There are two main types of Hydro Flask bottles, the Standard Mouth and the Wide Mouth. How do you know which kind you should get and what is the differences between these two types of bottles?
Wide Mouth bottles are more popular, have more lid options and come in more sizes. Standard Mouth bottles have less lid options and come in limited sizes but they can hold ice longer.
Below you can see a comparison between the two types of Hydro Flask bottles as well as an in-depth discussion as to what the differences are and which type I think you should get.
Standard Mouth
Mouth Diameter: 1.91″
Bottle Diameter: 2.89″
Sizes: 18oz, 21oz, 24oz
Lid Options: Flex Cap, Sports Cap
Wide Mouth
Mouth Diameter: 2.28″
Bottle Diameter: 2.91″
Sizes: 12oz, 16oz, 20oz, 32oz, 64oz
Lid Options: Flex Cap, Straw Cap, Flex Sip Cap, Hydro Flip
Width Of The Mouth
This is obviously one of the major differences between the two types of bottles.
The Standard mouth has a smaller mouth opening at just 1.91 inches (4.85cm) in diameter compared to the Wide mouth which has an opening that is 2.28 inches (5.79cm) in diameter.
While on paper this doesn't sound like a lot in reality what it means is that when drinking from the wide mouth the tip of your nose fits just inside the opening of the bottle or sometimes the open touches the middle of the tip of your nose.
When drinking from the Standard mouth the rim of the bottle touches the top of your moustache area (where your nose begins) or sometimes it touches about half way up your nostrils.
Both are fairly comfortable to drink from and I don't notice a major difference in ease of drinking from either bottle.
Fitting Ice In The Lids
Both lids are large enough to easily fit ice in, even larger cubes of ice.
At my work we have large star shape cubes of ice and they still easily fit in my Standard Mouth Hydro Flask.
So unless your cubes of ice are HUGE both types of Hydro Flask will be fine for easily adding ice to your bottle.
Different Lid Options
This is the major difference between the two bottles and will likely be the deciding factor into which bottle you'll get.
The Wide Mouth has more lid options and most importantly features the popular Straw Lid option as well as the Flex Sip Lid which is best for coffee.
The Standard Mouth only has the regular Flex Cap lip as well as a Sports Cap lid which I'm not a huge fan of.
Click here to see the full list of Hydro Flask lid options
The handle on the Flex Cap lid is wider on the Wide Mouth allowing you to fit more fingers inside and makes carrying easier. You can fit 4 fingers easily in the Wide Mouth Flex Cap while you can only fit 2-3 fingers in the Standard Mouth Flex Cap
There are also more after market lid options available for the wide mouth, whereas the Standard Mouth has very few different lid options.
Width Of The Bottle
Strangely the width of the bottle is a tiny bit different with the Standard mouth being 2.87 inches (7.23cm) in diameter while the Wide mouth is a bit larger at 2.91 (7.39cm) in diameter.
This difference is tiny and you won't notice it in your hand, but it can affect what Hydro Flask bottles will fit in your cup holder.
Below you can see a cup holder in my van that JUST fit the Standard Mouth but wouldn't fit the Wide mouth.
This likely won't be a deal breaker for most people but it is a difference to be aware of.
Lip Differences
Originally wide mouth bottles had a different lip design to the standard mouth bottles.
Standard mouth bottles have a tall flat metal lip with the thread for the lid being on the inside of the bottle. It's designed in such a way that you don't feel the thread on your lips at all.
The Wide mouth bottles on the other hand have a curved stainless steel “gutter” and then the thread above that and on the outside of the bottle. This means your lips touch the thread when drinking.
It isn't a huge difference but it means that the standard bottles feel nicer on your lips to drink from if you're drinking directly from the bottle.
Hydro Flask are currently redesigning the lip of the Wide Mouth to have the same wide stainless steel band as the Standard Mouth, however it will then still have the thread above it.
Different Size Options
There are different size options depending on which type of Hydro Flask you decide to purchase.
The Standard Mouth comes in the following size options:
18 oz Standard:
21 oz Standard:
24 oz Standard:
25 oz Wine:
The Wide Mouth comes in the following size options
12 oz Kids:
12 oz Coffee:
16 oz Coffee:
20 oz Coffee:
20 oz Wide:
32 oz Wide:
40 oz Wide:
64 oz Wide:
Wide Mouth Is Easier To Clean
I personally find the Wide Mouth Hydro Flasks much easier to clean than the Standard Mouth.
While the lid still isn't wide enough to fit your hand in it does fit in a lot more cleaning brushes and bottle brushes and gives you more room to move in the bottle so you can give it a propper scrub.
You can also see inside more easily to make sure it's clean and the wide mouths don't tend to be as tall so they are easier to reach and clean the bottom.
Click here to learn how to clean a Hydro Flask bottle properly
They are also easier to dry out so you can avoid bad smells and mold.
Standard Mouth Holds Ice Slightly Longer
One benefit the Standard Mouth does have is that it holds ice longer than a Wide Mouth Hydro Flask.
This is because the opening is the main place heat escapes or gets into your bottle. The wider opening of the Wide Mouth means more heat can get in melting your ice, or get out cooling your warm drink.
Also the way the thread is designed the Standard Mouth lids tend to be thick and insulated whereas the wide mouth lids are much thinner and not insulated at all.
Standard vs Wide Mouth Hydro Flask: Which Should You Get?
Both have their pros and cons but in most cases I would advise people to get a Standard Mouth Hydro Flask.
There are more and better size options available and there are more and better lids to choose from. But some people love and prefer the Standard Mouth Hydro Flasks and these are also great bottles.
Whatever you decide is up to you. Both are great options:
