I've had this pitcher for about a year now. I use it all the time and the filters seem to last a good long while. I only change them after the complimentary TDS reader gives a reading of 50 or so. Toward the end of the filter's life there is sometimes a bit of a strange taste coming from the water (different from just drinking tap water), but that's easily fixed by replacing the filter. I definitely think this is a better alternative to drinking bottled water, which produces far too much waste.