CBS News poll: Which tastes better — bottled water or tap water?

Bottled water seems to have firmly taken hold among most American adults. Fifty-eight percent now say bottled water tastes better than tap water, up from 45% when we last asked this question back in 2014. Few Americans prefer tap water, though many —31% — don't taste a difference.

Older Americans are more skeptical than younger Americans about the benefits of bottled water when it comes to taste. While two-thirds of Americans under the age of 55 think bottled water tastes better than tap water, just 43% of seniors 65 and older agree.

This poll was conducted by telephone November 9-14, 2021 among a random sample of 1,008 adults nationwide.  Data collection was conducted on behalf of CBS News by SSRS of Glen Mills, PA.  Phone numbers were dialed from samples of both standard land-line and cell phones.

The poll employed a random digit dial methodology. For the landline sample, a respondent was randomly selected from all adults in the household. For the cell sample, interviews were conducted with the person who answered the phone.

 Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish using live interviewers. The data have been weighted to reflect U.S. Census figures on demographic variables. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus 3.7 percentage points. The error for subgroups may be higher and is available by request. The margin of error includes the effects of standard weighting procedures which enlarge sampling error slightly. This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.