The 10 Best Electrolyte Drinks for Runners, Compared on Sodium, Carbs and Cost

A long run does not just cost you water. It costs you sodium, and it costs it fast. Sweat sodium concentration varies from roughly 200 to 2,000 mg per litre between individuals, and a runner sweating a litre an hour in July heat can lose more salt in two hours than most sports drinks replace in six servings. That is the mechanism behind the cramping, the light-headedness at kilometre 30, and the flat, hollow feeling that arrives well before the finish line. Drinking more plain water does not fix it. It dilutes what is left.

So the drink in your bottle matters about as much as the shoes on your feet, and for the same reason: it is a piece of equipment you use for hours at a time, and the wrong one only reveals itself when you are deep into an effort and cannot swap it. Trail Runner Magazine’s complete guide to electrolytes lays out why sodium is the loss that matters most over long distances, and it is worth reading before you commit to a season of one brand.

We compared ten hydration products built for or widely used by runners. Here is what each one is actually for, what it costs, and who should be reaching for it.

How we compared them

Four things separate these products, and none of them is flavour.

Sodium per serving. 

This is the number that moves. The ten drinks below range from 55 mg to 1,000 mg a serving, a factor of eighteen. A drink is not better for having more sodium. It is better for having the amount that matches how salty your sweat is and how long you are out.

Carbohydrate load and concentration. 

Some of these products carry no fuel at all. Others carry 80 grams. Carbohydrate concentration, grams divided by millilitres of water, governs how fast the mix leaves your stomach. Between 4 and 8 percent, a solution empties at close to the rate of plain water. Push past that and you slow gastric emptying, which is the sloshing-stomach problem in one sentence.

Carbohydrate source. 

Glucose crosses the gut wall through the SGLT1 transporter, which saturates near 60 grams an hour. Fructose uses a separate route, GLUT5. That is why products combining both can push total carbohydrate oxidation higher than glucose alone. Below 60 grams an hour, one source is fine. Above it, you need two.

Cost per serving. 

Hydration is a recurring purchase across a whole training block, not a one-time gear buy. Twelve weeks of long runs at $5 a bottle is a different decision than the same block at $2.

All prices below are in CAD and were checked against manufacturer or Canadian retailer listings in September 2026. Labels get reformulated, so confirm the current sachet before you build a race plan around any single number.

The comparison at a glance

1. Maple MC2

Maple-powered hydration and fuel, straight from a Quebec sugar bush

Maple MC2 takes a different route to hydration than almost everything else on this list. Instead of building a formula from maltodextrin, dextrose and synthetic flavour, it starts with organic maple syrup harvested at the founding family’s own sugar bush in Saint-Ours, Quebec, then adds only what the syrup does not already provide: sea salt for sodium, freeze-dried fruit, and natural flavours. There are no artificial colours and no artificial sweeteners anywhere in the mix, and every gram of carbohydrate in the sachet comes from a single food.

That last point is not a marketing line. It is the reason the product behaves the way it does on the run. Maple syrup is roughly 90 percent sucrose, and sucrose is a glucose molecule bonded to a fructose molecule in a 1:1 ratio. So a maple-based drink delivers two separately transported carbohydrates without any formulation work, which is exactly the property that expensive dual-source mixes are engineered to achieve. Runners tend to describe the result as steady rather than sharp: fuel that arrives without the spike and the crash that follows a hit of straight dextrose.

Here is the full label for one 30 g sachet, which is what makes it possible to compare against anything else in this roundup.

• 110 calories, 28 g carbohydrate, 14 g sugars
• Sodium 273 mg (12% DV), potassium 94 mg (1% DV), calcium 47 mg (4% DV)
• 414 mg of electrolytes in total
• Magnesium 15 mg and manganese 0.5 mg, carried over naturally from the sap
• Percent daily values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Mixed into a 500 ml bottle, those 28 grams give you a 5.6 percent solution, which sits inside the 4 to 8 percent band where a drink empties from the stomach at close to the rate of water. Sodium works out to 546 mg per litre, comfortably above the concentration of most hydration tablets and in the range that genuinely replaces sweat losses for an average sweater. For a two-hour long run, one sachet per bottle is a complete fuel and electrolyte plan with nothing else to carry.

