DIY Electrolyte Drink: Recipe and Cost vs. Packets Beta

A brand-name electrolyte packet runs $1.20–$1.60 a serving. Mixed yourself from bulk salts, the same drink costs under a quarter. There's no machine to buy, so you start saving with the first serving.

The short answer

A single-serving packet from LMNT, Liquid IV and the like is about $1.20–$1.60 each. Stir the same minerals into water yourself and a serving lands around $0.05–$0.20. With no equipment to pay off, you keep that whole gap from day one, and how much it adds up to depends only on how many servings a week you drink.

What's in a packet

Strip away the branding and an electrolyte packet is mostly sodium and potassium with a little magnesium. Those are ordinary minerals you can buy in bulk for very little. Most of what you pay for in a packet is the packaging, flavor and marketing.

Sodium (the main one)

Plain table salt covers this. About 1/4 tsp is the backbone of most recipes, and a canister costs almost nothing per serving.

Potassium

A potassium-chloride "lite salt" (sold next to regular salt) or a squeeze of citrus supplies this. A little goes a long way.

Magnesium and flavor

A pinch of a magnesium supplement is optional. For taste, add citrus juice or a sugar-free flavoring. That's how you make it your own, and it adds next to nothing to the cost.

A simple recipe

Per ~16 oz of water, stir in:

~1/4 tsp salt (sodium)
a potassium source: ~1/8 tsp lite salt / potassium chloride, or a squeeze of citrus
a pinch of magnesium, if desired
citrus juice or a sugar-free flavor, to taste

These are starting amounts. Adjust the sodium up or down to suit your needs and how hard you're sweating.

Electrolyte ingredients

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A quick health note

Electrolyte needs vary a lot by person, climate, and activity level. If you have kidney or blood-pressure concerns, check with a doctor before loading up on sodium or potassium.

Try it yourself

Run your own numbers

Your savings mostly come down to how many servings you drink a week. If you sweat a lot, you'd have bought more packets, so mixing your own saves you more. The calculator shows the difference per serving and per year.

It takes about a minute, and there's nothing to sign up for.

Calculate your electrolyte savings →

Is it worth it?

If you drink them regularly, yes. There's no upfront cost to recoup, so you save on every serving you mix instead of buying a packet. If you only reach for them occasionally, the bulk salts last ages and cost a few cents a glass. The calculator will show the gap for your habit.

Want more precise doses?

Our supplement-by-supplement grid lays the leading packets out row by row, so you can see the dose you've been buying in each. Or use the mix builder: tell it what you want electrolytes for, and it suggests a recipe you can adjust one dose at a time.

Health note: electrolyte doses matter. Too much sodium, potassium, or magnesium can be dangerous, especially with kidney, heart, or blood-pressure conditions. Measure with an accurate gram scale and talk to your doctor before changing your intake. Full terms & disclaimers →