Over the years, I've used just about every type of water bottle on the market - from your standard pull-top sports bottle to twist-lock insulated bottles. They all do their job of helping me hydrate as well as can be expected. Then a company came along and took the standard squeeze bottle, and made it better!

I first heard of Bivo and their revolutionary design of the classic bicycle water bottle at some point in late 2023 or early 2024. However, up here, North of the border, it was taking a little longer to get the traction that companies tend to get down South...aka...in the USA. In early 2025 a friend put me in touch with the marketing team at Bivo and I was stoked that they agreed to send a few bottles for my wife and I to test out on some adventures, as well as during out summer bicycle adventure in Europe. Here are my thoughts and experiences over 8 months of use in all weather conditions.

What is Bivo?

Bivo is a company based in Richmond, Vermont that was founded in 2020 by endurance athletes and product designers Carina Hamel and Robby Ringer. The idea began during a cross-country ski outing in 2018 when they realized they were drinking from plastic bottles while exercising, even though they avoided plastic in other parts of their lives. That moment sparked a mission to redesign the cycling water bottle. Their goal was to create a stainless-steel bottle that could match the flow rate of traditional plastic sports bottles without relying on plastic materials or the need to squeeze.

At the heart of Bivo's philosophy is a commitment to sustainability, performance, and thoughtful design. The company is focused on reducing single-use plastic and building a community around active lifestyles. Their motto, "sweat less plastic," reflects their desire to create a broader vision to change how people hydrate while staying true to their environmental values.

First Impressions

When my Bivo bottle package arrived, it was immediately clear that environmental stewardship and sustainability are at the heart of what Bivo stands for. The bottles were packaged in a brown box with printed Bivo logos and information on how to use the bottle. This is great, as it reduces plastic packaging in favour of recyclable materials. And to be honest, it doesn't stop there. The bottles inside the box are wrapped in a thin paper, there is a small cardboard seal over the nozzle to indicate it's been packaged and inside the bottle is the cleaning tube, also wrapped in a little cardboard package. Everything is well though-out, functional, and the bottles arrived in perfect condition. No sooner did I get the bottle out of the box and take out the cleaning kit, before rushing to the sink to see if the water really would flow as well as advertised. And flow it did! Almost like shotgunning a beer way back in my younger days.

Design and Construction

The Bivo water bottle has left a mark on the cycling world, particularly bikepackers, as we are not as worried about minimal extra weight as cyclists in some other disciplines. The Bivo bottle is crafted from lightweight stainless steel, which completely eliminates the plastic taste and mold issues that are often found in traditional sports bottles. The bottles are designed to fit in a standard bottle cage and are available in multiple sizes and colours, ranging from 17oz to 25oz, depending on whether the bottle is single-walled or double-walled. As can be well expected, Bivo bottles do weigh slightly more than your typical plastic water bottles. The 21oz Bivo One has a dry weight of 158g, the 25oz Duo weighs 175g and the 21oz insulated Bivo Trio weighs 270g. In comparison, a 21oz Camelback insulated water bottle weighs only 105g.

What makes Bivo truly unique is their gravity-flow system, which was developed in collaboration with a former NASA engineer. Instead of requiring a squeeze to get water out, simple tilting the bottle delivers a steady stream of water. This allows cyclists to hydrate more easily during workouts without having to break their rhythm. Easy to clean, this bottle in designed for long-term use.

Product in Use

My two double-walled Bivo bottles arrived in mid-February, a week before I was supposed to attempt the 200km Wendigo Fatbike Ultra. The rule of thumb for races is that you should never arrive with gear that hasn't been tested. So, what did I do? I took my two bottles, threw them into my feed bags (slightly more insulation) and took off on a crazy, fatbike race, in some of the worst conditions in race history. Throughout the 18 hours that I was out on the course, the bottles worked flawlessly. They never froze and were easy to drink from, providing a sense of reliability that I haven't had in the past when using water bottles in winter.

In the months since, I always have my Bivo bottles with me on my adventures, whether I'm commuting to work on my e-bike, riding the Canadian Shield Bikepacking Route or going on an international trip to Europe or Japan. Unlike with plastic bottles, Bivo bottles don't get that scummy residue that seems to form in plastic bottles, never get smelly and are super easy to clean. Over the past few years, I have mostly been using twist-lock insulated water bottles, however, I find that they easily get mildew growing under the cap and need to be put in the dish washer regularly to sanitize them. This hasn't yet been an issue with the Bivo bottle, and I'm doubtful it ever will be.

Now. The one complaint that I've heard from just about everyone is that the bottle is easily scratched by being inserted and removed from bottle cages. Maybe this is something we notice, because the bottles are so striking in comparison to the standard plastic bottles most people use. But scratches and scuff marks are a reality for water bottles. We probably never really notice our plastic bottles getting beat-up, because the standard water bottle is just a "low-cost thing", whereas the Bivo bottle feels much more like a work of art.

I remember the first time I inserted the bottle into my bottle cage, and how sad I got when I saw it get scuffed. Then I remembered what Bivo likes to say, "Every scratch, dent, scuff, fall, tells as a story." And it does. My bottles have been dropped, kicked, crashed and rolled into a ditch. And I'll tell you what. I much prefer to have my Bivo bottle scratched to tell a story, then my bike's frame. So, as long as that's the case, I'm not too worried. One other small area of concern I recently noticed is that my wife's bottles were a little loose in her plastic Blackburn Clutch Side-Entry bottle cages. Not enough that I think they would ever fall out, but loose enough that it makes me wonder. This is likely specific to the bottle cage, as it hasn't been an issue with any other cages we've used.

There are a couple more really important considerations that people should take into account when using a Bivo bottles. First, is that if you happen to drop the bottle while the valve is open, you can very easily lose a bunch of water, which can be especially critical when out on a big ride with little to no resupply. Secondly, it's very easy to drink too much water and not save enough for later. This has happened to me on several occasions, where I've been forced to detour somewhere I could fill up, or necessitated an early stop at a stream to filter some water. Obviously, drinking too much water is never a bad thing, but is definitely something that should be kept in mind, depending on your own personal situation.

We can't forget to mention that Bivo bottles are significantly more expensive that your standard plastic bottle. This should be quite obvious considering Bivo uses premium materials such as stainless steel and high-quality silicone. Ranging in price from $44 to $54 USD, they certainly aren't cheap, however, if they are the last two bottles you need to buy, I think they'll pay for themselves in the end.

Finally, I've also been fortunate, in that after sending me the original bottles, Bivo sponsored the 3rd edition of the Canadian Shield Bikepacking Summit, incorporating the Canadian Shield Bikepacking logo into some beautiful matte black bottles. Not only did they donate a bunch of bottles to event participants, but they also took the lead in hosting the inaugural Quench'd Campfire Stories on the first night of the event, providing a platform for participants to share stories of their adventures.

Final Thoughts

Having now used the bottles on a near continuous basis for the past 8 months, I'm still loving how well they work. Other than weight-conscious riders that are counting every gram, I have yet to meet someone that doesn't like these bottles. While they are prone to scratches, unless you get the raw stainless-steel bottle, the pros definitely outshine the cons. The high rate of flow, clean taste, ease of cleaning, and the fact that water stays cold for a surprising amount of time, all make these bottles a pretty easy choice. Not only that, but they also look damn good on the bike. And you know what the best part is? No squeeze required!