You can’t pour from an empty glass, whatever your lifestyle or priorities look like. Whether you’re a regular at the gym, a casual runner, or someone who simply enjoys a late night without a curfew, there’s one thing we all have in common: we function better when we’re properly hydrated. And it starts with the basics – water.

If you’re not drinking enough, that’s your first small habit to lock in. According to the NHS, you should aim for around 6-8 cups a day. Consistency here does more for your energy, focus, and recovery than most people realise.

Once that’s in place, you can build on it. One simple upgrade? Adding electrolytes to your morning glass of water. If you’re used to intense training, you’ll probably already know the drill all too well.

Electrolytes are a blend of essential minerals – like sodium, potassium, and magnesium – often combined with a small amount of glucose to help your body absorb them more effectively. In short, they help regulate hydration, support muscle function, and give you a more sustained boost than water alone.

And right now, much like community running clubs and Hyrox classes, they’re everywhere. We’ve tried some of the most popular options on the market and compiled a list of our favourites, with detailed info on what each offers so you don’t have to hopelessly squint at ingredients labels and crack the numbers yourself.

What are electrolytes?

Electrolytes are essential minerals your body uses to stay balanced and functioning properly. Think of them as the tiny charged particles that help control hydration, muscle contractions, and nerve signals. The main ones are sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium.

They’re called “electrolytes” because they carry an electrical charge – which is what allows your muscles to move and your nerves to send signals. Without them, things start to feel off: fatigue, cramps, headaches, that sluggish, dehydrated feeling. You lose electrolytes naturally through sweat, which is why they matter more after intense exercise or a long time in the heat. In everyday life, though, you usually get enough from food and fluids. In short: water hydrates you, but electrolytes help your body use that water properly.

Best electrolytes for a hydration boost at a glance

• Best for training performance – Precision Fuel & Hydration
• Best for focus + hydration – Heights Hydrate+
• Best all-round daily hydration – Phizz Daily 3-in-1
• Best for strength training & recovery – Rheal Daily Hydration + Creatine
• Best for high-intensity / heavy sweating – Puresport Ultra Electrolytes
• Best clean, lifestyle-friendly option – Good Salt MOVE

Our favourite electrolytes for a hydration boost

1. Rheal Daily Hydration + Creatine

Rheal is the B Corp superfood brand that appeared on Dragons’ Den in 2021 — famously receiving offers from all five Dragons. The Daily Hydration + Creatine is a two-in-one sachet that combines electrolytes with 3.4g of creatine monohydrate, widely studied for its benefits in muscle strength and recovery. The electrolyte blend draws from pink Himalayan salt, aquamin and coconut water powder rather than synthetic salts. Each sachet delivers:

• 500mg of sodium
• 150mg of potassium
• 60mg of magnesium
• 50mg of calcium
• vitamins C, D3 and K2

It’s also sugar-free, stevia-sweetened, vegan and gluten-free. We have tried the raspberry flavour, which is light and summery, but you can also get the lemon and lime if you prefer a citrusy, refreshing drink.

Price: £35 for 28 servings

2. Good Salts MOVE

Good Salt is a baby to the electrolytes market but it’s already making its mark. Not least for the sound idea that hydration isn’t just for gym junkies, and needs change depending on what your day demands. MOVE is the workout-focused option in its three-product range – sitting alongside Focus and Chill (the names speak for themselves).

Alongside the core electrolyte blend, it includes 500mg each of L-Citrulline Malate and L-Taurine, two ingredients associated with exercise performance and muscle recovery, plus vitamins B6 and B12. Each sachet delivers:

• 400mg of sodium
• 300mg of potassium
• 913mg of chloride
• 100mg of magnesium
• 500mg of L-Citrulline Malate
• 500mg of L-Taurine
• 0.7mg of vitamin B6
• 1.25mcg of vitamin B12

There’s also no added sugar, and the mix is vegan, gluten-free, and caffeine-free. It comes in Strawberry Watermelon and Tropical Punch.

Price: £29.99 for 26 sachets

3. PHIZZ Daily 3-in-1

Phizz started in a London flatshare in 2015, when co-founder Dan Cray and his school friends kept getting hit by the effects of long-haul flights between Australia and the UK – and couldn’t find anything that properly tackled the dehydration. So they brought in a PhD neuroscientist to help bring their idea to life.

What started as a kitchen-table experiment quickly led to early partnerships with Emirates Airlines and Premier League clubs. Today, Phizz has grown into one of the UK’s leading hydration brands.

The 3-in-1 Daily is where it all started. The formula is built around a sodium-glucose co-transport mechanism – designed to help your body absorb water more efficiently than water alone.

• 334mg of sodium
• Potassium 115mg
• Chloride 229mg
• Magnesium 56mg
• Zinc 4mg
• Manganese 1mg
• Copper 500µg
• Vitamin C 300mg (375% NRV)
• Niacin 16mg NE
• Vitamin B6, B7, B1, B2, E, A, B12
• Folic Acid 200µg

It’s available in orange, mango, mixed berry, apple & blackcurrant and lemon & lime.

