The Best Energy Gels for Runners: What to Look For and Nine Favorites (2024)

Ask 10 runners to identify a gel brand, and I’ll bet $10 that most will name GU. This best-known brand offers a panoply of gel flavors, including this chocolate one that has a taste reminiscent of molten lava cake.

If Chocolate Outrage isn’t the one for you, not to worry. You can pick from a variety of different chocolate options GU has to offer. There are several to choose from, including Campfire S’Mores and Chocolate Coconut.

Aside from great taste, the duo of simple carbohydrates can be metabolized quickly by your working muscles, giving them a useful energy source when pushing the pace. However, the lower carb count means it’s a gel best used for shorter runs or less intense longer ones, or resolve to suck several back to properly fuel your workouts.

So, again, a good thing it tastes great, which will leave you wanting more. There is a touch of caffeine, but likely not enough to have much impact on performance.

Key Specs

Energy gels get the job done and are convenient to bring along on a run, but the cost can add up quickly if you are slamming down a few packets each workout.

The $2 price tag makes this gel easier to swallow. If chewing is not something you want (or are able) to do during multi-hour runs, this low-cost gel makes it easy to slurp back plenty of fast-working, bonk-proofing carbs.

Each packet provides a lofty 200 calories and 50 grams of effective carb energy. Though unflavored, it has a nice, soft sweetness—not overbearing at all to digest while moving along. It’s also caffeine-free if you find that stimulant gives you too much of a buzz.

Key Specs

Although this gel isn’t made with any actual fruit, it does taste exactly as it sounds—like a refreshing fruit smoothie. Its consistency makes it easy to swallow while you’re chugging along.

Honey Stinger differentiates itself by using organic honey for some of its fuel, and several endurance athletes I know find its gels easier to digest. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends consuming at least 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrates for each hour of activity, so you need two of these every hour to keep you moving at a good clip.

Foods (which, yes, includes gels) with the organic label don’t have added color, artificial flavors, or ingredients grown with hazardous pesticides. The honey does add some thickness to the texture, which may not appeal to everyone. The product is naturally caffeine-free, but you can get caffeine in the strawberry kiwi flavor if desired.

Key Specs

Chargel is a long-time favorite gel of mine for big efforts. First, it delivers a mighty 45 grams of fatigue-reducing carbs for times when I’m going hard for several hours. I’ve come to appreciate the tapioca-like texture, which I find fun to slurp back. All three of the brand's flavors have just the right amount of sweetness that doesn’t overpower my taste buds with saccharine. Bonus: The gel comes with built-in water to help the carbs digest better.

While the larger pouch pretty much guarantees no sticky hands, I recognize that this also makes it harder to pack and might feel bulky.

While the B vitamins that Chargel contains don't directly provide energy themselves, they could be a useful addition to a gel because they're needed for cells to break down carbs for energy.

Key Specs

For a double dose of energy, slip this gel into your jersey pocket or running belt. It packs 75 mg of caffeine (a typical coffee has 80- to 100 mg) and 30 grams of quick-to-work carbs.

The gel is formulated using a research-backed 2:1 maltodextrin-to-fructose carbohydrate blend. Research shows that including caffeine as part of your during-workout fueling regimen may improve power output and reduce fatigue, allowing you to maintain a faster pace for longer durations.

And don’t overlook the high amount of sodium in this gel, which will better help to offset sweat losses, especially during hot runs. Simply said, consider this a gel on steroids. It might aid your gut and keep you from feeling too jazzed to alternate between this caffeinated gel and non-caffeinated option throughout your workout. Another perk: The thin consistency definitely makes it easy to go down.

Key Specs

While I don’t know too many athletes who would call gels delicious in the way that a cheeseburger is, this one is made with pure Vermont maple syrup, and is about as close to crave-worthy as you’ll get in the gel world.

Certainly, this is an option that will appeal to those looking for more ‘natural’ ways to fuel their runs. The main sugar in maple syrup is sucrose, which is a mixture of glucose and fructose that will help it digest quickly, offering a rapid hit of energy.

With 100 calories and 26 grams of carbs in a packet, you’ll need to take in two of these for most long runs if it’s your primary sugar source. The formula is free of gelling agents or thickeners, so it is more runny than many other gels. In other words, be careful as the syrup will come out quickly.

