Cure vs LMNT: Every Ingredient and Nutrition Fact Explained

Quick Answer

Cure and LMNT are built on different ideas.

Cure is a gentle, balanced mix. It has a little sodium, more potassium, and a few natural sugars that help your gut absorb water.
LMNT is a salt-heavy mix. It has four times more sodium than Cure, plus magnesium, and no sugar at all.

If you sweat a lot or eat low-carb, LMNT usually fits better. If you want everyday hydration that tastes mild, Cure usually fits better. The details are below.

Side-by-Side Label Comparison

Per packet	Cure	LMNT
Calories	20–25	Near zero
Sodium	240–250 mg	1,000 mg
Potassium	295–350 mg	200 mg
Magnesium	None listed	60 mg
Total sugar	4 g (0 g added)	0 g
Sweetener	Stevia, monk fruit	Stevia
Sodium-to-potassium ratio	About 0.8 : 1	5 : 1

Cure’s numbers change a little by flavor. Tropical Punch has 250 mg sodium and 295 mg potassium per packet. Watermelon has 240 mg sodium and 350 mg potassium. LMNT’s numbers stay the same across flavors: 1,000 mg sodium, 200 mg potassium and 60 mg magnesium. Cure Hydration, Electrolyte Drink Mix, Tropical Punch, 14 Packets, 0.27 oz (7.6 g) Each +2

First, How Electrolytes Help You Hydrate

Water alone doesn’t always hydrate you well. Your body holds water using minerals called electrolytes. Here are the three jobs that matter:

Sodium keeps water in your blood and body fluids. When you sweat, you lose water and sodium together. If you replace only the water, your sodium gets more diluted. That can leave you feeling bloated or still thirsty.
Potassium balances the water inside your cells. Sodium works mostly outside cells, and potassium works mostly inside them. The two have to stay in balance.
Sodium and sugar travel together through your gut. Your small intestine has a “door” (called SGLT1) that carries sodium and glucose in together, and water follows them. This is the idea behind the World Health Organization’s oral rehydration solution (ORS), which is built from sodium, glucose and potassium.

Keep these three jobs in mind. Every ingredient below either does one of them or does nothing for hydration.

Cure: Ingredient by Ingredient

A Tropical Punch packet lists coconut water powder, citric acid, natural flavor, pink Himalayan salt, vegetable juice for color, sodium citrate, lemon juice powder, stevia and monk fruit extract. Some flavors add fruit powders. Berry Pomegranate adds pomegranate juice powder and beet powder. vitacost grove

Coconut water powder. This is Cure’s main source of potassium. It also brings a small amount of natural sugar, which is the “partner” your gut uses to pull in sodium and water. It is the reason Cure has any sugar at all.

Pink Himalayan salt. This is Cure’s sodium source. It is mostly sodium chloride, the same compound as table salt, with tiny traces of other minerals. Those traces are too small to matter for hydration. The sodium and chloride do the real work of holding water in your body.

Sodium citrate. This is a second source of sodium. The citrate part is also used in standard rehydration formulas, and it is gentle on the stomach.

Citric acid. This gives the tart taste. It does not hydrate you.

Lemon juice powder, natural flavor, vegetable juice or beet powder, pomegranate powder. These add taste and color, plus a tiny bit of sugar from the fruit powders. None of them drives hydration.

Stevia extract and monk fruit extract. These are zero-calorie sweeteners. They make the drink taste sweet without adding sugar, and they have no effect on hydration.

Cure’s Nutrition Facts

Calories (20–25): These come from the small amount of natural sugar.
Carbs (6 g) and total sugar (4 g): The Tropical Punch label shows 6 g total carbohydrate, 4 g total sugars and 0 g added sugars. One dietitian review says the sugar likely comes from the coconut water powder and fruit juice powders. This sugar is the helper that supports absorption. heb letsliveitup
Sodium (240–250 mg): It replaces some of what you lose in sweat. It is a modest dose, about 10% of the daily value.
Potassium (295–350 mg): This is about 6–8% of the daily value, and more than the sodium. It supports the water balance inside your cells.
Calcium and iron (0–6 mg and 0–1 mg): These are trace amounts from the coconut water. They are not a hydration factor.

LMNT: Ingredient by Ingredient

LMNT has a much shorter list. The Orange Salt flavor is made from salt (sodium chloride), citric acid, magnesium malate, potassium chloride, natural flavors and stevia leaf extract. Flavors swap the acid or flavoring, and some add cocoa or tea. drinklmnt

Salt (sodium chloride). This is almost the whole product. LMNT’s own homemade recipe uses 2,500 mg of sodium chloride to supply 1,000 mg of sodium. The rest of that salt is chloride, which is roughly 1,500 mg and is not shown on the label. Sodium and chloride together hold water in your blood and body fluids. This is why LMNT is so strong for heavy sweating. tiefpunkt

Potassium chloride. This is the potassium source. LMNT lists 385 mg of potassium chloride to supply 200 mg of potassium. It helps balance the water inside your cells, but at 200 mg it plays a smaller role than the sodium. drinklmnt

Magnesium malate. This is magnesium bound to malic acid. A packet has 60 mg of magnesium, about 14% of the daily value. Magnesium supports muscles and nerves, and you lose a little in sweat. It does not move water the way sodium does, so it is a useful extra rather than a hydration driver.

