Electrolyte Formulas Compared (2026): Full Data Table + DIY
Match the drink to the job. For the most sodium with no sugar, LMNT has 1,000 mg a stick. Our pick for most people is Transparent Labs Hydrate: 500 mg of sodium a scoop, no sugar, on 3 public testing lists. Check price on Amazon
By Erin Rose Updated October 13, 2026 How we score
Informational comparison of label data and cost — not medical advice. If you have high blood pressure, kidney disease, or heart failure, or take diuretics or BP medication, talk to your doctor before adding a high-sodium product. Every mineral figure is the manufacturer's own per-serving Nutrition/Supplement Facts value; prices are brand list-price figures and can change.
The short version There's no single "best" electrolyte powder — there are three types for three jobs. Sodium per serving ranges 200x across these products (5 mg to 1,000 mg) and they look identical on the shelf. Match the type to your situation with the picker below, check the numbers in the master table, and note that 4 of 9 products are listed in a lab-testing registry.
Pick by use case
| If you're… | Use this type |
|---|---|
| Keto / fasting / carnivore | High-sodium, zero-sugar: LMNT Recharge Electrolytes. Some people on low-carb diets add sodium; no trial has set a dose (why). If you take blood pressure or diabetes medicine, ask your doctor first. |
| Endurance / heavy sweat / heat | Transparent Labs Hydrate, our pick |
| Stick packs for the gym bag, with a little sugar for long efforts | BUBS Naturals Hydrate or Die Electrolytes, 7 g of sugar a stick, $2.85 per 1,000 mg |
| Less sodium | Nuun Sport Electrolyte Tablets, 300 mg a serving |
| Something to chew mid-run | SaltStick FastChews Chewable Electrolytes, 100 mg a serving |
| A normal day, short or easy workouts | Nothing. Water and food cover it. How much sodium you need |
| On a budget | Salt in water. Recipe below |
How the formulas differ
The big difference is sodium, then sugar. Potassium and magnesium vary too, but they matter less.
Sodium: the number to compare
Sodium is the main mineral you lose in sweat to replace: about 1,000 mg in an average athlete’s hard hour (Baker 2016, from Gatorade scientists; your hourly loss). The drinks we score run from 5 mg (Ultima Replenisher Electrolyte Powder) to 1,000 mg (LMNT Recharge Electrolytes) a serving. So we compare what 1,000 mg of sodium costs, not what a serving costs. That 1,000 mg is what athletes lose, not an amount to aim for.
LMNT Recharge Electrolytes has the most sodium, at the same $1.50 per 1,000 mg as our pick. We did not find it on a public testing list, so our pick is the tested one.
Sugar: only for long efforts
6 of the 9 have 2 g of sugar or less. BUBS Naturals Hydrate or Die Electrolytes, Liquid I.V. Hydration Multiplier, and DripDrop ORS Hydration have 7 to 11 g. In hard exercise over an hour, carbohydrate is useful fuel (ACSM 1996). For a normal workout, you don’t need it.
Potassium and magnesium: they matter less
Potassium runs from 30 to 370 mg a serving, and magnesium up to 60 mg. Sweat holds far less of these than sodium, so a sports drink doesn’t need much of them. Food is where the gap is: most Americans get less potassium than advised, and many get too little magnesium (NIH). A sports drink is not the fix for that.
Every formula, side by side
4 of these 9 are on a public testing list. NSF Certified for Sport screens for drugs banned in sport; NSF/ANSI 173 checks the label is accurate.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
One serving as the label gives it. Score out of 10; cost at each brand’s list price, checked September 29, 2026.
| Drink | Sodium | $ per 1,000 mg | Score | Potassium | Magnesium | Sugar | vs WHO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LMNT Recharge Electrolytes 1 stick pack | 1,000 mg | $1.50 | 7.0 | 200 mg | 60 mg | 0 g | 61–123% |
| BUBS Naturals Hydrate or Die Electrolytes 1 stick pack · NSF Certified for Sport | 650 mg | $2.85 | 9.0 | 200 mg | 50 mg | 7 g | 80–106% |
| Transparent Labs Hydrate 1 scoop (8 g) · NSF Certified for Sport, Informed Choice, NSF/ANSI 173 | 500 mg | $1.50 | 10.0 | 250 mg | 50 mg | 0 g | – |
| Liquid I.V. Hydration Multiplier 1 stick pack | 500 mg | $3.12 | 5.0 | 370 mg | not listed | 11 g* | 61% |
| Liquid I.V. Sugar-Free Hydration Multiplier 1 stick pack | 500 mg | $3.12 | 5.0 | 370 mg | not listed | 0 g | 61% |
| DripDrop ORS Hydration 1 stick pack | 330 mg | $3.41 | 3.5 | 180 mg | 40 mg | 7 g | 81% |
| Nuun Sport Electrolyte Tablets 1 tablet · Informed Choice | 300 mg | $2.50 | 7.5 | 150 mg | 25 mg | 1 g | – |
| SaltStick FastChews Chewable Electrolytes 2 chewable tablets · Informed Choice | 100 mg | $6.66 | 5.0 | 30 mg | 6 mg | 2 g* | – |
| Ultima Replenisher Electrolyte Powder 1 scoop | 5 mg | $106.64 | 2.0 | 75 mg | 8 mg | 0 g | – |
* Total carbohydrate; the label lists no sugar line. “Not listed” means the amount is not on the label. “vs WHO” is sodium strength next to the WHO rehydration formula when mixed as the label directs; “–” means the label gives no amount of water. Ultima Replenisher Electrolyte Powder has only 5 mg of sodium a serving, so its cost per 1,000 mg is high. How each score is built.