Also there is very little sodium, so you will need to get this electrolyte from other sources on your runs, such as a sports drink. Untapped has flavors including Salted Raspberry which is made with sea salt for a bigger dose of sodium.

Key Specs

Chia seeds became a buzzy food in the running world after the best-selling book Born to Run described how members of the Mexican Tarahumara tribe used them as fuel for ultra-long-distance runs. The book was also the inspiration behind Hüma, a chia-based gel brand. The use of powdered chia in this gel provides a unique texture and can offer a more sustained release of energy— beneficial for those long-haul runs.

All Huma Gels are gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, and are made with some real fruit. This is part of a new crop of gel brands using alternative energy sources like fruit puree.

When you're sweating buckets, the generous amount of sodium in the Plus versions of this gel is worthy of a resounding Ch-ch-ch-chia.

Bring along one of each flavor so you're set for whatever fruity flavor you are craving at mile 20. No flavor fatigue here. Just keep in mind there are lesser amounts of carbs here, so be sure to take in enough to fuel adequately.

Key Specs

These gels are made from a mix of fructose and glucose combined with water and electrolytes, which Maurten refers to as ‘hydrogel'. Highly absorbent (i.e. the carbohydrates go more smoothly from the stomach to the intestine), this hydrogel is less taxing on the stomach, and that translates to better tolerance.

I can vouch for the ability to take in more carbs per hour of exercise from these gels without suffering from gut rot. So yes, this is a worthy splurge if you want to load up on sugary energy for better performance when it counts most.

Some athletes use both the gel and Maurten drink mix during workouts to hit sky-high hourly carb totals. The lack of flavor is good for those who find flavored gels to be excessively sugary or artificial tasting, but perhaps not to the liking of those who need some citrusy or chocolaty flavor to keep them motivated to fuel regularly.

Key Specs

Here is a good pick if you want to avoid lab-created flavors but still get an effective energy gel. Made with fruit concentrate and fruit puree, these gels have an exciting fruit-forward flavor that will definitely appeal to fruit aficionados. I could also imagine blending any of these into a post-run smoothie.

Maltodextrin and fruit team up to provide carbs that digest smoothly, resulting in fewer chances for users to find themselves dashing to the nearest port-a-potty. The nutrition numbers are consistent among all of their flavors, which will appeal to runners who are militant about tracking their nutrition down to the exact gram. The gels are advertised as being vegan and gluten-free.

Key Specs

How many carbs do I need to take in during workouts?

Popular sports nutrition advice is to aim for at least 30 grams of carbohydrates for each hour of activity during exercise that lasts longer than 90 minutes to stave off the dreaded bonk. Less than this and you risk premature fatigue and subpar results.

Previously it was believed that the body could not utilize more than 60 grams of carbs per hour. However, new sports nutrition products including gels using ‘multiple transportable carbohydrates’ have allowed this number to balloon to 100 grams per hour or even more. The more carbs you have on board the harder you can push for longer. But the hard-charging pros know that a certain amount of gut training is required to build up tolerance.

How many gels should I suck back during my runs?

It’s not only important to pick which gel you want to take with you on a run, but also to know how often you’ll have to take it. The general rule of gel consumption is to take one every 30 to 45 minutes of your training run or race. But this will vary based on the number of carbs in the product and how many carbs you are aiming to eat.

For instance, if you wish to consume 60 grams of carbs per hour of exercise, then you would be best served taking in a gel that gives you 30 grams of carbs about each half hour of your workout. Consistent fueling is better than trying to take in all of your carbs at once. And gels are best consumed with water, which helps them go down a little easier and lowers the risk for stomach woes.

So many gels are made with maltodextrin. What is this stuff?

Maltodextrin is a neutral-tasting type of carbohydrate made from potato, corn or rice starch. Sports nutrition manufacturers gravitate towards this carb since it digests just as quickly as the simple carbohydrate glucose so can provide athletes with a quick blood sugar boost and a hit of energy.

While maltodextrin serves a useful purpose during exercise, overall it should be consumed in moderation within the realms of a well-balanced diet as it can be considered an added sugar with no nutritional value.