Berkey VS Clearbrook: The Top Two Gravity Fed Water Filters Compared

If you've spent any time researching gravity-fed water filters, you've likely run into both Berkey and Clearbrook, and possibly some confusion about how the two are related. The short version: they're more connected than most comparison articles let on, and understanding that history actually helps explain why both are worth considering. Here's the honest breakdown of what's the same, what's different, and which one makes sense for you.

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The Real Story: Clearbrook Made the Original Black Berkey Filters

This is the part most comparison articles skip. Clearbrook, LLC, based in Mobile, Alabama, is the original manufacturer and formulator of the BB9 filter element, the same filter used inside Black Berkey Purification Elements, going back to Clearbrook's founding roughly three decades ago. For most of that time, Clearbrook supplied these filters to New Millennium Concepts, Ltd. (NMCL), the company that owns the "Black Berkey" trade name and sells the branded Berkey product line.

In 2023, that relationship changed. The EPA's interpretation and enforcement of federal pesticidal regulations, specifically requirements under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) for sellers making certain health-related claims about water filters, forced Clearbrook to stop fulfilling NMCL's procurement requests. Clearbrook confirmed this directly in a January 2025 public statement addressing market confusion about the relationship. Separately, Berkey International has pursued its own ongoing legal challenge against the EPA over a related stop-sale order, a case that as of its most recent public update was still active and unresolved.

The practical result: Clearbrook began selling its CB9 filters directly to consumers under its own name, using the same manufacturing process and formulation it had used for Black Berkey elements all along. That's the honest answer to "are they the same filters": the underlying element and the company that makes it are the same lineage. The brand name, packaging, and business relationship are what changed.

Berkey vs. Clearbrook: Side-by-Side Comparison

What's Actually the Same

Both brands remove the same broad categories of contaminants using activated carbon block filtration: bacteria, heavy metals, chemicals, and sediment. Both use gravity, no electricity or water pressure required, which makes them equally suited to off-grid living, RVs, and emergency preparedness. Both offer a stainless steel countertop system as their flagship product and a lighter, portable plastic option for travel. And critically, Clearbrook's CB9 elements are dimensionally compatible with Berkey systems, so a Berkey owner can use Clearbrook replacement filters without buying a new housing.

What's Actually Different

The most substantive difference is certification. Clearbrook systems carry WQA certification to NSF/ANSI 42 (chlorine taste and odor) and NSF/ANSI 372 (lead-free materials), meaning an accredited third-party body has formally verified those specific claims. Black Berkey elements are tested by independent, accredited laboratories to NSF/ANSI protocols, but Berkey has stated it considers formal certification optional for its product category, and Black Berkey elements have not been certified by NSF, WQA, or IAPMO. Both approaches involve genuine third-party lab work; the difference is whether that work has gone through the full formal certification process with an accredited body.

Beyond certification, price is the other clear difference: Clearbrook is generally positioned as the lower-cost option. Berkey, meanwhile, has a longer market history, a wider accessory ecosystem, and stronger brand recognition, which matters to some buyers independent of the underlying filtration technology.

Which One Should You Buy?

If you already own a Berkey system, Clearbrook's CB9 replacement filters are a straightforward, lower-cost way to keep it running without buying new housing. If you're buying your first gravity filter, the decision comes down to what matters most to you: Clearbrook's formal WQA certification and lower price, or Berkey's longer track record and broader accessory selection. Both are legitimate, well-built systems using the same underlying filtration approach.

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