What Are the Nalgene Bottle Dimensions?

If you’re trying to be a Hydro Homie, you should skip the sugar-laden soft drinks and energy drinks and instead quench your thirst with good-ole H2O. The first thing you need to drink water, apart from the water itself, is a high-quality bottle—perhaps something sporting the Nalgene logo. So, how big is a Nalgene bottle?

A 32-ounce Nalgene bottle will measure 3.5 inches in diameter and 8.25 inches in height. The diameter of the cap is around 2.5 inches wide.

However, you can find Nalgene bottles of all sizes, ranging from 12 ounces all the way up to 48 ounces. In today’s guide, I’ll explain the differences in dimensions between Nalgene bottle sizes, what makes Nalgene so unique, and how to choose the right water bottle size.

A Quick Look at Nalgene Water Bottles

Nalgene has a pretty rich history as a water bottle company. The first bottles were made in the 1940s when the Russian chemist Emanuel Goldberg came up with plastic pipette jars. In the 1960s, scientists got to see just how well plastic containers managed in the wilderness when a group of them took the bottles with them during backpacking excursions.

Fast-forward to the 1970s, and environmental activists ramped up the pressure to get people to avoid using disposal glass and bottle containers since they would end up not just in landfills but all over nature. This was when the popularity of Nalgene bottles went up, especially the wide-mouthed varieties that could be used to store drinks and food.

Today, there are hundreds of plastic bottle manufacturers all over the world, but Nalgene remains to be one of the top-selling brands. The company makes all sorts of things, including food containers and insulated bottle sleeves, but its line of water bottles continues to be its biggest seller.

Nalgene Water Bottle Sizes and Dimensions

As previously indicated, Nalgene water bottles come in an assortment of sizes, ranging from 12 ounces to 48 ounces. The top-selling Nalgene water bottle size is 32 ounces, which measures 3.5 inches wide, 8.25 inches tall, and has a 2.5-inch-wide lid. There are kid-friendly options that are small enough to fit in schoolbags, and there’s a water bottle for professional athletes who need to stay hydrated during intense matches.

The following chart will describe the dimensions of Nalgene water bottles that you can find on the official website.

Who Are Nalgene Water Bottles Made for?

Many times, you’ll find different drink container brands marketing their products to a specific niche. That also holds true for Nalgene products.

If you take a look at the Nalgene website and sort by collections, you’ll find that Nalgene water bottles are made for the following groups of people:

Environmentally Conscious—Products that fall into the Sustain product line are made from 50% recycled plastic. The purpose of doing so is to help consumers make the eco-friendlier purchase decision by using materials that would have otherwise would’ve gone to waste in landfills.

Physically Active—Nalgene’s Fitness water bottles were designed with fitness freaks in mind. Their ergonomic handles are easy to hold, and the bottles are narrow enough to fit in bicycle and treadmill bottle holders.

Outdoors Folk—Are you the type of person who enjoys spending multiple days in the wilderness? If so, you’ll want to check out Nalgene’s line of Outdoor water bottles, which are made to hold large amounts of water and ensure that you don’t waste a single drop.

Long-Distance Travelers—Although Nalgene’s water bottles aren’t particularly heavy, the Ultralite lineup consists of water bottles that are made with much lighter materials. That way, you can pack multiple water bottles in a bag without weighing you down too much.

What Makes Nalgene Bottles So Special?

There are multiple reasons that hikers, athletes, and common people rely on Nalgene for their water containers.

Durability

Select Nalgene water bottles are designed to withstand high temperatures, as well as extreme cold. That means you can pour boiling water inside them without worrying about the bottles warping in shape. Nalgene water bottles freeze incredibly well, though expanding blocks of ice can still tear the bottle from the inside. Did I mention that Nalgene water bottles are microwavable?

Low-Maintenance

Using a water bottle is a no-brainer, but cleaning a water bottle can be a pain. Nalgene solved this problem by giving them twist-off caps, allowing you to insert elongated brushes inside the bottle to clean them out easily. In addition, solid food particles have a tough time adhering to the internal lining, which makes them great for transporting food.

Lifetime Warranty

Very few companies are willing to offer lifetime warranties on their products, which makes Nalgene that much more special.

@nalgene on Twitter said that the company would replace a broken bottle, but the rumor that you will also receive a t-shirt saying “I Broke a Nalgene” is, sadly, entirely false.

What Nalgene Size Should I Get?

Assuming you only want to refill your bottle once per day, you should find a water bottle that can hold as much water as you drink every 24 hours.

According to the Mayo Clinic, adults should drink between 11.5 and 15.5 cups (92 and 124 ounces) of water daily, which, unfortunately, means you’ll have to refill even the largest Nalgene bottle multiple times.

Another way to look at it is to figure out how much water you need while you’re away from home. If you’re only going to be gone for a few hours, you could get away with a 16- to 24-ounce bottle.

However, if you’re backpacking through a desert, you might want to get the biggest, most lightweight Nalgene bottle.