How to Make a Water Bottle Holder with Paracord the Easy Way
How Do You Make a Water Bottle Holder With Paracord?
If you are carrying a water bottle and don’t have anywhere to store it, you can make a simple shoulder sling with about a metre of paracord. This method uses very little cord, takes only a few minutes and works brilliantly on bottles with a pronounced lip underneath the cap.
There is more than one way to make a water bottle holder with paracord. You can weave an elaborate jug sling around the entire bottle, or you can use a much simpler loop around the neck and achieve almost the same thing with a fraction of the cord.
This guide is specifically about the simple version. No complicated weaving, no pile of cordage and no need to spend half an hour learning decorative knots.
I first discovered this trick at a music festival when I was carrying a big bottle of water around in my hand all day. I saw somebody else doing the same thing, except they were wearing their water bottle over their shoulder like a handbag.
As soon as I got back to my tent, I cut a length of cordage from my tent guy line and made my first bottle holder. I’ve remembered the trick ever since because it is ridiculously simple and genuinely useful.
What Do You Need to Make a Paracord Water Bottle Holder?
You only need two things:
- About 1 metre / 3-4 feet of paracord or similar cordage
- A bottle with a secure neck or retaining lip
That’s it.
You can make much more elaborate paracord bottle slings using several strands woven into a net around the bottle. They look great and can hold awkward bottle shapes, but for a normal plastic bottle they’re usually overkill.
This version uses less cord, weighs almost nothing and can be untied when you need the paracord for something else.
3-Step Guide to Making a Water Bottle Holder From Paracord
There is no complicated braiding involved. You just need to make a secure loop around the bottle neck and a larger loop for your shoulder.
Step 1: Cut the Paracord to Length
Start with around 3-4 feet of paracord. If you want the bottle to hang lower at your hip, use more; if you want it sitting high against your body, use less.
The easiest way to estimate the length is to run the cord from the bottle, over your shoulder and back down to the bottle before cutting it.
If you cut actual paracord, the outer sheath can fray at the ends. Carefully melting the cut ends with a flame can seal them, but only do this somewhere safe and don’t touch the molten nylon until it has completely cooled.
Step 2: Tie the Cord Around the Bottle Neck
Look at the neck of the bottle just underneath the cap. Many plastic drinks bottles have a pronounced ring or lip that was originally used during the manufacturing and capping process.
Wrap the cord around the neck below that lip and tie it securely. The lip is important because it prevents the loop from simply sliding up and over the cap.
A basic secure knot can work perfectly well. You don’t need to turn this into a knot-tying exam.
Before putting the bottle over your shoulder, lift it by the cord and give it a few firm shakes over the ground. If the loop starts creeping upwards, use a different bottle or a more secure sling method.
Step 3: Join the Ends to Make a Shoulder Loop
Once the bottle end is secure, bring the two loose ends together at the length you want for the shoulder strap.
Tie them together using a reliable joining knot. A double overhand knot is simple and plenty strong enough for carrying an ordinary water bottle.
Trim or tidy the excess cord and you’ve got a basic water bottle sling.
The bottle should now hang around hip level and leave both hands free.
Which Bottles Does This Method Work With?
This simple neck-loop method works best on bottles with a pronounced ridge directly underneath the cap. Many disposable plastic water bottles have exactly that shape.
It isn’t suitable for every bottle. A smooth-necked bottle, wide-mouth flask or bottle with a tapered neck may allow the cord to slip off.
For those, either use the bottle’s existing carry loop or make a proper jug sling that supports more of the bottle rather than relying on one small ridge.
How to Make a Jug Sling Knot
If you have a wide-rimmed bushcraft water bottle or a bottle without a useful retaining lip, a jug sling is a better option.
A jug sling knot wraps around the neck and body more securely and has been used for carrying bottles, jugs and containers for generations.
It takes a little more practice than the simple method above, but it is a useful bushcraft knot to know.
Can You Use Rope Instead of Paracord?
Absolutely. You can use almost any reasonably strong cord or rope, but thinner cord works better for the simple bottle-neck method.
Very thick rope may not sit securely underneath the small lip on a plastic bottle and can roll or slip upwards. If chunky rope is all you’ve got, I would use it to make a proper jug sling instead.
You also don’t need military-spec paracord for this. An ordinary one-litre bottle only weighs around a kilogram when full, so most decent utility cord is more than strong enough.
Can You Add a Carabiner Instead of a Shoulder Strap?
Yes. Instead of making a long shoulder loop, leave only a short length of cord above the bottle and tie it into a small loop.
You can then clip a carabiner through that loop and attach the bottle to a backpack, belt or other piece of gear.
This can be really useful when your backpack doesn’t have large side pockets, although a full bottle bouncing from a carabiner can get annoying while hiking. I prefer clipping it somewhere that stops it swinging around too much.
Can You Use This on a Metal Water Bottle?
Sometimes, but it depends entirely on the bottle shape.
Many stainless steel and titanium bottles have smooth necks with nothing for a simple cord loop to sit underneath. In that case, I wouldn’t trust this method because the bottle can simply slide out.
If your metal bottle has a substantial neck lip or lid loop, you may be able to attach the cord securely. Otherwise use a jug sling, bottle pouch or the manufacturer’s carry loop.
How Much Paracord Do You Need?
For the simple shoulder sling shown here, around 3-4 feet / 1 metre is enough for most people.
If you’re tall, want the bottle sitting particularly low or need enough spare cord for a larger knot, start longer. You can always shorten paracord; making it longer after you’ve cut it is slightly more challenging.
Is a Paracord Water Bottle Holder Strong Enough?
For an ordinary water bottle, easily. Genuine 550 paracord is wildly stronger than necessary for carrying one or two litres of water.
The weak point isn’t the paracord. It’s whether the cord is securely trapped by the shape of the bottle neck.
Always test the finished sling close to the ground before trusting it over your shoulder. It’s much better to discover a bad knot or unsuitable bottle while standing still than when the bottle launches itself down the side of a hill.
Final Thoughts
This is one of those tiny camping tricks that’s almost too simple to need a guide, but once you know it, you remember it forever.
A metre of cord, a bottle with a decent neck lip and a couple of knots can give you a perfectly usable shoulder carrier in a few minutes.
If the bottle shape doesn’t securely trap the cord, don’t force it. Use a proper jug sling instead. But for a normal plastic water bottle at a festival, campsite or on a casual walk, this method works brilliantly.
