Best Electrolyte Tablets For Running in 2023

There’s not much worse than returning from a great run, only to be hit by a wave of nausea, dizziness, or headaches that ruins the rest of your day. This can happen even if you think you’ve drunk enough water during your run, and the effects can be lasting, cutting into your recovery.

Many times, these terrible feelings are simply caused by an electrolyte imbalance. Plain water is enough for short and easy runs, but electrolyte tablets (or powders) are a supplement all runners should keep handy. Something as simple as a nutrient deficiency in your body can cause some serious health complaints!

Electrolyte tablets are easy to slip into a vest or belt pocket and add to your water bottle on the run. It’s true that every runner reacts differently to supplements, so you may need to experiment a little to find the right one for you. Why carry tablets with you rather than just mix up a bottle prior to your run? Because if you end up refilling your bottle, you can mix a fresh batch of hydration while out on the road, keeping your electrolytes topped up for the duration.

While you will inevitable prefer one product over the others, everything we’ve reviewed is of good quality and will help you get that body balance back to how it should be.

Our first choice is the Nuun Sport Electrolyte Tablet. It’s available in a variety of flavors to suit every taste, contains a blend of optimal electrolytes, and is vegan, gluten-free, and low-calorie.

Here’s the full list of our top electrolyte tablets.

Top 3 Best and Favorites

Best Overall

1. Nuun Sport

Nuun Sport electrolyte tablets are formulated with 4 of the main electrolytes that need replenishing after a good run.

In terms of ingredients, they’re suitable for just about anyone, being vegan, non-GMO, gluten-free, and even kosher!

If you like to count calories as part of your fitness, one of these fizzies will set you back all of 15 calories, with 2 grams of carbs. On the other hand, that means you can’t use Nuun as fuel, per se…you’ll need to get your fuel from a different source.

Drop one of these effervescent tabs into your water bottle, and it will be dissolved and ready to drink in less than 3 minutes, so you won’t lose any time getting those electrolytes back into your body.

The one thing that may deter some runners is that they’re sweetened with Stevia. Some may not enjoy the taste, and others may have had bad reactions to Stevia in the past.

If you’re happy with their sweetening choice, you can choose from watermelon, tri-berry, strawberry lemonade, lemon-lime, fruit punch, grape, and many other flavors.

We love that these tablets are so suitable for just about any runner out there, which is what wins them top spot!

Runner-Up

2. GU Hydration Drink Tabs

The GU Hydration tabs are similar to our top choice. They come in four flavors: strawberry lemonade, tri-berry, orange, and lemon-lime. No matter what your taste preference, there’ll be something for you.

They’re slightly lower in calories than our first product, at 10 calories per tablet. That may not seem like anything to care much about, but when you’re counting (and drinking a few of these a day) every little bit can add up!

You’ll find a mix of sodium, potassium, and 3 grams of carbs in these tablets. They seem to be focused on replenishing sodium, which is one of the most important and most easily lost electrolytes.

This tab has been manufactured using their new formula, which has replaced sorbitol with Xylitol as a sweetener. They’re sufficiently sweet, but some runners may prefer something without Xylitol if their stomachs don’t enjoy it.

They’re also quick-dissolving, but a short waiting time is necessary before they’re fully dissolved.

Best for Long Runs

3. Science in Sport Go Hydro Electrolyte Tablets

It’s always good to find supplements that are backed by science. You’ll find sodium, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, and vitamin B6 in these fizzies, along with a few other useful things.

Green tea extract also adds a bit of a caffeine dose, which should spur you on nicely during a run.

They claim to be “lightly flavored,” so there should be only a subtle hint of fruitiness when you drink it. Some runners have mentioned that there’s a bit of a chalky residue left behind when drinking, but others seem to be fine with it, so you may have to try it for yourself and see if you’re happy.

The biggest complaint seems to be that the sweetener used in these tablets (sucralose) causes digestive upset in some people.

With 20 tablets per tube, you’re getting good value for money when buying this one!

Best Powder

4. Ultima Replenisher

If you dislike carrying around a chunky tube, or aren’t sure how to take a single tablet with you safely on a run, you may prefer these – small packets of powder.

