The cheapest one here that's still lead-certified
Culligan FM-25 Faucet Filter
Reviewed by
Dr. Yocheved Yorkovsky · Science Editor, Health, Chemistry & Environment
The budget pick that keeps the cert. The cheapest filter here still NSF 53 certified for lead, plus mercury and even cysts like giardia that most faucet filters miss. Flow is slow and there's no indicator, but for certified lead reduction without spending much, nothing beats it.
The Culligan FM-25 is the value workhorse of faucet filters: certified to NSF/ANSI 42 and 53 for chlorine taste and odor plus lead and several other contaminants, at the lowest entry price in our lineup. It clips onto standard faucets tool-free, includes a diverter switch, and uses inexpensive replacement cartridges that keep long-term cost down. It's the budget pick that doesn't cut the certification corner — you get certified lead reduction, which is the feature most worth not compromising on. The trade-offs are modest: a shorter filter life than the Waterdrop and a utilitarian look. For certified reduction on a tight budget, it's hard to beat.
$25
$40
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Last reviewed Jun 13, 2026
What we like
- ✓Certified to NSF/ANSI 42 and 53 including lead reduction
- ✓Lowest entry price in our faucet lineup
- ✓Tool-free install with diverter switch
- ✓Cheap replacement cartridges
- ✓Doesn't compromise certification to hit the price
Trade-offs
- −Slow filtered-mode flow (~0.5 GPM) - among the pokier filters
- −No filter-change indicator light - track replacement yourself
- −Chrome-plated plastic housing (looks like metal but isn't)
- −Adapters don't fit every faucet; built for municipal, not well, water
Best for
Budget buyers who still want certified lead reduction: the cheapest filter here that keeps NSF/ANSI 53 lead certification rather than dropping to taste-only.
Avoid if
You push a lot of water daily — its cartridge life is shorter than the Waterdrop's, so heavy users may pay more per year despite the low sticker price.
The three lenses
How we grade →- 9.3/10
Value & Longevity · Eran Yorkovsky
Score breakdown
- value9.3/10
- ease8.8/10
- fit8.6/10
- quality8.4/10
Specs
- flow
- Slow (~0.5 GPM)
- type
- Faucet-mount filter (standard faucets)
- build
- Chrome-plated plastic; 2-yr warranty; no indicator light
- price
- ~$25
- install
- Tool-free; auto-reset diverter; not for pull-out/spray
- reduces
- Chlorine, lead, mercury, cysts (giardia/crypto), turbidity, atrazine, lindane
- filter life
- ~200 gallons / ~2 months (FM-25R cartridge)
- certifications
- NSF/ANSI 42 (taste) + 53 (lead, mercury, cysts)
How we know
High confidenceLast checkedThe Culligan FM-25 is PickGrade's budget pick — and unlike many cheap faucet filters, it backs up its price with real health certifications. It carries both NSF/ANSI 42 (chlorine, taste, and odor) and, importantly, NSF/ANSI 53 for lead reduction, so you get certified lead protection at the lowest price in this lineup. Its carbon-block cartridge is also rated to reduce mercury, turbidity, atrazine, lindane, sediment, and — unusually for a faucet filter — cysts like giardia and cryptosporidium, which makes it a standout for that specific concern. In independent lab tests it removed essentially all free chlorine. The cartridge lasts about 200 gallons or two months (longer than the 100-gallon PUR and Brita filters), and a diverter knob auto-resets to unfiltered water after each use, which quietly stretches filter life. Install is tool-free with included adapters. The honest caveats: filtered-mode flow is slow — around 0.5 GPM, among the pokier filters tested; there's no filter-change indicator light, so you track replacement yourself; the housing is chrome-plated plastic (looks like metal but isn't), raising some durability questions; the included adapters don't fit every faucet and it won't fit pull-out or spray styles; and it's built for municipal water, not well water. For certified lead-and-chlorine reduction on a tight budget, it's the value pick.
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