Make your own sports drink
The cheapest option is salt in water. 1/4 teaspoon of table salt has about 575 mg of sodium, a bit more than one serving of our pick. The salt costs less than a cent; with a squeeze of lemon, a serving is about 5 cents.
- Stir it into 16 to 24 oz of water. Add a squeeze of lemon or a splash of juice for taste.
- For long exercise, add a little sugar or juice. For a normal day, skip it.
The “vs WHO” column is only a reference point: it compares sodium strength with the WHO oral rehydration formula (1,725 mg of sodium per liter). Sports drinks are not oral rehydration solutions. If you are sick, ask a doctor or pharmacist what to drink. If a child is sick or seems dehydrated, call the child’s pediatrician.
More is not better. Drinking far more than you sweat out can drop the sodium in your blood too low (hyponatremia), which can be dangerous. In the 2002 Boston Marathon, 13% of the runners studied had low blood sodium; gaining weight during the race, from drinking more than they sweated out, was the strongest factor, along with races over 4 hours (Almond 2005). An expert consensus advises drinking to thirst (Hew-Butler 2015); for long races, ask a coach or doctor.
These drinks also hold potassium. If you have kidney disease, or take an ACE inhibitor, an ARB or a potassium-sparing diuretic, ask your doctor before using them.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best electrolyte powder?
For most people, Transparent Labs Hydrate: 500 mg of sodium a scoop, no sugar, $1.50 per 1,000 mg of sodium at list price, and it is on NSF Certified for Sport, Informed Choice, and NSF/ANSI 173. For the most sodium in one stick, LMNT Recharge Electrolytes has 1,000 mg. For some sugar on a long effort, BUBS Naturals Hydrate or Die Electrolytes has 7 g a stick. On a normal day, water and food are enough.
Can I make my own electrolyte drink?
Yes. Stir 1/4 teaspoon of table salt (about 575 mg of sodium) into 16 to 24 oz of water, with a squeeze of lemon for taste. For exercise over an hour, add a little sugar or juice. The salt costs less than a cent; with the lemon, a serving is about 5 cents. Salt math: FDA, 1 teaspoon of salt has about 2,300 mg of sodium.
Which electrolyte powders are third-party tested?
Of the drinks on this page, 5 are on a public testing list: BUBS Naturals Hydrate or Die Electrolytes (NSF Certified for Sport), Transparent Labs Hydrate (NSF Certified for Sport, Informed Choice, and NSF/ANSI 173), Nuun Sport Electrolyte Tablets (Informed Choice), SaltStick FastChews Chewable Electrolytes (Informed Choice), and Redmond Re-Lyte (Informed Choice). NSF Certified for Sport screens for drugs banned in sport; NSF/ANSI 173 checks that the label is accurate. We searched each program’s own list.
How we checked this
Labels come from the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database where filed, otherwise NSF’s listing or the brand’s own label, read September 29, 2026. Costs use each brand’s own list price. Scores were built October 1, 2026.
The WHO strength column uses the WHO formula of 75 mmol of sodium per liter (about 1,725 mg) and the water the label directs; where the label gives a range of water, we show a range.
We also read these but do not score them, because we have no brand list price or no sodium figure we can check: Redmond Re-Lyte, Klean Hydration, PRIME Hydration sticks, Skratch Labs Sport Hydration. Redmond’s page shows its sodium only in a picture, and NIH has no label for it. Of these, Redmond Re-Lyte is on Informed Choice; Klean Hydration is on NSF Certified for Sport.
Salt math from the FDA: 2,300 mg of sodium is about 1 teaspoon of table salt.
Sources
- Labels: NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database where filed, otherwise NSF’s listing or the brand’s own label. The data is at formulas-compared.json.
- WHO/UNICEF reduced-osmolarity oral rehydration salts: sodium 75, potassium 20, glucose 75 mmol per liter; 245 mOsm per liter.
- Baker LB, et al. J Sports Sci. 2016. PubMed 26070030 (sweat sodium). FDA, sodium in your diet (salt to sodium).
- Convertino VA, et al. ACSM position stand: exercise and fluid replacement. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1996. PubMed 9303999 (carbohydrate in exercise over an hour).
- Almond CS, et al. Hyponatremia among runners in the Boston Marathon. N Engl J Med. 2005. PubMed 15829535. Hew-Butler T, et al. Third International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Statement. Clin J Sport Med. 2015. PubMed 26102445.
- NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Potassium and Magnesium fact sheets for health professionals (US intakes; little potassium lost in sweat). Potassium, Magnesium.