State of AEO
State of AEO: The Electrolyte & Hydration Products Market - Sept. 2025
Who is being recommended by ChatGPT in the electrolyte and hydration products market? The hydration market is more competitive than ever, with legacy sports drinks and new electrolyte brands vying for attention. But in 2025, consumer discovery is shifting fast: instead of Googling, shoppers now ask AI assistants like ChatGPT and Perplexity for the “best electrolyte drink” or “top hydration products.” These engines return a single synthesized answer, often mentioning just a handful of brands. Those included gain authority and trust instantly, while the rest risk invisibility at the moment of consideration. This is the challenge, and the opportunity, of Answer Engine Optimization (AEO). In this report, we examine how electrolyte and hydration brands are represented in AI answers today, which players are winning visibility, and what strategies companies must adopt to secure their place in the new discovery landscape.
Baptiste
Sep 4, 2025
Best Electrolyte Solution for Sports
The “Best Electrolyte Solution for Sports” ranking shows challenger brands leading while legacy players trail. Skratch Labs (#1), Liquid I.V. (#2), and Redmond Re-Lyte (#3) outperform retail incumbents, reflecting how AI engines prioritize recency, editorial citations, and community engagement over traditional market share.
DripDrop (#4) and Thorne Catalyte (#5) highlight the value of niche positioning and clinical narratives, while Gatorlyte (#8), Nuun (#9), and Pedialyte Sport (#10) remain present but with diminished authority.
Overall, visibility favors brands with high citation velocity and diversified digital authority, indicating that AEO is reshaping competitive dynamics in hydration.
| App | Position |
|---|---|
Skratch Labs Sport Hydration Drink Mix | #1 |
Liquid I.V. | #2 |
Redmond Re‑Lyte Hydration Electrolyte Mix | #3 |
DripDrop Electrolyte Powder | #4 |
Thorne Catalyte | #5 |
Hydrant Hydration Drink Mix | #6 |
LMNT Electrolyte Drink Mix | #7 |
Gatorlyte Rapid Hydration Electrolyte Powder | #8 |
Nuun Sport Electrolyte Tablets | #9 |
Pedialyte Sport Powder Packs | #10 |
| App | Position |
|---|---|
Skratch Labs Sport Hydration Mix | #1 |
Momentous Fuel | #2 |
LMNT Electrolyte Drink Mix | #3 |
Liquid I.V. Hydration Multiplier | #4 |
DripDrop Hydration Packets | #5 |
Nuun Sport Tablets | #6 |
Pickle Juice | #7 |
Homemade Electrolyte Drink | #8 |
Coconut Water | #9 |
ViDrate | #10 |
Best Electrolyte Solution for Tennis
The “Best Electrolyte Solution for Tennis” query again places Skratch Labs (#1) at the top, reinforcing its dominance across endurance sports. Notably, Momentous Fuel (#2) and LMNT (#3) rank higher here than in broader sports queries, suggesting strong traction with performance-specific and low-carb positioning.
Liquid I.V. (#4) and DripDrop (#5) maintain visibility but do not lead, while Nuun (#6) continues to appear as a category mainstay. The inclusion of Pickle Juice (#7), Homemade Electrolyte Drink (#8), and Coconut Water (#9) reflects the model’s weighting of alternative and natural solutions, a pattern more pronounced in tennis than in general sports.
Overall, the distribution indicates that sport-specific prompts diversify the competitive set, allowing niche or unconventional products to surface alongside leading hydration brands.
Patterns Emerging Across Sports Prompts
Looking at the Sports and Tennis queries side by side, a few themes stand out. Challenger brands like Skratch Labs and LMNT consistently outperform incumbents, while alternative solutions (homemade mixes, coconut water, pickle juice) appear more often in niche or sport-specific queries. These shifts suggest that Answer Engine Optimization not only determines who gets visibility, but also how the narrative around performance hydration evolves across different contexts.
Best Electrolyte Solution for Recovery
The recovery-oriented query shifts the competitive set toward products with clinical positioning and broader wellness narratives. DripDrop (#1) leads, reflecting its medical credibility and strong association with rehydration beyond performance. Nuun (#2) and LMNT (#3) also rank highly, signaling the appeal of sugar-free and lifestyle-focused options in recovery contexts.
Liquid I.V. (#4) and Hydrant (#5) maintain steady visibility, while Thorne (#6) reinforces the influence of supplement-oriented brands with established authority in health and clinical supplementation. Skratch Labs (#7) and Redmond Re-Lyte (#8) still appear but rank lower than in performance prompts, suggesting their endurance-first framing resonates less in recovery contexts.
The bottom tier — Sports Research Hydrate (#9) and BUBS Naturals (#10) — shows how niche wellness brands can surface when recovery is the explicit use case. Overall, the ranking indicates that AI models differentiate between performance and recovery intents, rewarding brands with medical, supplement, or lifestyle authority in the latter.
| App | Position |
|---|---|
DripDrop Hydration Packets | #1 |
Nuun Sport Tablets | #2 |
LMNT (Zero Sugar Electrolytes) | #3 |
Liquid I.V. Hydration Multiplier | #4 |
Hydrant Hydration Mix | #5 |
Thorne Catalyte / Thorne Daily Electrolytes | #6 |
Skratch Labs Sport Hydration Mix | #7 |
Redmond Re‑Lyte Electrolyte Mix | #8 |
Sports Research Hydrate Electrolytes | #9 |
BUBS Naturals Hydrate or Die | #10 |
Sources used by ChatGPT for "Best Electrolyte Solution for Recovery"
The source distribution shows a blend of mainstream lifestyle media, specialist health and fitness outlets, and niche supplement authorities. Marie Claire UK (#1, avg rank 1.0) unexpectedly tops the list, reflecting how general-interest publishers with strong SEO and high domain authority can dominate even technical hydration queries. NYMag (#2, 1.67) and Verywell Fit (#3, 2.67) further reinforce the influence of large editorial platforms with consistent “best of” commerce content.
