal if you’re on a tight budget and need a 4L capacity boost, such as for the desert. Pairs better with Aquamira, okay with Sawyer Squeeze. Squeeze-based users should look to the Cnoc VectoX instead.
- Price: $7.5 per
- Weight: 1.3 oz
- Lid: 28mm
- Pairs Best With: AquaMira or Sawyer Squeeze
- Pros: Ultralight. Lightest weight. Least expensive by far. Stands upright.
- Cons: Least durable. Hard to fill tiny opening. No option to fit 42mm filters.
Pro tip: use a rubber band to keep an empty bladder rolled up while stowed. Otherwise, it will unfurl.
Buyer Advice for Shopping Ultralight Water Bladders
Why 2L is the best capacity for a bladder
We strongly recommending choosing a 2L ultralight water bladder over any other size capacity. While it might be tempting to size up to 3L or even 4L versions, we recommend against it. Despite the fact that larger capacity bladders have a higher volume-to-weight ratio, the sheer size of them when full is simply too awkward to backpack with. A full 3L bladders weighs ~10 pounds and is likely too long, tall, heavy, off balance, and/or floppy to be carried on the outside of your pack, ultimately forcing you to spend more time rearranging things to fit it inside and balance it than you would with a smaller bladder.
If you need capacity beyond a 2L bladder plus a couple of bottles, we recommend adding a second 2L bladder. This is only an ounce or two heavier than a single 4L bladder, and is much easier to pack and deal with. Replacing a 4L with two 2L water bladder improves your balance and gives your system more redundancy. If a 4L is punctured you’re in much deeper trouble than if one of two 2L bladders is punctured.
Match the lid threading to your preferred filter
Whether you use Sawyer Squeeze (28mm) or Katadyn BeFree (42mm), keep in mind that they have different sized lid threading. In a perfect world, you would be able to move your filter around interchangeably between all vessels, as-needed. For most people, their water bladder is their primary filtering vessel, so make sure it fits your filter head!
Ultralight, weighs less than 3.5 oz
Cnoc makes the best and most fully-featured ultralight water bladders on the market, and their high durability version weighs in at 3.3 oz. Therefore, anything over 3.5 oz is more weight than is necessary, and you should avoid those products. The lighter options are better; water is heavy enough by itself.
No Drinking Tubes
Don’t choose anything with a drinking tube. Hydration reservoirs with tubes are an inferior system to bottles, bladders, and filters. They dangle awkwardly, add weight and cost, are more prone to breakage, require more effort to situate in your pack, periodically pinch or kink, are difficult to clean, difficult to refill in the backcountry, and overall increase the likelihood of water spilling into your backpack. By front mounting a small bottle or two and refilling throughout the day, you get all the benefits of a tube without any of the drawbacks.
Ultralight Water Bladders Conclusion
Thank you for reading our guide to ultralight water bladders, where we hope you found the perfect hydration reservoir for your next adventure. We nearly always carry one because it opens up the possibility of dry camping, and makes hiking safer when water sources are few and far between. Happy trails!
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!
Hi i saw someone once with a filter, but in the middle there was another seal that could be closed. it is for separating silt from clean water. anyways i am having a hard time finding it and im hoping someone else has come across it.
Nifty! But I dunno what that would be. If you find out, drop back in the comments and LMK!
For high elevation, dry climate, or other places where water is scarce, why not something like a 3L Platypus Evo Big Zip 3L?