The Best Salt Free Water Softener Review [2023]

We’ve reviewed the leading products in a variety salt free water softener categories. We included filter systems that coat hard water minerals, full filter systems, and other models that suspend hard water grains in the water.

Each of our evaluations includes information on the technology used, how effective the model is, how easy it is to install, how long you can expect it to last, its care and maintenance needs, and the price you can expect to pay for it.

You can use our reviews as a starting point for your research or read our buying guide for information on how the different technologies work and what you might want to look for in a product.

Top Choice in the Market

How to Pick the Perfect One for Your Needs?

When you’re looking for the top product, you also don’t want it to cost more than it needs to. We’ll help you decide what you need in a water softener to meet your home’s needs.

When you’re shopping for a new unit, it helps to know how hard your water is so that you can tell if a particular technology or model will be able to soften it. You’ll also want to decide if you need additional filters for your system to remove chlorine or a UV light to kill bacteria and viruses.

This section will help you understand how each water softening technology works and how to test or estimate how hard your water is. We’ll also provide pricing information so that you can more accurately budget for your new product.

1. Choose the right grain rating

11 Best Salt Free Water Softener Reviews 2023

These are the optimum products we found. We’ve arranged the list by those that use polyphosphates, those that filter only, those that use electro-magnetic waves, and those that use magets only. We include the advantages and disadvantages of each model.

With Full Filters

These products filter your water and coat hard water grains to soften it. The crystals pass through your plumbing and bounce off surfaces without sticking. These units also provide robust filters for your whole house.

The system itself is installed on the main water line coming into your home and once installed, it starts crystallizing the hard water minerals immediately as well as cleaning existing scale buildup in your existing pipes and plumbing. Unlike salt based water softener system that give you that slippery soft water, the salt free water softener system keeps the hard minerals in the water without the white scale buildup. You also don’t need a drain or electricity with this system.

No more limescale buildup on your faucets, fixtures, shower heads or plumbing. And one thing you get when you choose SpringWell Water’s systems is free shipping, a 6 month satisfaction guarantee, and a lifetime warranty on all parts. The only thing you need to do with this system is to change the 5 micron pre-sediment filter once every 6 to 9 months.

The chlorine and chloramines that cities add to sanitize the water supply dries out hair and skin as much as hard water does. It’s a little heavier than other in-line systems, weighing approximately 16 pounds. It’s also longer at a total of 54 inches. You can still mount it off of the floor though. The water does go through more filtration steps, so the flow rate is reduced to 7 gallons per minute.

That’s not bad though, considering that 7 gallons per minute will provide enough water pressure to run 2 showers, a dishwasher, and the kitchen faucet all at the same time. You will need to change the filters on this saltless water softener model at least every six months. Each 4-pack of replacement pre-filters (for the 10-inch filter) and each 4-pack of replacement post filters (for the 20-inch filter) are both cheap products.

The SimplySoft polyphosphate material will need to be replaced every 5 years. The Aquasana Whole House Water Filter and Salt Free Water Softener Softener under a 10-year or 1 million gallons of water warranty. If you’re considering using this model for well water, be sure to pair it with a polyphosphate filter beforehand or an electro-magnetic or magnetic model afterward.

If you do have well water, this is the most complete salt free water softener and filtering system you can buy. It features a 20-inch pre-filter to catch sediment from your well, the SimplySoft that coats smaller hard water grains in polyphosphate, the Rhino filter and a .35 micron post-filter to remove chlorine, chloramines, herbicides, pesticides, and additional contaminants, and a UV light to kill viruses and bacteria. The .35 submicron filter is dense enough to catch even the smallest pollutants in your water.

The UV light runs off a standard household outlet. It also has a water flow rate of 7 gallons per minute, removing 97% of chlorine in the process to make your skin and hair more vibrant. As we noted in the above Aquasana SimplySoft, you will need to replace the SimplySoft polyphosphate material once every 5 year. The entire unit is only is only guaranteed for 5 years, but that’s mainly due to hard well water wearing more on the Rhino filter.

The Aquasana Rhino 6-Stage 600,000 Gallon Well Water Filtration System with SimplySoft with UV Filter itself is available at a relatively low price. This is one of our top picks for its high filtering power complementing its sure polyphosphate technology. Multiple components make it easy to replace what you need to when you need to.

Using Electro-Magnetic Waves

These 3 models use a powered control box to send electro-magnetic waves through your pipes, suspending hard water mineral grains in the flow of the water.

The hard water mineral grains become suspended in the water, reducing their ability to bond to pipes, water supply tubes, appliance basins, clothes, and humans. The grains remain suspended until they sit in water for a prolonged amount of time. Otherwise, they quickly exit your home through the drainage system. Because it is not an in-line system, the Eddy Water Descaler does not affect your home’s water flow rate. It does not need to have polyphosphates replenished or filters changed.

The unit itself comes with a lifetime guarantee. You can purchase the Eddy Water Descaler at a low price. Use it alone if you have generally soft water or attach it to your hot and cold water supply lines as the last step in controlling hard water.

Over time, the electro-magnetism will loosen mineral deposits already in your pipes, improving the longevity of your plumbing and increasing your water pressure. The Eddy Water Descaler power box runs continuously, but its power consumption is minimal. The low cost of the unit, its ease of installation, its effectiveness, and lifetime warranty make this our top choice.