Price: £7.99 for 20 tablets (put you can purchase up to 240)

4. Heights Hydrate+

Heights is the science-led supplement brand best known for its Vitals⁺ multivitamin, and Hydrate⁺ is their take on the electrolyte sachet – with a twist. Alongside the standard electrolyte blend, each sachet contains 250mg of Cognizin® citicoline, a patented form of a compound that supports brain health, memory and focus. The thinking is that hydration and cognitive performance are more connected than most electrolyte brands acknowledge.

The electrolyte blend draws from Pink Himalayan Salt and Aquamin® magnesium. Each sachet delivers:

• 500mg of sodium
• 100mg of potassium
• 58mg of magnesium
• 250mg of Cognizin® citicoline

Zero sugar, no fillers, no artificial sweeteners – stevia only. To note that the three flavours are cocktail-inspired: peach spritz, lime margarita and mango ginger mule. They wouldn’t pass for your Saturday afternoon tipple, but they’re more appealing and imaginative than the usual berry or citrus defaults.

Price: £29 for 24 sachets

5. Puresport Ultra Electrolytes

Puresport has a devoted following among London runners. Founded in December 2018 by former Scotland rugby internationals Grayson Hart and Adam Ashe – both of whom spent years managing injuries with opioid-based painkillers before deciding there had to be a better approach – the brand started in CBD before pivoting into performance nutrition.

The Ultra Electrolytes range launched in May 2024 and became one of their top-selling products almost immediately – in a survey of 250 of their own runners, 93% said they improved performance and 82% said they were better than other brands they’d used.

Orange Lemonade is the newest addition – joining citrus salt, raspberry salt and watermelon salt. The formula is high-dose and deliberately simple: 1000mg of sodium per sachet, notably more than most competitors, on the basis that most electrolytes are under-dosed. Each sachet contains:

• 1000mg of sodium
• 250mg of potassium
• 100mg of magnesium
• 50mg of calcium

The mix is sweetened with stevia, it’s naturally flavoured, and has zero sugar.

Price: £33 for 30 sachets

6. Gatorade Hydration Booster Strawberry Watermelon

Gatorade may be the brand you associate with victory cooler dumps and sweaty gym sessions, but the Hydration Booster is a more considered, lifestyle-like side of the brand. The Strawberry Watermelon sachets draw their electrolytes from watermelon juice, sea salt, sodium citrate and potassium salt, which together give you a solid 365g of sodium per packet. Each sachet also delivers 100% of your daily value of vitamins A, C, B3, B5 and B6 per packet.

There are also no artificial flavours, sweeteners or added colouring, and just 45 calories per serving. Note that the flavour is strong and the saltiness is very much present, so it sure divides the room. We personally love it, but it’s worth knowing if you’re used to something more subtle.

Price: £17 for 12 sachets

7. Precision Fuel & Hydration Electrolyte Tablets

Precision Fuel & Hydration was founded in 2011 by Andy Blow, a sports scientist and former elite triathlete who kept cramping in the heat despite following all the standard hydration advice. He eventually worked out he was losing far more sodium in sweat than average – and built a brand around solving exactly that. They now work with Premier League clubs, F1 teams, the NFL, NBA and military personnel, which tells you something about their credibility among sportspeople.

The tablets come in four strengths – PH 250, 500, 1000 and 1500 – each referring to the mg of sodium per litre when dissolved, so you can choose your strength based on how heavily you sweat. The brand encourages you to take their free online sweat test to find your number.

Each tablet (dissolved in 500ml water) delivers:

• 250 / 500 / 1000 / 1500mg of sodium (depending on strength)
• 125mg of potassium
• 48mg of calcium
• 24mg of magnesium

The flavour is very surprisingly mild compared to others in this list, so if you don’t want that heavy hit of salt water or fruit flavour, this is a great option.

Price: £8.99 per tube (10 tablets)

8. O.R.S Sport Hydration Tablets

O.R.S is an electrolyte tablet aligned with WHO oral rehydration solution guidelines and used within NHS contexts. The Sport version builds on this clinical foundation with added magnesium and Vitamin D to support muscle function and reduce fatigue during exercise. At just 8.5 calories per tablet, it remains a stripped-back formulation.

One tablet dissolves in 500ml of water and uses a low dose of glucose to support sodium and water absorption via the body’s natural co-transport mechanism, rather than relying on high sugar content. Informed Sport certified, vegan, and free from gluten, lactose, and artificial preservatives. Each tablet delivers:

• 260mg of sodium
• 98.6mg of potassium
• 56mg of magnesium
• 177mg of chloride
• Vitamin D3, B2

It’s available in orange, mixed berry and lemon flavours.

Price: £7.99 for one tube

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