If you’re looking to work from home on your own schedule or set up your own website, you might be tempted by multi-level marketing companies. One brand that often raises questions is Kangen Water, leaving many to wonder, is Kangen Water a pyramid scheme?
Our expert team at Business2Community thoroughly investigates Kangen Water and its parent company, Enagic, to uncover the truth. We also explore the science behind alkaline water to determine if these companies offer a path to better health or if they are simply another scam or trendy diet fad.
Is Kangen Water a Pyramid Scheme? Key Facts
- Kangen Water may or may not be a pyramid scheme, depending on which government you ask. Kangen Water has been legally declared a pyramid scheme in Bhutan by Bhutan’s Office of Consumer Protection, but not in the United States.
- Kangen Water is a multi-level marketing company (MLM) since its business model features direct selling and recruitment, creating a downline.
- In 2023, Kangen Water was valued at US$ 2583.7 million and is expected to grow 8.3% by 2030.
The Kangen Water Business Model
Kangen Water comes up across social media frequently. You find people suggesting it as a business for people wanting to work whilst traveling or raising a family as a stay-at-home parent. Here’s everything you need to know about the company and what the “opportunity” entails.
Is Kangen Water a Pyramid Scheme?
In the US, Kangen Water has not been declared a pyramid scheme. However, in Bhutan, the Office of Consumer Protection (OCP) has found the company to be a pyramid scheme.
In Bhutan, the Kangen Water pyramid scheme business model breaks one of the Consumer Protection Rules and Regulations, as noted by the OCP in its public notice: “‘Creating, running, or promoting a pyramid promotional scheme where a consumer earns money mainly from bringing in other consumers to the scheme instead of from selling or using products’ is considered an unfair trade practice and is therefore illegal.”
You can download and read the original statement here.
While it is still a legal company in the US, the FTC sent a Cease and Desist to the president of Enagic USA, Keishi Hirano. In 2021, the company claimed that drinking alkaline water from Kangen Water had health benefits, including that it could prevent COVID-19.
Do Kangen Water Machines Actually Work?
Enagic’s Kangen Water machines are absurdly expensive filters that create alkaline water through the machine’s alkaline ionizer. Enagic claims that drinking alkaline water from these filters restores the body to its “alkaline state”, vaguely implying that neutralizing a small amount of acid in the stomach is somehow helpful.
They claim that this “alkaline state” is supposed to be a balanced and optimal state for humans but don’t provide much, if any, proof of this.
Kangen water has a high concentration of molecular hydrogen. Enagic says drinking hydrogen-rich water delivers antioxidant benefits that reduce free radicals.
Given all that, Kangen Water might sound intriguing to people looking to improve their health. However, there is no scientific evidence to show that alkaline water actually has any of these health benefits.
A report from Harvard describes why alkaline water is no better for you than regular tap water. Put simply, a human’s stomach fluid is very acidic so the slightly alkaline water is immediately neutralized, having little if any effect beyond perhaps forcing your body to make a little more stomach acid.
Even if you drank a lot of alkaline water from a Kangen machine, the increase in stomach fluid pH would be temporary (and not necessarily positive either). What if you drank even more alkaline water and raised the pH of your blood? It turns out that your body is ready to handle pH changes pretty well, especially in blood (though that doesn’t mean you should chug alkaline water). It uses complex pathways in the lungs, gut, Kidneys, and the bloodstream to make sure that your blood is always within a tight range of pH. This process of balancing the body’s pH level is one aspect of homeostasis. If your body spends too long out of balance or its homeostatic pathways are disrupted too much, it can cause serious health issues.
Drinking Kangen water that has too high of a pH level — above 9 — could also be dangerous for those taking proton pump inhibitors, or if you have kidney disease.
How it Works for Distributors
To become a distributor for Kangen Water, you must complete the distributor registration form and purchase your own Enagic Kangen Water machine. A Kangen Water machine costs anywhere from $4,380 to $6,580. Note that this is absurdly expensive. Enagic is far from the only company selling water ionizers. In fact, you can buy ionizers for as little as $20 on Amazon and even most of the fancier models seem to top out at about $600 on Amazon. 
Distributors for the Kangen Water machine have two primary roles
- Sell Kangen water machines
- Recruit other people to do so
As with any MLM, the more recruits you can get to sign up, the more sales you and your team make. You will make more commissions the more recruits you have below you.
According to a report by Australian ABC News, 99% of participants make less than $14,000 per year and 60% make an average of $285 per year. These numbers don’t take into account the expenses of distributors, including the initial mandatory purchase of the water machine.
This information can also be found on Enagic’s website:
Kangen’s Commission Structure
The Kangen Water commission structure can be a bit hard to follow. It involves various ranks and depends on the sales of both a distributor and their team.