Where it does not compete: if you are chasing 90 grams of carbohydrate an hour in the final race-pace sessions of a marathon block, you cannot get there on a 5.6 percent solution without drinking well over a litre an hour. That is a real ceiling, and it is why high-carb specialists exist. For everything short of that, the trade is a good one.

Three flavours are available, Maple, Maple-Blueberry and Maple-Peach, plus a Discovery Box for testing all three before committing to a case. Pricing is $2.79 for a single sachet, $29.99 for a box of 12, which works out to $2.50 a serving, and $26.99 on subscription, or $2.25 a serving, with delivery every two weeks, every month, or every two months. Orders ship within 24 hours, delivery is free in Quebec on orders over $75, and there is a 30-day guarantee, which counts for something when you are trying a category you have not used before.

• Organic maple syrup from the brand’s own sugar bush in Saint-Ours, Quebec
• 273 mg sodium and 28 g of whole-food carbohydrate per 30 g sachet, 414 mg of electrolytes in total
• No artificial colours or artificial sweeteners, and all carbohydrates from a single food
• $2.25 to $2.79 a serving depending on format, with a Discovery Box for trying all three flavours

2. LMNT

A high-sodium formula built for heavy sweaters

LMNT built its entire product around one idea: most runners need considerably more sodium than a conventional sports drink provides. Each stick pack delivers roughly 1,000 mg of sodium alongside about 200 mg of potassium and 60 mg of magnesium, with no sugar in any flavour. It has become the default for runners training in heat, salty sweaters who finish long runs with white crust on their temples, and anyone who has cramped despite drinking plenty.

The trade-off is that it carries no fuel at all. LMNT solves hydration and leaves fuelling entirely to you, which means gels, chews or a second bottle on any run past about 75 minutes. It is also a lot of salt for an easy 5K, and drinking it on days you do not need it is the most common way people end up disliking the taste.

• Roughly 1,000 mg of sodium per stick, well above most competing mixes
• Zero sugar and zero carbohydrate in every flavour
• Wide flavour range including an unflavoured version for mixing into other drinks
• No fuel, so pair it with gels or a carbohydrate drink on long efforts

3. Nuun Sport

Effervescent tablets for light hydration on easy days

Nuun keeps things simple. A tablet drops into your bottle, fizzes, and gives you around 300 mg of sodium plus potassium and magnesium for about 15 calories and roughly a gram of sugar. The tube format is the real selling point. A week of hydration fits in a jersey pocket, which is why the tubes turn up in so many run club bags and hotel rooms on race weekends.

Understand what it is, though. At roughly a gram of carbohydrate a tablet, Nuun is a hydration product, not a fuel. Trying to fuel a long run with it means drinking an unreasonable volume. Use it on easy days, in heat, or alongside gels when you deliberately want to keep fluid and fuel separate.

• Around 300 mg of sodium per tablet, about 15 calories
• Compact tube that fits a running vest, pocket or gym bag
• Caffeinated and non-caffeinated versions
• Essentially no fuel value, so treat it as hydration only

4. Skratch Labs

Real fruit flavouring for runners prone to stomach trouble

Skratch Labs came out of the work of Allen Lim, an exercise physiologist who spent years mixing drinks in pro cycling team kitchens because his riders could not tolerate what came out of the sponsor’s tub. The resulting formula is deliberately light: roughly 19 g of carbohydrate and about 380 mg of sodium per serving, flavoured with real fruit rather than artificial sweeteners, with a short ingredient list you can read out loud.

At around 3.8 percent concentration in 500 ml, it is the gentlest fuel on this list, which is exactly the point. Runners who get GI distress from heavier, sweeter drinks often find they can drink Skratch in volume over several hours. The company also sells a higher-carb energy version for runners who need more fuel from the same base.