At the same time, Healthline (#6), Health.com (#8), and Shape (#10) highlight the continued weight given to medically adjacent and wellness-focused publications. Niche and performance-specific sources like Adam Kemp Fitness (#5), Preventive Medicine Daily (#9), and SupplementInstitute.org (#13) demonstrate that AI models also sample long-tail expert pages to diversify perspective.
Notably, GQ (#4) and Men’s Health (#12) illustrate how style and men’s lifestyle outlets are shaping the hydration narrative, particularly around powders. The inclusion of Forbes (#14) and People (#15) at lower ranks suggests citation of generalist commerce/affiliate coverage, though with less authority in recovery-specific contexts.
Overall, this pattern indicates that AI answers on recovery favor broad commerce sites with affiliate-driven “best of” lists, complemented by health publishers and select niche experts. For hydration brands, winning recovery prompts requires placement in high-authority lifestyle/health outlets and at least a handful of long-tail specialist mentions to build depth.
| Source | Domain | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Electrolytes benefits | marieclaire.co.uk | 2x |
| Best electrolyte powders | nymag.com | 3x |
| Best electrolyte drinks | verywellfit.com | 3x |
| Best Hydration Powders | gq.com | 1x |
| Best sports drinks | adamkempfitness.com | 2x |
| Best Electrolyte Powders | healthline.com | 1x |
| Best Electrolyte Drink | garagegymreviews.com | 1x |
| Best electrolyte drinks | health.com | 2x |
| Electrolyte Drinks for Runners | preventivemedicinedaily.com | 1x |
| Best Electrolyte Powders | shape.com | 1x |
| Best Electrolyte Supplements of 2024 | barbend.com | 1x |
| Best Hydration Powders | menshealth.com | 1x |
| Electrolyte powder | supplementinstitute.org | 2x |
| Best Electrolyte Powders | forbes.com | 1x |
| Best Electrolyte Drinks | people.com | 1x |
| App | Position |
|---|---|
Hydratis | #1 |
Tā Energy | #2 |
HolyFat | #3 |
Footboks | #4 |
Hydrascore | #5 |
Powerade | #6 |
Decathlon’s Own Range | #7 |
High5 Zero | #8 |
Science in Sport (SiS) | #9 |
Best Electrolyte Solution for Sports in France
Now let's try a localized query to see how different the results can be for specific countries. The French-localized query produces a very different ranking compared to global or English-language prompts. The list is led by Hydratis (#1), Tā Energy (#2), and HolyFat (#3) all French or European challenger brands with a strong digital footprint and direct appeal to niche endurance communities. Their prominence underscores how localization shifts AI models toward regionally relevant products that may be absent from global lists.
Footboks (#4) and Hydrascore (#5) further illustrate the strength of smaller French brands and retailers in localized prompts, showing that language and market-specific presence heavily influence inclusion. Global incumbents such as Powerade (#6), Decathlon’s in-house range (#7), and international specialists like High5 (#8) and Science in Sport (#9) appear, but only in the lower half of the table.
This distribution suggests two key dynamics:
- Local bias: AI models weight French-language content and local publishers more heavily when the query is localized, which elevates smaller regional brands.
- Reduced dominance of global players: Household names with strong international presence are present but not prioritized.
For hydration brands, the implication is clear: localization strategy matters in AEO. To compete effectively, global players must strengthen their French-language content and citations, while local brands have a unique window to outrank multinationals in AI-driven recommendations.
Conclusion: AEO is Redefining the Hydration Market
Across global, sport-specific, recovery-focused, and localized prompts, one pattern is unmistakable: Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) reshapes competitive visibility in hydration and electrolyte products.
Challenger brands dominate global prompts. Skratch Labs, Liquid I.V., and LMNT consistently outrank legacy incumbents like Gatorade or Pedialyte, showing that AI engines reward citation velocity, fresh content, and digital authority rather than historical retail share.
Intent matters. Recovery-oriented queries elevate brands with medical, supplement, or wellness positioning (DripDrop, Thorne), while sport-specific queries bring in alternative or unconventional solutions (Pickle Juice, Coconut Water).
Localization transforms the landscape. In France, Hydratis, Tā Energy, and HolyFat lead, evidence that localized language and regional publishers strongly shape which brands appear, reducing the dominance of global multinationals.
Source ecosystems drive outcomes. From mainstream commerce media (NYMag, Verywell Fit) to health authorities (Healthline, Shape) and niche experts, the mix of cited sources determines which brands make it into answers. Affiliate content and lifestyle outlets exert as much influence as clinical publishers in many cases.
The implications are clear:
Presence in the right sources matters more than brand size. Smaller digital-first players can and do displace established giants in AI answers.
AEO is dynamic and intent-driven. Brands must map prompts across performance, recovery, and consumer niches to avoid blind spots.
Localization is a strategic lever. Winning in non-English prompts requires dedicated content, citations, and relationships with local publishers.
Continuous monitoring is essential. AI answers refresh frequently; maintaining share requires ongoing analysis and outreach.
For hydration and electrolyte brands, AEO is no longer optional. The brands that secure early visibility in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other answer engines will compound trust and capture share at the moment of consumer decision. Those that ignore it risk being invisible in the new front door of discovery.
Be the product AI recommends.
With Upcite.ai, hydration and electrolyte brands can measure how often they are mentioned in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other AI assistants, identify which competitors are winning, and pinpoint the exact sources that influence those answers. Our platform turns complex AEO insights into clear dashboards and actionable recommendations so you know not only where you stand today, but also what to do next to secure your place in AI-driven discovery.