Spend time in the sports-drink aisle and a pattern emerges: nearly every electrolyte product is a variation on three inexpensive salts, differentiated by flavoring and packaging. The formulas underneath are so stable that the category's flagship brand publishes its own recipe on its website. Below are the four standard formulas — the daily packet, the sports-drink liter, the clinical base and the endurance mix — each priced out per serving.
The clones
The LMNT clone
PUBLISHED RECIPE| Sodium chloride | 2.5 g → 1,000 mg Na | $0.02 |
| Potassium chloride | 385 mg → 200 mg K | $0.02 |
| Magnesium malate | 390 mg → 60 mg Mg | $0.04 |
≈ $0.08 per packet
Dissolved in 16–32 oz of water. Mix a 100-serving jar once — 250 g salt, 38.5 g potassium chloride, 39 g magnesium malate — and it's a three-month supply.
Kitchen Gatorade
PER LITER| Table sugar | 40–60 g | $0.05 |
| Table salt | 2 g → 800 mg Na | $0.01 |
| Water + citrus squeeze | 1 L | $0.04 |
≈ $0.10 per liter
The endurance-standard 6% carb solution at a tenth of the shelf price. Same fueling, no dye.
WHO rehydration base
CLINICAL| Sodium chloride | 2.6 g | — |
| Glucose (or 27 g sucrose) | 13.5 g | — |
| Potassium chloride | 1.5 g | — |
| Trisodium citrate | 2.9 g | — |
≈ $0.05 per liter
The literal clinical formula — 75 mEq sodium, 20 mEq potassium. For real dehydration, not just the gym.
The intra-workout
ENDURANCE| Cyclic dextrin or maltodextrin | 30–60 g | $0.50 |
| Essential amino acids | 10 g | $0.70 |
| Sodium + potassium + magnesium | 500 / 200 / 100 mg | $0.05 |
≈ $1.25 per liter
Sip every 10–15 minutes through the session. The $4 'intra' tub is this, minus the honesty.