• Flavoured with real fruit instead of artificial sweeteners
• Short ingredient list built specifically to reduce GI issues
• Light concentration, well suited to hot sessions and high fluid volumes
• Higher-carb energy version available for longer efforts

5. Precision Fuel & Hydration

Sodium matched to how much salt you actually lose

Precision built its lineup around the observation that sodium needs are wildly individual, so rather than one formula it sells several strengths, from roughly 250 up to 1,500 mg of sodium per litre. The PH 1000 sits in the middle at 1,000 mg per litre, and the PH 1500 exists for the outliers who lose salt faster than almost anyone. It is a common recommendation among marathoners and heat-race specialists who want a hydration plan rather than a product.

The company also runs a free online sweat test and offers lab-based sweat testing, which is the part most runners underuse. Knowing your own sweat sodium concentration turns every other product on this list from a guess into a calculation. If you cramp unpredictably and have never tested, start here even if you end up buying a different brand.

• Multiple sodium strengths from about 250 to 1,500 mg per litre
• Built for runners whose sweat sodium sits well above or below average
• Free online sweat test to narrow down your strength
• The electrolyte mixes carry no fuel, so pair with their gels or another carb source

6. Tailwind Nutrition

One mix that handles fuel and hydration together

Tailwind combines carbohydrate and electrolytes in a single mix, around 25 g of carbohydrate and 310 mg of sodium per scoop, from dextrose and sucrose. Because you dose by scoop, you set your own concentration: one scoop in 500 ml gives you 5 percent, two gives you 10. The design goal was to eliminate the stack of gels, chews and separate electrolyte tablets that so often ends in stomach trouble at hour four.

That simplicity is why it has such a following in ultrarunning, where everything from one bottle is a genuine logistical advantage at an aid station. It is also one of the better value fuels per gram of carbohydrate delivered.

• Fuel and electrolytes in a single mix, dosed by scoop
• Adjustable concentration, so you control gastric load
• Designed for multi-hour efforts and aid-station simplicity
• Caffeinated and non-caffeinated versions

7. SaltStick

Precise capsules for runners counting milligrams

SaltStick is a capsule rather than a drink mix, delivering roughly 215 mg of sodium plus potassium, calcium and magnesium per cap. That format gives you exact hourly control: two caps an hour is a number you can plan and repeat, independent of how much you happen to be drinking. In ultramarathon and Ironman circles, where cramping ends races, that precision is the whole appeal.

Capsules also travel well and add no flavour to your bottle, which is a bigger deal than it sounds after six hours of sweet drinks. The limitation is obvious. Capsules provide no fluid and no fuel, so they are one component of a plan, never the plan itself.

• Exact-dose capsules, roughly 215 mg sodium each
• Popular in ultramarathon and triathlon
• No flavour and no calories, easy to carry with a pack or handheld
• Provides neither fluid nor fuel on its own

8. Maurten

Hydrogel technology for high carb intake without the stomach ache

Maurten uses an alginate hydrogel that encapsulates carbohydrate, which is intended to let a very concentrated solution pass through the stomach without the distress that concentration normally causes. Drink Mix 320 carries 80 g of carbohydrate and around 245 mg of sodium in a single serving, a 16 percent solution that no conventional formula could get away with. The brand built its reputation at the elite marathon level, where several world record performances have been fuelled by its products.

It is the right tool for race simulation and the final long runs of a marathon block, and the wrong tool for a Tuesday recovery jog. Note the modest sodium: at roughly 490 mg per litre, heavy sweaters will need to add salt from another source.

• Hydrogel designed to reduce GI distress at high carbohydrate intake
• 80 g of carbohydrate per serving in Drink Mix 320
• Used by elite marathoners in record performances
• Premium price, and light on sodium relative to its fuel load

9. Liquid I.V.

A grocery-aisle staple built on rapid fluid absorption

Liquid I.V. markets its formula around Cellular Transport Technology, a specific ratio of sugars to electrolytes intended to move fluid across the gut faster than water alone. A stick delivers roughly 500 mg of sodium, about 370 mg of potassium and around 11 g of sugar. It is the most widely available product on this list, stocked in most major grocery, pharmacy and big-box chains, which makes it the one you can actually buy on the way to a run.

