Are Boiling Water Taps Worth It?

Reviewed by the Quel Tap product team. Last updated: August 2026.

Quick answer

For households that use boiling water regularly, often yes. A boiling water tap costs more upfront than a kettle, but it removes the daily wait, reduces the temptation to boil more water than you actually need and, on Quel Tap models, can replace the filter jug as well.

Which? has found that some instant hot water taps can be surprisingly inexpensive to run day to day, although the purchase price means that saving money alone is unlikely to be the main reason to buy one.

The real value tends to lie in convenience, time saved and how often the tap becomes part of your everyday kitchen routine. For a household of one using boiling water only occasionally, that case is harder to make.

The kettle habit, and what replaces it

There’s a familiar rhythm to most kitchens: the kettle clicks on, you wait, and if a second cup follows a few minutes later, you wait again. A filter jug sits in the fridge doing the same slow job for cold water. It’s a routine most people have never questioned before, because there’s never been an obvious alternative.

A boiling water tap changes that rhythm rather than the routine itself. Turn the tap and filtered boiling water is ready without filling and waiting for a kettle. Depending on the model, filtered cold, chilled or sparkling water can be available from the same tap too.

Search “are boiling water taps worth it” and opinions online are genuinely split: some people call it one of the best changes they’ve made to their kitchen, while others decide a kettle has done the job for years and see no reason to change. Both are reasonable positions. What follows is a look at where the cost, convenience and everyday value actually sit. 

What it costs to buy

No version of this pretends a boiling water tap costs the same as a kettle. Across the market, prices run from a few hundred pounds to well over £2,000 for the most elaborate multi-function units. Quel Tap’s range sits across that spectrum:

Prices shown are standard prices, correct as of August 2026. Promotional prices may be available from time to time, so please see the individual product pages for current offers.

What it costs to run

This is where most of the hesitation genuinely sits, and it deserves a clear answer.

Boiling water taps can be surprisingly inexpensive to run, although the exact cost depends on the system, its insulation, your electricity tariff and how much boiling water you use.

Unlike a kettle, a boiling water tap uses a small amount of standby energy to maintain the water stored in its boiler at temperature. It then uses additional energy to reheat the cold water that replaces what you dispense.

Where it can help avoid unnecessary energy use is by allowing you to dispense only the amount of boiling water you actually need. The Energy Saving Trust estimates that avoiding overfilling the kettle can save the average household around £10 a year.

Which? has also found some instant hot water taps to be inexpensive to run day-to-day, but the much higher purchase price means that energy savings alone are unlikely to justify buying one.

The upfront cost is the bigger consideration, and it’s a genuine investment rather than a small one. Its value is better measured over years of daily use: the kettle you no longer have to fill, the minutes you no longer spend waiting, the worktop space you regain and the convenience of having the water you need ready when you need it.

The honest trade-offs

No fair account of this leaves out the practical side, so here it is plainly:

• The upfront cost is real, and for a household that boils the kettle rarely, a kettle may remain the most sensible choice.
• Filters need replacing roughly every six months to protect the boiler and keep the water tasting clean, from £56 per six months on a subscription plan, with the first set included in the tap’s purchase price.
• Keeping the warranty valid matters: Quel Tap includes a 5-year tap warranty and a standard 2-year boiler warranty. An optional extension taking the boiler warranty to five years is also available, subject to the relevant registration and warranty conditions. Filters must be replaced at the required intervals to maintain warranty validity.
• Installation is worth planning for if you’d rather not do it yourself, though many customers fit their own Quel Tap using our helpful guidance videos.

None of this changes the overall case. It simply means going in with a clear idea of what you’re buying, rather than a brochure’s version of it.

Filtration, across every model

It’s worth clearing up one point that’s easy to misunderstand: filtration isn’t reserved for the higher-priced models.

Every Quel Tap provides filtered-water functions while still performing the normal everyday job of a kitchen tap with standard hot and cold water.

The additional filtered-water supply is separate. On a 4-in-1 model, you have filtered boiling and filtered cold water, alongside normal hot and cold.

The 5-in-1 Digital Fizz provides filtered boiling, filtered chilled and chilled sparkling water, alongside normal hot and cold.

The 6-in-1 Ultimo adds filtered cold water as an additional sixth function.

What changes between the models, therefore, isn’t whether filtration happens, but which filtered-water functions are available.

More than a cup of tea

It’s easy to think of a boiling water tap simply as a quicker way to make tea or coffee, but its usefulness goes much further.

Instant boiling water can save time throughout the day when cooking, whether you’re filling a pan for pasta or vegetables, preparing stock, making gravy or sauces, or following a recipe that starts with boiling water.

Instead of filling the kettle or waiting for a pan of cold water to come up to temperature, you can start with boiling water straight from the tap.

The filtered cold function has its own everyday role too, providing drinking water for a glass, reusable bottle, jug, cold drink or recipe without waiting for a filter jug in the fridge.