The electro-magnetic wave passes through the pipes, suspending mineral grains in the water. Like the Eddy Water Descaler, you’ll want to give the Clearwave a few weeks to clear your pipes of hard water deposits. After the previous deposits flush out, you should see much clearer water with less mineral staining. The Clearwave draws power continuously but is not enough to notice more than a small increase in your energy bill. It is effective in softening water, but don’t expect it to solve all of your problems if you have more than slightly hard water. It’s used as the final step in a complete water softening system.

Unlike the Eddy Water Descaler, the Clearwave does not come with a lifetime warranty. Field Controls, the manufacturer of the Clearwave warrants it for 18 months. We expect to last much longer than that though and an 18 month warranty provides sufficient time to return a defective product.

If you’re using a polyphosphate filter or full filter system, they’ll have less buildup in them and require less frequent cleaning and maintenance. You’ll also save your main supply line from developing as many mineral deposits inside. This would place the Hard Water Genie at the supply line, then a simple or full filter polyphosphate softener, followed by an Eddy Water Descaler or Clearwave coil around the hot and cold supply lines. Such a 3-step combination should virtually eliminate all hard water effects in even a very hard water home.

The Hard Water Genie by itself is certainly effective, possibly even reducing hard water stains by half in a home with hard water and better in a home with city water. It’s easy to install and only requires a minimum amount of power. You can purchase the Hard Water Genie Salt Free Treatment Conditioner, Water Softener, and Descaler System at a very low price. Like the Eddy Water Descaler, it comes with a lifetime warranty and will reduce mineral buildup in your pipes over the first few weeks of operation.

Using Magnets

Magnetic water softeners are the easiest to install and never require maintenance.

Like an electro-magnetic water softener, the magnetized mineral grains will also pull particles away from the walls of your pipes, fittings, and fixtures, restoring the overall health of your home’s plumbing system. You’ll experience fewer clogs, less buildup around fittings, and better water flow. The Magnetic Water Technology Two-Unit Combo is easy to install and doesn’t limit the water flow rate of your home’s plumbing. It comes with an unnecessary 10-year warranty.

We say the warranty is unnecessary because you’ll never have a problem with a magnetic product. Test the magnets when you receive them. If they’re good, you’ll never have a reason to return them. The price, simplicity, and effectiveness of Magnetic Water Technology Two-Unit Combo make it one of our top choices. If you have very hard water, don’t rely on a magnetic type alone.

You’ll never need to check on them or replace the magnets. They’re completely maintenance-free. They’re also very small, measuring only 3 inches in length. If you’re in a home where you can’t change the plumbing or install an in-line unit, you can always install the Powermag. Take it with you when you leave and enjoy softer water while you’re there. If you can’t get to the main hot and cold supply lines, you can also install a Powermag under your sink and on each appliance water supply line. They’re that versatile. They’re also incredibly inexpensive.

The Powermag comes with the standard 10-year warranty that you’ll never need to use. Simply check the strength of the magnets when you receive them and then don’t worry about them ever again. For price, versatility, no-maintenance needs, and effectiveness in small applications, the Powermag is one of our top choices for the top salt free systems.

Using Filters and Polyphosphates

These simple in-line water softeners do not remove hard water particles but coat them in harmless polyphosphates to let them slip through your plumbing and down the drain.

You will need to change the filter after every 40,000 gallons of water. Of course, you’re probably not going to keep an accurate count of how many gallons you use, so you’ll have to estimate when it’s time to change it.

A person uses an average of 80 gallons of water per day. Multiply 80 by the number of people living in your home. A four-person family, for example, uses 320 gallons of water per day. Dividing the 40,000 gallon life expectancy of the filter by 320 tells us that our four-person family should change their filter every 125 days or approximately once every four months.

You might be able to change the filter less frequently, depending on the condition of your water. As a bonus, the filter also renews your supply of polyphosphates, so you won’t need to be polyphosphate beads separately. As with most salt-free units, the Aquios FS-220 is used in homes with softer water or as one component in a larger water softening system.

The low price of the Aquios FS-220 for a polyphosphate and filter combo makes it one of our picks. It comes with a 20-year warranty on the filter housing and head.

We also like its small size. It weighs 4 pounds and measures 9 inches by 10 inches in height and diameter. You attach it to the wall as in-line unit, so it doesn’t even need to take up any floor space.

You will need to do a little maintenance on the Hard Water Poly Softener. First, you’ll need to refill it with polyphosphates once every 6-12 months. The refill kits cost less, comparable to what you would pay for salt in that amount of time.

You’ll also need to rinse the filter and clean the core once a year. You can rinse the filter in a wash basin and flush the core with vinegar to remove any mineral deposits inside. Just remember to turn off your water supply valve and empty the line before you open the Hard Water Bullet Poly.

Its fast flow rate, water softening effectiveness, small size, and low price make this our top pick for well water.

When you open the hot water valve, water flows through the SimplySoft unit, filtering the water and coating the hard water minerals in polyphosphate. It says that it’s a 2-year model, but you can use it for much longer than that. Simply purchase the replacement filter to renew its cleanliness and polyphosphate material.

Note that using the Aquasana THD-AS20 SimplySoft 2-Year 20-Inch Salt-Free as a whole-home option will cause the filter to need changing more often. You could alternatively install one into your hot water supply line and one into your cold line to achieve the same effect with less frequent filter changes.

Its versatility, simplicity, low price, and effectiveness make the Aquasana THD-AS20 SimplySoft 2-Year 20-Inch Salt-Free unit a good pick.

Final Verdict

Assuming that you need a full filtering system and that you can make plumbing changes, our recommendation for the best salt free water softener for your money is the SpringWell Water Futuresoft Softener. It’s effective for both city and well water homes, requires very little maintenance, and does not use electricity.

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