The Popular Brand Behind Costco's Kirkland Bottled Water

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There's a lot of chitchat out there about the brands behind some of our favorite Trader Joe's snacks, which makes sense considering that the chain is notoriously tight-lipped about most of its sources. But it's not the only major retailer that likes to keep its items a bit of a mystery. If you're a Costco aficionado, you've likely  tried some of its Kirkland Signature products, which are known to be better than mere knockoffs.

Since Kirkland Signature is a Costco subsidiary, you may assume that the chain produces all of its items, but that's not rarely the case. The parent company often co-brands its offerings (such as Canadian whisky and frozen pizza) with other major companies. So what brand is behind Costco's Kirkland bottled water? To determine this, all you need to do is look at the label.

The source is Niagara Bottling, a California-based company that was founded in 1963. It started out delivering 5-gallon containers to houses and offices but has since become a single-serve private label brand as well — which means that it sells its products to retailers (like Costco) that re-label the bottles before placing them on store shelves.

Niagara Bottling produces a few different types of water: purified drinking water (with and without minerals added), alkaline, spring, and distilled water. Considering that Kirkland Signature's bottles say they have added minerals, we can safely assume that they're the same as Niagara's Purified Drinking Water with Minerals Added.

These additions are for taste only, as they provide no nutritional value. But before the bottles get their dose of minerals, they also undergo a multi-step process to sanitize and filter out impurities. Reviews of Kirkland Signature water are mixed but overall positive. Its taste and affordable price (common to Costco products) are highlights, although some aren't a fan of the flimsy plastic bottles that occasionally leak, which Niagara says it makes in-house.

But if you love this popular bottled water brand, you can find Niagara Bottling products at stores other than Costco. Bottles are also sold at The Home Depot, Kroger, Winn Dixie, Instacart, and Amazon. These options, along with visiting Costco in person, will allow you to purchase smaller packages — but if you want to stock up, you can get a massive 48-case pallet for $439.99 on Costco's website.

As Niagara Bottling is one of the leading private-label beverage companies for brands like Kirkland, Great Value, and Kroger, you'd likely wonder if there are any significant differences between purchasing them at one location versus another. To make it crystal clear, the bottles might not all come directly from the same exact source, as the brand has multiple plants across the United States, but they are all purified through the same means of "state-of-the-art purification, filtration and reverse osmosis technologies" (via Costco). The main difference you'll notice between the different store brands is in value. Next time you head to the grocery store, flip that bottle over and check for the molded Niagara logo at the bottom if you're curious whether you're purchasing Niagara water, as it's likely the case.

Costco sells its Kirkland bottled water in packs of 40 for $3.99 in stores, just as Walmart sells Great Value packs in 40 at a slightly steeper price of $4.92. Kroger's 24-pack of bottled water comes in at $3.59. Niagara also sells direct to Home Depot, but you'll pay a higher price, at $4.98 for a 24-pack. If you want to save yourself the hassle (and you have a Costco membership), use Uber Eats or Instacart to deliver cases of Kirkland water at a similar price as what you would pay at in-person at other grocery stores.