And despite all these additional functions, a boiling water tap still does the normal everyday jobs of a kitchen tap. Standard hot and cold water remain available for washing hands, rinsing food, cleaning and washing dishes.

In other words, it isn’t another appliance sitting alongside your kitchen tap; it replaces the conventional kitchen tap entirely while adding additional water functions.

On Quel Tap’s 5-in-1 and 6-in-1 models, chilled and sparkling water extend that versatility even further, potentially reducing the need to keep separate bottles of still or sparkling water at home.

The value isn’t simply that one cup of tea is made faster. It’s that lots of small kitchen tasks become quicker and more convenient throughout the day.

Less bottled water, less plastic waste

Having filtered drinking water readily available from the tap can also help reduce a household’s reliance on bottled water.

Water UK notes that around 7.7 billion plastic bottles are bought across the UK each year, a figure that shows how quickly everyday habits can add up.

Even a small change can become significant over a year. If someone who normally buys one single-use bottle of water each day instead fills a reusable bottle with filtered tap water, that’s potentially around 365 fewer bottles purchased over the course of a year.

For households that regularly buy bottled still water, having filtered water immediately available can make that habit easier to change.

On Quel Tap’s 5-in-1 and 6-in-1 models, the same principle can extend to bottled sparkling water as well.

The precise environmental impact will naturally vary between households and depends on what they currently buy and how the tap is used. However, reducing reliance on single-use bottled water also means potentially reducing the amount of plastic packaging that needs to be manufactured, transported, recycled or disposed of.

Which tap actually fits your household

For a typical family kitchen, the Quel Ultra is the natural starting point. It’s a solid-brass 4-in-1 tap with a pull-out spray, starting at the standard price of £624.99, and covering everything most households actually use.

For the same core promise at the most accessible point in the range, the Quel Classic delivers instant boiling and filtered water starting at the standard price of £499.99, without cutting corners on filtration or warranty.

And for anyone ready to retire the kettle, filter jug and separate sparkling water maker at the same time, the Quel Ultimo brings filtered boiling, filtered cold, chilled and sparkling water together with standard hot and cold from one tap, with a standard starting price of £1,369.99.

Promotional prices may be lower from time to time, so it is always worth checking the current product page before purchasing.

At this level, the decision becomes less about comparing the price with a kettle alone and more about how many separate water functions and appliances you want one tap to replace.

The everyday result

Weigh the cost and convenience side by side, and the case is strongest for households that use boiling water regularly, cook frequently or simply want to free their worktop from a kettle and filter jug.

The value isn’t only in the pence per litre. It’s also in the small amounts of time saved repeatedly throughout the day, the convenience of having filtered drinking water immediately available, fewer separate appliances occupying the kitchen and, for households that currently buy bottled water, the potential to reduce the number of single-use bottles coming into the home.

For a household of one using boiling water only occasionally, the sums may be less compelling, and that’s worth explaining plainly rather than glossing over.

For everyone else, the question is often less about whether a kettle can still boil water, of course it can, and more about whether having boiling, filtered and potentially chilled or sparkling water available instantly from one tap makes everyday life in the kitchen easier.

Water, beautifully controlled.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Are boiling water taps cheaper to run than a kettle?

It depends on the particular boiling water tap, kettle and how each is used. A boiling water tap uses some standby electricity to keep the water in its tank hot, while a kettle draws power only when it is switched on. However, a boiling water tap allows you to dispense only the amount you actually need, avoiding the common habit of overfilling a kettle. The Energy Saving Trust estimates that avoiding unnecessary kettle overfilling can save the average household around £10 a year. Some boiling water taps have been found by Which? to be inexpensive to run, but their higher purchase price and ongoing filter costs mean that saving money alone is unlikely to be the main reason to buy one.

Is a boiling water tap worth it for one or two people?

It can be a harder case to make for very light or occasional use. If you only boil water once or twice a day, a kettle may remain the more economical choice. For one- or two-person households that cook regularly, drink several hot drinks or value filtered water and convenience, however, the decision may still make sense for reasons beyond electricity cost alone.

Do all Quel Tap models filter the water?

Yes. Filtration is standard across Quel Tap’s filtered-water functions. 4-in-1 models provide filtered boiling and filtered cold water alongside normal hot and cold. The 5-in-1 Digital Fizz provides filtered boiling, filtered chilled and chilled sparkling water alongside normal hot and cold. The 6-in-1 Ultimo also includes filtered cold water. What differs between the models is therefore which filtered-water functions are available, rather than whether filtration takes place.

How long does installation take?

Most people fit their own Quel Tap in around 1 to 2 hours, provided there’s a nearby socket and standard under-sink access.

What does the warranty cover?

Every Quel Tap includes a 5-year warranty on the tap and a standard 2-year warranty on the boiler. An optional extension taking the boiler warranty to five years is also available, subject to the applicable registration and warranty conditions. Regular filter replacement is required to maintain warranty validity.

How much do replacement filters cost?

Replacement filters are priced from £56 every six months on a subscription plan, with your first filter set included in the price of the tap.