I’ve been thinking about buying a Soda Stream for years and I think I am finally ready to take the plunge (pun intended!).  I explored it last Black Friday when there was one on sale and did some cost calculations and it seemed like it wasn’t really going to save me enough money to be worth the change in habit and approach.  I just recently saw one at Costco and decided to revisit my calculations and do a bit more research, and after this second pass I’ve decided it makes sense for me to buy one and I am going to do it.  As with all things, I really try to thoughtfully consider any new purchase and weigh the pros and cons before I bring something new into my life.  Below are the benefits and potential downsides of a soda stream, and then a detailed cost comparison over a three-year period.  Keep in mind there are various models of the Soda Stream and costs of initial packages to start your setup, so feel free to adjust the calculations based on my assumptions vs. your personal situation and setup. 

There are a number of BENEFITS to a soda stream:

• Better for the environment. I know cans, plastic, etc. are recyclable but reality it this will cut down on our waste as a family.  We drink a lot of sparkling water.
• Saves time/bulk when grocery shopping. Because we drink so much water, I’m frequently buying multiple packs of sparking water every time I go shopping and it’s bulky and just adds complexity to my shopping trips.  The soda stream will definitely lighten my load at the grocery store!
• Saves money. It was initially unclear to me if soda stream was going to truly save me money, so in true Mostly Minimal fashion I did a detailed cost comparison and tried to include all of the key factors and costs.  The soda stream and necessary accessories (flavoring, cartridges, etc.) will easily save you money vs. name-brand sparking water like LaCroix, Waterloo, or Bubly.  I’ve formally switched to Aldi’s store brand of sparkling water as it’s the cheapest I’ve ever found, and that gives the Soda Stream a run for it’s money when it comes to cost.  But overall, I still think the soda stream will save me money in the first year, and even more over a multi-year period.  Below is a detailed cost comparison, and you can see I am estimating the soda stream will save me 14% or $32 in year 1 vs. Aldi sparkling water, and 37% or $117 in year 1 vs LaCroix or other similar name brand sparkling water.  In the below estimate I’ve assumed that we drink about 1014 cans per year, and my initial estimate was actually 900, but 6 co2 cartridges make 1014 cans worth of water so I chose that number to make my calculations cleaner and more easily comparable.  This estimate does not include the cost of flavorings, which can be expensive, but I plan to either drink plain sparkling water or make some of my own using fresh fruit infused water and other natural products.  This also is using a very conservative estimate of the carbonation level and how much I can make from each co2 cartridge. 
• I can control the carbonation levels. I love the price of Aldi’s store brand of sparkling water, but it is one of the highest carbonation levels I’ve ever experienced.  We often pour it into a glass to let it settle a bit as it’s more enjoyable to drink that way.  I love the idea of being able to control the carbonation levels to get the perfect level of bubble in my water!
• I can make more natural flavorings and get creative with my sparkling water. Like I said earlier, I plan to take this approach as it will save me money and I also prefer something natural and fresh vs. a bottled flavoring.
• On-demand water ready whenever I need it. My husband and I love cold sparkling water, and fairly often we realize there’s none left in the fridge and we can’t have any that day.  And then somehow a week passes, and no one seems to refill the fridge.  Or we’re out of sparkling water and it’s another week or so until someone gets to the store.  With the soda-stream we’ll never run out as long as we keep an extra co2 cartridge on hand. 

There are not a lot of CONS to a soda stream, but if I had to think of some they are:

• It’s a bit more work. The process of making my own sparkling water is a little more work than just cracking open a can from the fridge.  But it’s not that much work, so I am OK with it. 
• It’s more clutter on my kitchen counter, and I don’t love things sitting out on the counter. I am going to try to combat this by finding a cabinet to keep it in, but I also think it’s a product I might use daily in which case it’s just going to have to sit on the counter.  That being said, I use my Vitamix almost daily, but I still keep it put away.  Look, I just fixed this con so it’s no longer a con!  That was easy. 
• Less convenient for larger gatherings or parties. If I were having a bunch of people over and needed to serve sparkling water, it would be easier to just serve it out of cans.  The good news is I rarely have large gatherings, and I can still buy cans if/when I do need to entertain. 

In this case, the pros easily outweigh the cons.  I had trouble thinking of cons and had to dig deep to come up with the ones above. 

Recommendations to control the cost of your soda stream setup:

• Make your own natural flavorings and syrup. Here is a great resource for ideas of how to make your own fruit infused flavors, syrups, and more.  You can also check out Pinterest for even more ideas and recipes for DIY soda stream flavors.
• Take advantage of the cartridge exchange system offered by soda stream and other competitors. Soda stream offers a co2 cartridge exchange system via mail and through various retail store locations.  This exchange program appears to cut the price of the cartridges about in half.  I’ve also seen some companies like SodaSense offering exchange programs, though I have never used them so can’t vouch for them or how they work with Soda Stream products. 
• Adjust the co2 level down to get more out of each cartridge. One of the great things about a soda steam vs. canned sodas is you can control the carbonation levels.  If you adjust the level of carbonation down it will get you more out of a 60L cartridge, and it could also be more to your liking as far as how carbonated your water is. 

Detailed cost comparison of a soda stream vs. Aldi and LaCroix brand sparkling water:

My conclusion is I am going to give Soda Stream a try.  It has a 3-year warranty and considering the volume of sparkling water we consume and the cost and environmental impacts I think it makes sense for us.  Anything that easily pays for itself within one year makes sense, and even better that I can 36% or $247 over a three-year period.  And on top of the cost savings, it’s better on the environment and will reduce 1000+ cans we consume each year.  And if I am wrong and don’t love the quality of the product or the experience, that’s OK and it’s a good thing as I am not afraid to return a product I don’t like.  I’ve considered this thoughtfully, as you should all purchases, and I’m excited to take the plunge. 

Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.