Five-year cost of every system we compare
We took each brand's checked price and added five years of replacement filters at the brand's shortest stated interval and list price. Installation is not included, since it depends on your house.
| System | Price | Filters per year | Five-year total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waterdrop WHF3T-PG | $369.99 | $119.04 | about $965 |
| SoftPro Iron Master (well) | $1,517 | $0 | $1,517 |
| SpringWell CF1 | $1,365 | $45.57 | about $1,593 |
| iSpring WGB32B | $516.99 | $251.98 | about $1,777 |
| iSpring WGB32BM (well) | $535.99 | $319.98 | about $2,136 |
| Waterdrop WHF3T-FG (well) | $419.99 | $404.32 | about $2,442 |
| SpringWell WS1 (well) | $2,625 | $0 | $2,625 |
| Aquasana Rhino | $1,998 | $147.96 | about $2,738 |
| Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV | $3,498 | $273.95 | about $4,868, plus a $1,698 tank at year 5 |
Two things stand out. Cartridge systems are cheap to buy and expensive to keep, especially on wells where iron clogs cartridges early. And the backwashing well tanks cost nothing a year in filters, though they use water and power to backwash and need a drain.
Installation
HomeGuide lists $200 to $600 of labor for a whole house filter and $100 to $300 for a lab water test beforehand. A backwashing system that needs a new drain line adds $300 to $800. Cartridge systems and passive carbon tanks (Waterdrop, iSpring, the SpringWell CF1, the Aquasana Rhino) need no drain and no outlet, which keeps labor at the low end.
TipAsk the installer to add a bypass loop and a pressure gauge before and after the filter. The gauges tell you when a cartridge is clogging long before the shower does.
Where the money goes wrong
- Buying a city water filter for a well. Carbon will not stop iron or bacteria; you will replace cartridges every few weeks.
- Ignoring flow. An undersized filter drops pressure, and a filter you end up bypassing is $0 of value.
- Forgetting replacement tanks. Aquasana sells the well water tank replacement at $1,698 after 5 years; the city Rhino tank is rated for 10.
- Paying for contaminants you do not have. A PFAS claim only matters if PFAS is in your water: your utility's Consumer Confidence Report will tell you.
City water or well water: why the bill differs
HomeGuide lists well water filtration at $800 to $4,000 installed, against $850 to $5,400 for whole house systems in general. The ranges overlap, but the cost drivers are different. On city water, you are mainly paying for carbon: a tank that lasts 10 years or cartridges you replace every year. On a well, you are paying to handle iron, manganese, sulfur and sometimes bacteria, and the right system depends entirely on the lab result.
Budget the test before the filter. HomeGuide puts a water test at $100 to $300. That is less than one wrong cartridge set on a well with 5 ppm of iron, where an iron cartridge rated for 3 ppm would clog within weeks.
How to read upkeep figures
- Brands give intervals as a range, such as 6 to 12 months. We count the short end, because sediment and iron rarely let you reach the long one.
- Gallon ratings beat month ratings. A 100,000-gallon set lasts about 11 months for a family using 300 gallons a day, but nearly two years for a couple using half that.
- Check whether the main media is included. The SpringWell CF1 and the Aquasana Rhino need a new tank or media after 10 years; we treat that as media life, not yearly upkeep.
- Sales change the picture. Aquasana showed 15% off replacement filters on November 9, 2026; we use list prices so the comparison stays fair.
What you can skip
A whole house system is not the only answer. If the only thing you dislike is the taste of chlorine in drinking water, a filter at the kitchen tap costs a fraction of any system here. If your city water tastes fine and your test is clean, there is nothing to fix. And if scale is your only complaint, you need a softener, not a filter: none of the 9 filters we compare removes hardness.
Systems mentioned in this guide
Frequently asked questions
How much does a whole house water filter cost?
HomeGuide puts the installed cost at $850 to $5,400. The systems we compare cost $369.99 to $3,498 on November 9, 2026, before installation.
How much does it cost to install a whole house water filter?
Labor runs $200 to $600, per HomeGuide. A new drain line for a backwashing system adds $300 to $800.
How much do whole house filter replacements cost per year?
In our data, from $0 for backwashing well tanks to about $404 for the Waterdrop iron cartridges at their shortest interval. The SpringWell CF1 needs one $45.57 sediment pack a year.
Is a whole house water filter worth it?
Yes if your water has a problem you can name: chlorine taste, sediment, iron, sulfur. If your city water already tastes fine and your test is clean, a drinking water filter at the kitchen tap costs far less.
Sources
HomeGuide, water filtration system cost (Sept 17, 2025). Read on November 9, 2026.