UK Bottled Water Market Report 2026
Bottled water enjoys widespread usage, with three in four adults drinking it, supported by strong associations with health.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- Outlook for bottled water
- Opportunities
- Microplastics concerns elevate importance of offering choice of packaging materials
- Reassure on the capabilities of water filtration
- Highlight water’s importance in high-fibre diets
- Discover the top five trend territories for success in UK non-alcoholic beverages using Black Swan’s social prediction technology
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THE MARKET
- Snapshot – market size and forecast
- Market factors
- Consumer caution keeps budgets under scrutiny
- Graph 1: financial wellbeing and confidence indices, 2019-26
- DRS set to launch in October 2027
- Healthy eating efforts brings opportunities for bottled water
- Bottled water gets a boost as 2025 is the sunniest year on record
- Population growth offers modest support for bottled water
- Graph 2: population, by age, 2020, 2025 and 2030
- Market size
- Market size and forecast of bottled water
- Graph 3: market value forecast for bottled water, 2019-30
- Record-breaking warm weather sees volume sales surge in 2025, fall expected in 2026
- Retail continued to outperform on-premise in 2025
- Graph 4: value sales of bottled water, by on- and off-trade, 2019-25
- Sparkling water returns to volume growth in 2025
- Graph 5: retail value and volume sales of bottled water, by segment, 2023-25
- Evian retains top position, Highland Spring leaps ahead in 2025/26 in still water
- Graph 6: leading brands’ value sales in the still water retail segment, 2023/24-2025/26
- Premium brands win in sparkling water in 2025/26
- Graph 7: leading brands’ value sales in the retail sparkling water segment, 2023/24-2025/26
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THE CONSUMER
- Usage of and locations for drinking bottled water
- Three in four drink bottled water
- Under-35s are core users, over-55s’ growth drives at-home focus
- Graph 8: bottled water usage at home and in foodservice, by age, 2026
- Sparkling water can capitalise on pressure on CSDs
- Scope for CSDs to play in water
- Microplastic concerns drive opportunities for non-plastic packaging
- Microplastics concerns amplify importance of offering choice of packaging materials
- Ensure non-plastic formats suit at-home occasions
- Continued reassurance needed on water purity
- Brands must continue to reassure on water purity
- Shout about conservation efforts at bottled water sources
- Water filters: Highlight lower environmental footprint beyond plastic
- Water filters lack trust
- Reassure consumers on water filtration
- Harness water’s associations with wider health benefits
- Tap into water’s strong health associations
- Leverage hydration’s strong inherent health associations
- Hero water’s importance in high-fibre diets
- GLP-1 use spells fresh potential for fortified waters
- Explore tie-ups with specialist brands to strengthen functional credibility
- Tap supplement use in water with in-store placement
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PRODUCT, INNOVATION AND MARKETING
- Brands from other soft drinks categories enter bottled water
- Competition heats up in functional waters
- Flavoured water attracts own-label launches and new brands
- Challenger brands revamp packaging
- Marketing themes for bottled water range from sport and wellbeing to social occasions
- DASH makes TV debut, humourously spotlighting its healthy, natural and tasty proposition
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APPENDIX
- Market definition
- The market
- Forecast methodology
- Forecast methodology – fan chart
- Market size and forecast for bottled water
- Graph 9: market size and forecast for volume sales of bottled water, 2019-30
- Market size and forecast of bottled water (value)
- Market size and forecast of bottled water (volume)
- Market forecast and prediction intervals – value
- Market forecast and prediction intervals – volume
- Sales of bottled water, by channel
- Retail value and volume sales of bottled water, by type
- Still water market share – value sales – brands
- Still water market share – volume sales – brands
- Still water market share – value sales – manufacturers
- Still water market share – volume sales – manufacturers
- Sparkling water market share – value sales – brands
- Sparkling water market share – volume sales – brands
- Sparkling water market share – value sales – manufacturers
- Sparkling water market share – volume sales – manufacturers
- Trends in the population age structure
- The consumer
- Consumer research questions
- Consumer research methodology
- UK generation groups
- Abbreviations
UK Bottled Water Industry – Trends and Insights
- Bottled water enjoys widespread usage in the UK, with three in four adults drinking it, supported by strong associations with health. However, there is a pressing need to reassure concerns around contaminants as 46% of drinkers are shifting towards non‑plastic packaging due to concerns over microplastics and 55% are concerned about the pollution levels in the areas where bottled water is source.
- 2025 saw volume growth of over 10% in the market amid record‑breaking heat, evidence of its continued heavy reliance on impulse occasions. Growth is expected to moderate in the absence of extreme weather, while the 2027 rollout of the Deposit Return Scheme is expected to introduce short‑term friction. The market continued to face intense competition from tap water as well as other soft drinks.
- Looking ahead, there is a clear opportunity for brands to leverage strong consumer views of water as important for gut health amid rising interest in fibre, tapping into these views at key touchpoints to put their brands front of mind for health-focused consumers.
This Report Looks at the Following Areas:
- Performance of the UK bottled water industry, including the impact of weather on value and volume sales of bottled water
- Usage of still, sparkling, unflavoured and flavoured water and core user groups
- Where consumers have drunk bottled water, including both in-home and at various out-of-home locations
- Concern about microplastics in bottled water, and opportunities for non-plastic packaging
- The case for foregrounding environmental stewardship and the need to reassure consumers on water filtration
- Opportunities for bottled water stemming from the gut health trend
Market Definitions
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has used the following definitions:
This Report covers sales of bottled water. This includes:
- Unflavoured water.
- Flavoured waters and fortified waters which see water enhanced with flavours, herbs, vitamins and/or sweeteners.
- Still water as well as carbonated water, also known as sparkling water, which is made by dissolving carbon dioxide into the water through a process of carbonation, including tonic water.
Market size data includes sales through the following outlets:
- Retail: This includes sales through retail outlets where bottled water is purchased for the purpose of in-home consumption or for drinking on the go, comprising supermarkets, convenience stores and petrol forecourts, among others.
- On-premise: This includes anywhere where bottled water is bought to consume on-site, eg pubs, bars and clubs, leisure centres, hotels, restaurants, cafés, education establishments and workplaces.
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