The Cloud RO is a battery-powered, app-connected under-sink reverse osmosis system with eight filtration stages, remineralisation, a 2.8-gallon tank and a rated 80 gallons per day. The Spruce named it its best smart system after a year of use, citing easy setup, useful app monitoring and alerts, and enough output for a large household; Good Housekeeping found it compact, quiet and noticeably better tasting than NYC tap water. Both flag the cost: Good Housekeeping puts the starting price at about $600 with $200 replacement filters, and The Spruce notes a 1:1 waste ratio. It suits households that want RO water with real-time monitoring; buyers on a budget or short of cabinet space should look elsewhere.
Full review
Better-tasting water, tracked in an app
The Spruce's tester used the Cloud RO for a year with a family of three, loved the taste and drank more water as a result, and still had not needed to change the filters. The app shows local water issues, tap and filtered water quality, and the minerals added back during remineralisation, and it sends an alert when filters are due. Good Housekeeping's reviewer, who drank Cloud-filtered water for several weeks in a New York apartment, said it tasted far better than her tap water and liked checking filter and battery status in the app, which is not required for daily use.
Easy to fit, though it still takes space
Both publications found installation straightforward. The Spruce praised the well-labelled lines and fittings, and Good Housekeeping's installer fitted the system in under 30 minutes after drilling a faucet hole through a marble counter. Because it runs on a battery, no under-sink outlet is needed. Good Housekeeping found the two-unit design compact enough to leave room for cleaning supplies, and long cords let the units be arranged to suit the cabinet. The Spruce, however, says the filter and tank took up half its under-sink space, bulkier than its tankless pick, though the 2.8-gallon tank means large bottles can be filled back to back.
Premium price and running costs
The main trade-off is cost. Good Housekeeping puts the starting price at about $600, notes that other RO systems cost a few hundred dollars less, and calls the $200 replacement filters pricier than average, although the brand expects about one filter change a year for a family of four. The Spruce adds that its 1:1 waste ratio is more wasteful than its top iSpring pick, that flow sputters slightly on first use each day, and that the included faucet feels a little flimsy, though the rest of the system felt durable. Good Housekeeping found flow slower than an unfiltered tap but sufficient for glasses, bottles and kettles.
Strengths
- +The Spruce found setup easy, with well-labelled lines and fittings
- +App shows tap and filtered water quality and sends filter-change alerts
- +Battery powered, so no outlet is needed under the sink
- +2.8-gallon tank lets large bottles be filled back to back
- +Good Housekeeping found the water tasted noticeably better than NYC tap water
Watch-outs
- −Costs more than many RO systems, and replacement filters cost about $200
- −1:1 waste ratio, more wasteful than The Spruce's top iSpring pick
- −Included faucet feels a little flimsy, and flow sputters on first use each day
How it compares
Unlike the Waterdrop G3P800 Tankless Reverse Osmosis System, the Cloud RO stores water in a 2.8-gallon tank and runs on a battery rather than mains power. Like the APEC Water ROES-PH75 Essence Alkaline system it adds minerals back after RO filtration, but it is priced from about $600 and adds app monitoring; the Aquasana Claryum AQ-5300+ is a non-RO filter for buyers who want to avoid a tank altogether.
Rating sources
Our 4.4 score is the average of these published ratings. Ratings marked * were derived from the reviewer’s written analysis or video transcript — the publisher didn’t print an explicit numeric score, so we inferred one from their own words. Click through to verify. More about methodology.
