The Ingenious European Costco Water Bottle Design We Wish We Had In The US

Contrary to what you might think, Costco locations worldwide may often offer customers a lineup of different items. One random difference between American and European Costco? The design of the Kirkland water bottles. While this might seem like a small difference at first mention, be prepared to feel some jealousy for European Costco members. 

The difference in the water bottle design for these two places might be small, but it makes all the difference. While we are all used to water bottles with twist-off caps in America, European Costco members get to enjoy water bottles that have flip caps. This ingenious design prevents the cap from getting lost and keeps the entire bottle intact, so you don't have to keep track of it all the time. Just flip and sip, easy as that. Is it too much to book a plane ticket overseas to see the bottle in person? Probably. But it might be better than simmering in mild annoyance over here.

If you're angry at the current lack of flip-top bottle caps in America, join the club. There are a lot of Costco members from all over the globe weighing in on this disparity. Here's what the people have to say.

One Reddit thread was blowing up with comments in response to this water bottle discovery. A European Costco member claimed that all the water bottles in Europe are like this to prevent people from littering. It's actually part of a law the European Union has in place to encourage recycling and isn't exclusive to Costco's Kirkland brand water bottles. Another user suggested that it wouldn't be so hard to bring the switch to the States and wondered if that would ever become a reality, even if we don't have those same regulations. 

Laws aside, many members seemed eager to try these water bottles because it would prevent them from losing the cap, and overall most people agreed that the flip cap is the way to go. Here's where Costco members in Europe can get one.

While booking a flight to grab one of these water bottles is a bit extreme, for Costco members in Europe, there are a few different places where this offering might be available. And since Costco memberships work worldwide, there's no harm in making an extra stop.

Costco is not as popular in Europe as it is in America, but it does exist. The first place you might want to check for these flip-top water bottles is Iceland, which is where an American Reddit user made the discovery in the first place. There are also a few other Costcos in places like Sweden, France, Scotland, and England, too. While these locations are few and far between, Costco has plans to expand widely into Europe in the years to come.

Now if you're not near a Costco while overseas, it seems like the flip top is slowly becoming the norm for most water bottles in Europe anyway, so check anywhere. As for what will happen to water bottles sold out of the United States, we'll just have to wait and see if flip tops take on.