They’re also perfectly suitable for just about any type of runner. The powder is vegan-friendly, gluten-, soy- and dairy-free, contains no caffeine, and is non-GMO.

It also has zero calories! It won’t make even a tiny dent in your eating if you’re counting. Stevia is the sweetener of choice. That might not suit everyone, but it is effective and calorie-free.

One dose of this powder contains calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, sodium, and chloride – the big 6 to keep you in the best shape.

It’s also super easy to just slip one packet into a pocket before heading out on your run.

Top Tabs with Caffeine

5. Nuun Sport + Caffeine

If you’re the type of person who needs their coffee in the morning to wake up, a tablet with a splash of caffeine in it might work best for you! Even beyond your morning coffee, caffeine is a gentle stimulant that can give your performance a gentle nudge.

Nuun Sport + Caffeine tablets are pretty similar to our top choice, just with an added dose of the good stuff.

As well as containing a super electrolyte blend, there’s also a vitamin B blend and 40mg of caffeine, so you may be able to run further for longer on one of these!

In terms of dissolvability, a tab is said to take less than three minutes from being dropped into your water bottle to being ready to down.

They’re also safe to ingest whether you’re an omnivore, vegan, calorie-counter (15kcal each), or Kosher eater.

Best with Carbs

6. SKRATCH LABS Wellness Hydration Drink Mix

If you like a powder rather than a tablet, this 20-pack will keep you hydrated for a couple of weeks. It’s recommended to use 1 to 2 servings per hour of exercise, so it really depends on how often you exercise as to how quickly you’ll get through 20 packets.

They’re small and easy to carry with you, whether you’re going for a run, a hike, or simply taking a flight and want one handy.

There is a small amount of sugar in each sachet (4g per 100g), but they’re mostly flavored by real fruit. This reduces the amount of sugar needed, and eliminates the need for artificial sweeteners or alternate sweeteners.

With a range of different flavors, you’ll get a real fruity taste (although subtle) while replacing all those lost electrolytes.

Best for Recovery

7. Revival Rehydration and Recovery

Hydration is an essential part of health, whether you’re a runner or not! When you sweat, you’re not only losing electrolytes, but water too. Considering the human body is around 70% water, losing some of it can throw things off balance.

This powder is designed to replenish electrolytes and rehydrate you at the same time. According to the manufacturer, it has 3 to 5 times the hydrating power of water!

In addition to its rehydrating properties, it contains essential electrolytes and a mix of vitamins. Although it says it contains no added sugar, one of the ingredients is dextrose, which is sugar.

Be aware that the blue colored powder can cause staining on your lips and teeth!

Top Value

8. Fluid Tactical Hydration

At less than a dollar per packet, this is our best value choice. Runners on a budget, these powders are for you!

Simply empty one packet into 16 ounces of water and it’ll be ready to drink almost immediately. With a range of flavors (and samples of each in the 20-pack) you won’t get bored with the flavors, although some report a lingering aftertaste.

Each one contains 5g of carbs and 20 calories, made up of the electrolyte you need and some added sugar for taste.

Best Vegan

9. Vega Sport Hydrator

Vegan products are becoming easier to find, but it can sometimes seem like an impossible task to find the right thing for you.

Two of our above products are vegan, but we’ve chosen Vega as our top vegan electrolyte powder because it’s super easy to use, has no sugar, and only 5 calories per serving.

It’s been independently certified as a suitable supplement for sport by NSF International, which is a great credit to the product and means that it contains no banned substances or contaminants.

It’s sweetened using Stevia and the natural flavoring of coconut water powder. Coconut is one of those ingredients that some people’s stomachs may be sensitive to, so it’s wise to give this a trial run at home before taking one out on the road with you.

Top With Zero Sugar

10. HIGH5 Zero

If you’re on a low- or no-sugar diet, it can be tough to find suitable supplements. Thankfully, many products these days are making the switch to alternative sweeteners, and this is one of them.

It’s sweetened with sucralose, which means there are zero calories and no sugar at all per packet. The downside is that sucralose can cause an upset stomach if too much is taken, so you’ll need to do some experimenting to find your sweet spot.

With 20 tablets per tube, you’re getting good value for money.