Electrolyte Powders Ranked: Sugar Content, Sodium Levels, and Taste

Walk into any gas station in Maine this summer and you’ll find at least four electrolyte powders near the register. That shelf space is new. These products have gone from specialty running stores to mainstream grocery checkouts in just a few years, and the market is cluttered. Bright packaging, big sodium claims, and vague promises of “optimal hydration” make it hard to compare them honestly. So we did the comparing ourselves.

What We Tested

We evaluated seven products: LMNT, Drip Drop, Liquid IV, Nuun Sport, Skratch Labs, Ultima Replenisher, and Gatorade Powder. For each one, we recorded sodium per serving, potassium per serving, total sugar, artificial sweetener use, and price per serving. We also taste-tested each during trail runs and gym sessions over two weeks in July, primarily on trails in southern Maine where humidity makes sweat losses worse than people expect.

Sodium: The Number That Actually Matters

Sodium is the mineral your body loses most in sweat, and it’s the one that drives fluid retention after you drink. LMNT had the most, at 1,000 mg per serving. Drip Drop came in at 660 mg. Liquid IV delivered 500 mg.

Gatorade Powder had 160 mg.

That gap is significant. Research on sweat composition in athletes shows that sodium losses during prolonged exercise are substantial enough that low-sodium drinks may actually replace the fluid without replacing the electrolytes that help you hold onto it. For anyone doing outdoor activity lasting more than an hour on a warm Maine day, the lower-sodium options may leave you rehydrated on paper but still feeling off. Understanding the full picture of summer hydration in Maine goes beyond which powder you choose.

Sugar and Sweeteners

Gatorade Powder had 21 grams of sugar per serving. Liquid IV had 11. Skratch Labs used 9 grams from cane sugar. LMNT and Ultima contained no sugar, using stevia for flavor instead.

Sugar isn’t automatically bad here. During sustained exercise, glucose helps the gut pull sodium from your intestine through a shared transport mechanism (the SGLT1 co-transporter). That’s why oral rehydration solutions used in clinical settings include some glucose alongside sodium. The tradeoff is that at rest, you’re just adding sugar with no functional benefit. Context matters: what makes sense on mile 12 of a trail race doesn’t make sense at your desk.

Price and Taste

Gatorade is the cheapest at roughly $0.25 per serving. LMNT costs about $1.75. Everything else falls somewhere between those two points.

Taste is subjective, but our testers had consistent preferences. Skratch Labs was the favorite for its mild, non-artificial flavor that doesn’t coat the back of your throat. LMNT was polarizing: people who like salty drinks loved it, and people who don’t found it difficult to finish. Nuun’s tablet format earned points for convenience. It fits in a pocket, dissolves in most water bottles built for Maine trails, and doesn’t clump in heat the way powders sometimes do on long trail days.

What We’d Actually Recommend

For easy workouts or everyday use, Nuun Sport or Ultima offer solid electrolytes without a lot of sugar or a steep price. For longer efforts in heat, Skratch Labs or Drip Drop hit a reasonable balance of sodium, taste, and glucose. LMNT is the right pick if you want maximum sodium and zero sugar, though it takes some getting used to. Gatorade Powder has the name recognition and the price, but its sodium content is low enough that it won’t do much for serious rehydration needs.

None of these replace water. They supplement it. If you’re doing most of your activity outdoors in Maine’s humid summers and finding that drinking plenty of water still leaves you feeling drained, the sodium content in what you’re drinking may be part of the reason. Poor electrolyte balance is also one of the early warning signs covered in our guide to heat exhaustion in summer hikers.

Sources

• Baker LB. Sweating Rate and Sweat Sodium Concentration in Athletes: A Review of Methodology and Intra/Interindividual Variability. Sports Medicine. 2017;47(Suppl 1):111-128. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40279-017-0691-5
• Navas-Carretero S, et al. Potency of Oral Rehydration Solution in Inducing Fluid Absorption is Related to Glucose Concentration. Scientific Reports. 2020;10(1):7803. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-64818-3
• Product nutrition labels verified against manufacturer websites, May 2026.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider before making any health decisions.