How sound is the Hadith: "There is no charity of greater reward than water," and did Al-Albani grade it as hasan?

The hadith that states, "There is no charity greater in reward than water," has a very weak chain of transmission (isnad). Although there are corroborating reports (shawāhid) such as "The best charity is water" and "Providing water," these are also weak due to discontinuity in their chains of transmission (inqiṭāʿ al-sanad) or the weakness of their narrators.

However, Sheikh Al-Albani ruled the text (matn) of this hadith to be "good due to external corroboration" (ḥasan li-ghayrih) because these ahadith strengthen each other.

Despite the weakness of their chains of transmission, providing water can sometimes be among the best forms of charity, especially when there is a severe need for it, such as during times of drought. This is because the merit of charities varies according to the need of the recipient. As for preferring it in all circumstances, there is no sound evidence to support that.