What We Know About NBC Select's Filtered Showerhead Testing

NBC Select has published an updated guide to filtered showerheads, reporting that its reviewers tested devices from brands including Jolie, Canopy, Act+Acre and Afina over a two-year span to evaluate effects on hair, skin and water quality, according to NBC Select. The guide, last updated Oct. 10, 2026, and bylined by reporter Zoe Malin, frames filtered showerheads as devices meant to remove chlorine, heavy metals and other minerals before water reaches a person's skin or hair.

What Does The NBC Select Guide Actually Claim

The published guide states that "shower water often has" impurities worth filtering out, and it organizes its findings into sections labeled "Our top picks," "The best filtered shower heads of 2026," "Other filtered shower heads we tested and recommend," a methodology section titled "How I picked the best filtered shower heads," a testing-process section, a frequently-asked-questions block and a section on reviewer credentials, per NBC Select. The guide is presented as a buying recommendation rather than a laboratory study, and NBC Select discloses that it earns a commission on purchases made through its links.

Which Brands Did NBC Select Test

Four brand names recur in reporting tied to this guide: Jolie, Canopy, Act+Acre and Afina. Those four companies make up the pool of filtered showerheads NBC Select says it evaluated for effects on hair and skin over a two-year testing window. The underlying NBC Select page, as scraped for this report, does not list individual model names, prices or which specific units from those four brands made the final "top picks" roster. Readers seeking the specific product rankings should consult the guide directly at NBC Select.

Timeline: How The Testing Guide Took Shape

• Roughly two years before publication: NBC Select says its testing of filtered showerheads from Jolie, Canopy, Act+Acre and Afina began, as described in reporting on the guide's methodology.
• Ongoing: The guide describes an expanding pool of tested units, with reviewer Zoe Malin credited on the byline.
• Oct. 10, 2026: NBC Select's page carries an updated timestamp of 12:32 p.m. ET, marking the version of the guide currently live.
• Current: The guide remains organized around top picks, additional recommended units, a stated testing methodology and a reviewer-credentials section, according to NBC Select.

Why Do The Showerhead Counts Differ

Two descriptions of the same testing effort do not match. One rendering of the guide's headline says reviewers have tested 10 filtered showerheads "so far." A separate summary of the same project states that eight filtered showerheads were tested over two years. Both figures are tied to the same NBC Select guide, and the source material reviewed for this report does not reconcile the discrepancy. HTT News is noting the conflict rather than selecting one number, consistent with the two descriptions circulating around the same NBC Select page at nbcnews.com/select.

What Filtered Showerheads Are Supposed To Do

According to the NBC Select guide, filtered showerheads work by purifying water before it reaches a person's body, targeting chlorine, heavy metals and other minerals commonly present in tap water. The guide does not, in the material reviewed here, specify which contaminants were measured in testing, what reduction percentages were recorded, or what methodology was used to assess hair or skin outcomes. Those specifics live inside the full guide rather than in the summary text available for this report.

What To Watch Next

• Whether NBC Select revises its own count of tested units to resolve the eight-versus-ten discrepancy in future updates to the guide.
• Whether the four named brands — Jolie, Canopy, Act+Acre and Afina — publish their own water-testing data to support marketing claims about chlorine and heavy-metal removal.
• Whether NBC Select adds independent laboratory verification to its testing methodology section, beyond the subjective hair-and-skin assessments described in the current guide.
• Whether additional outlets attempt to replicate the two-year testing timeline NBC Select describes for its filtered showerhead evaluations.

Readers who want the specific product rankings, pricing and the reviewer's full methodology should go directly to the source guide at NBC Select, which is updated periodically and carries NBC's standard affiliate-commission disclosure.