It was designed for general rehydration rather than for running specifically, so the carbohydrate load is too light to fuel a long effort and the sweetness is more pronounced than most run-specific mixes. For travel, heat and everyday hydration, convenience counts for a lot.

• Formulated for faster fluid absorption than water alone
• Roughly 500 mg sodium and 11 g sugar per stick
• Sold in most major grocery, pharmacy and retail chains
• General rehydration product, not a run-specific fuel

10. Ultima Replenisher

A zero-sugar option for daily hydration between hard runs

Ultima covers all six major electrolytes, sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, chloride and phosphorus, at zero sugar and zero calories, sweetened with stevia and flavoured with plant-based ingredients. On paper that is more electrolytes tracked than almost any competitor.

The catch is the sodium. At around 55 mg a serving, it delivers roughly one twentieth of what LMNT provides and about a fifth of what a run-specific mix carries. That makes it a pleasant way to drink more fluid at your desk or between sessions, and the wrong choice for a long, hot race where sodium loss is the actual problem.

• Covers six electrolytes, more than most brands track
• Zero sugar and zero calories, stevia sweetened
• Around 55 mg of sodium, far below race-oriented products
• Best used for everyday hydration, not for peak sweat loss

How to pick the one that fits you

Work through it in this order rather than by brand.

How long is the run? 

Under 60 minutes, water is enough for most people in most conditions, and a tablet is a flavour preference. Between 60 and 150 minutes, you want carbohydrate and sodium in the same bottle, which is where Maple MC2, Skratch and Tailwind live. Past three hours, fuel becomes the constraint and you are choosing between a high-carb specialist and a drink you can tolerate for hours on end.

How salty is your sweat? 

If you finish runs with visible salt on your skin or your hat, cramp in heat, or lose more than about 1.5 litres an hour, you are in high-sodium territory and should be looking at LMNT, a stronger Precision strength, or adding SaltStick caps to a lighter drink. If you have never had a cramping problem, a 250 to 550 mg per litre product is likely plenty and a 1,000 mg one will just taste like the ocean.

How does your stomach behave? 

Runners with a history of GI distress should look at concentration first and ingredient list second. A 4 to 6 percent solution from a short, recognisable ingredient list is the safest starting point, and it is why the maple and real-fruit options tend to work for people who have failed on heavier mixes.

What are you willing to spend across a block? 

At two long runs a week for twelve weeks, a $2.25 serving costs about $54 and a $5 serving costs about $120. Neither is wrong. Just make it a decision instead of a default.

Test it in training, not on race day

The single most common fuelling mistake is not picking the wrong drink. It is picking a reasonable drink and then using it for the first time on race morning.

Introduce anything new on an easy long run first, at the concentration you plan to race at, in the bottle you plan to race with. Then repeat it on at least two race-pace sessions, because a drink that sits fine at conversational effort can behave completely differently when blood flow shifts away from your gut. Test it in heat too if your race might be hot. And write down what you took and how you felt, because “I think that one bothered me” is not information you can act on six weeks later.

Fleet Feet’s electrolyte drink buyer’s guide is a solid starting point if you want a broader look across categories before you narrow down.

The short version

Runners who want a cleaner ingredient list without giving up steady fuel should start with Maple MC2’s maple-based formula, which puts 28 g of whole-food carbohydrate and 273 mg of sodium in the same sachet at $2.25 to $2.79 a serving. Heavy and salty sweaters will do better with a high-sodium option like LMNT or a stronger Precision strength, paired with a separate fuel source. Runners chasing 90 g of carbohydrate an hour in the sharpest weeks of a marathon block should be looking at Maurten or Tailwind.

Whichever way you go, the drink only works if your gut has seen it before. Test in training, keep notes, and let race day be the boring part.