As a Kangen distributor, apart from the commission you earn on direct sales, you can earn money in the following ways:
- Override commission: This is a commission you earn from the sales your team (downline) makes.
- Education allowance: You get daily bonuses for sales made by your downline.
- Monthly and quarterly incentives: Distributors get awards based on their performance.
- Title incentives: These are rewards for the top distributors.
The Kangen commission structure is referred to as the Basic 8-Point Commission Structure on the website.
In this structure, there are 6 ranks, 1A through 6A, and each rank has 8 payment points. To advance in rank, you and your team must make a certain number of sales.
To become 1A rank, you must make two direct sales and to become 2A, you must make three direct sales total, and to become 3A you must make at least 11 sales. The sales that each individual distributor makes can be combined with their team’s total to jump to a higher rank. For example, to reach 6A, you must have at least 101 sales. That means that if your team has 100 total sales, then by making a single direct sale, you can move on to 6A.
Your sales commission doubles as you climb in rank (apart from some caveats that have to do with the 8 points). See the commissions chart below:
If this seems confusing, that’s because it is, and quite a bit more so than with a typical MLM. In the video below, an Enagic representative explains how the system works, although it still seems pretty complicated.
Network Marketing
Like with most MLMs, distributors are encouraged to sell to the people in their networks. In the report by ABC News, you can see how women in rural communities have suffered from social tensions and financial strain as a result of these sales tactics.
Distributor Experiences
There are quite a few reviews from former Kangen Water salespeople or friends and family of salespeople that mention the large investment and low ROI involved in this MLM.
There are also stories of people going into debt to make their first Kangen investment.
In the following interview, podcaster The Recovering Hunbot interviews a former Kangen Water salesperson about her experience. She reflects on the debt she accumulated, and the manipulative tactics the company uses to get vulnerable women caught up in the MLM. She also talks about her time in the Freedom Era, which we will discuss further in the next section.
What is the Freedom Era?
The Freedom Era is a “movement” run by Enagic that promotes the lifestyle of being in the Enagic Kangen Water MLM scheme. At first, the Freedom Era advertises itself as a sort of academy that teaches members how to leverage social media to sell products and services. However, eventually, to stay in, you must purchase a Kangen water filter and become a distributor.
It costs $99 monthly to access the educational resources of the Freedom Era. Resources include scripts on how to target people on social media.
In the report by ABC News, one woman in Australia subscribed to the Freedom Era website, drawn in by the promise of coaching that would help her become successful in the MLM. She also talks about the scripts she was told to use when recruiting others to join.
When Kate struggled to achieve the financial success promised by her Freedom Era coach, she was told that she wasn’t working hard enough.
It should be noted that the business address for Freedom Era is in Cyprus, which is a tax haven.
Is Kangen Water an MLM?
Yes, Kangen Water is a multi-level marketing system. Here’s how Kangen, part of Enagic, aligns with the characteristics of an MLM:
- Direct selling model: You can’t find Enagic products, including the Kangen Water machines, available for purchase on regular store shelves. Instead, you must buy them directly from Enagic distributors. This is the typical MLM sales model — products are sold directly by individuals rather than through third-party retail channels.
- Recruitment-based income: Enagic distributors make money not just from selling water ionizing machines, but also from recruiting new salespeople to work below them. This creates a downline, from which distributors earn commissions on the sales made by their recruits. This is another key feature of MLMs.
- Tiered commission structure: Enagic distributors can earn commissions on multiple levels. By selling more products and recruiting more people, they can graduate to higher ranks and earn more commission on products sold. Their recruits form part of their team, and their success can be based both on individual sales and on total sales made by the team.
- High initial investment: To become an Enagic distributor, you must purchase a Kangen Water machine, which costs around $5,000 on average. The most common machine is the K8, which costs $5,840.
- Training and mentorship: Just like with most MLMs, Enagic offers training and mentorship, encouraging members to enroll in the Freedom Era where they can get advice for success from coaches. These schemes cost money and are often required if you want to stay in good standing with the company.
Is Kangen Water Safe and Legit?
It’s probably safe to drink water from Enagic’s water-ionizing machines if you don’t have preexisting conditions relating to pH regulation. If you suffer from kidney disease or are taking medications to raise your blood’s pH level, please speak with your doctor first.
While it is most likely safe to drink alkaline water, there is also no evidence to prove that it is good for your health.
Enagic is an MLM and is legal in the United States. If you rise high in the ranks of the MLM, you could make money. However, a report released by the FTC states that 99% of people who participate in MLMs actually lose money.
If you’re thinking of becoming a distributor for Enagic, you should approach the opportunity with caution. To be successful requires more energy, time, and work than most people can afford to dedicate. The roughly $5-6,000 initial investment can be a major barrier to entry and the price point off-putting to a large potential market.
To conclude, while Kangen and Enagic are not inherently illegitimate, they present risks to those who wish to join them.