Citric acid or malic acid. These give the tart taste. They do not hydrate you.

Natural flavors. These add taste only.

Stevia leaf extract. This is a zero-calorie sweetener. LMNT has no sugar, so there is no glucose partner for sodium in the packet itself.

LMNT’s Nutrition Facts

Calories and carbs: Near zero. One review notes the mix has 2 g of carbs or less. This is why people on keto, low-carb or fasting plans like it. garagegymreviews
Sodium (1,000 mg): This is a large dose, about 43% of the daily value. It is the main reason LMNT tastes salty.
Potassium (200 mg): About 4% of the daily value.
Magnesium (60 mg): About 14% of the daily value.
Sugar (0 g): There is no glucose to help absorption. LMNT leans on sodium alone. If you drink it with a meal or snack that has carbs, your gut gets the sodium-and-glucose partnership from the food.

The Math: How Strong Is Each Drink?

Packets are only half the story, because the strength depends on how much water you add. Here is each drink next to the WHO reduced-osmolarity ORS, which has about 1,725 mg of sodium, 780 mg of potassium and 13.5 g of glucose per liter. These are per-liter figures I worked out from the labels.

Per liter	Cure (16 oz)	Cure (8 oz)	LMNT (16 oz)	LMNT (32 oz)	WHO ORS
Sodium	about 530 mg	about 1,055 mg	about 2,115 mg	about 1,055 mg	about 1,725 mg
Potassium	about 625–740 mg	about 1,245–1,480 mg	about 425 mg	about 210 mg	about 780 mg

What this shows:

Cure says it’s based on the WHO ORS idea. The idea matches, but the sodium is lower. It has sodium, potassium and some sugar, as ORS does. But its sodium is well below the ORS level, and the label doesn’t say how much of its sugar is glucose.
Cure’s potassium sits close to the ORS level at 16 oz. At 8 oz it is concentrated well above it.
LMNT at 16 oz is saltier than ORS. Mixing it into 32 oz brings the sodium close to the ORS level. If you find it too salty, more water is the fix.

For context, sweat sodium varies a lot from person to person. A commonly cited average is around 900 mg per liter. Heavy, salty sweaters lose a lot more.

Who Should Pick Which

Pick LMNT if you:

Sweat heavily or do long workouts in the heat.
Notice white salt stains on your clothes after exercise (a sign of salty sweat).
Eat low-carb, keto, or fast, and want electrolytes without sugar.
Like a salty taste.

Pick Cure if you:

Want everyday hydration, travel hydration, or help after a night out.
Do light to moderate exercise.
Find LMNT too salty.
Want a mix closer to the oral rehydration design, with some sugar and more potassium.
Need something for kids. Cure makes a kids’ version, and Cure’s page says its mix is suitable for adults and children aged 1 or older. LMNT’s label says it is not recommended for anyone under 14. wholefoodsmarket well

Be careful with either if you have a medical condition.

LMNT’s 1,000 mg of sodium may not suit people on a low-sodium diet, or those with high blood pressure, kidney disease or heart failure. LMNT’s label also says not to use more than two servings per day and not to combine it with other magnesium or potassium supplements on the same day. well
Cure’s potassium can matter for people with kidney problems or those taking potassium-sparing medicines.
Neither replaces a proper oral rehydration solution if someone has serious vomiting or diarrhea. In that case, talk to a doctor.

FAQ

Which hydrates better, Cure or LMNT?
It depends on the situation. Cure uses the sodium-plus-sugar idea, so it suits mild, everyday hydration. LMNT replaces far more sodium, so it suits heavy sweating. Neither is “better” in every situation.

Is Cure’s sugar bad for you?
No. It has 0 g of added sugar and about 4 g of total sugar, which comes from coconut water and fruit powders. That small amount is part of how it helps absorption.

Why is LMNT so salty?
Because 1,000 mg of sodium is a big dose. Adding more water (up to 32 oz) makes it taste milder.

Does LMNT work without sugar?
Yes. Sodium alone still helps your body hold water. You just don’t get the glucose-assisted absorption unless you take it with food that has carbs.

Do I need magnesium for hydration?
Not really. Magnesium helps muscles and nerves, but sodium and potassium do the main hydration work.

Can I drink either one every day?
For most healthy people, one packet a day is fine. If you have blood pressure, kidney or heart issues, check with your doctor first.

Bottom Line

Cure is the mild, balanced choice: some sodium, more potassium, and a little natural sugar. LMNT is the strong, salty choice: lots of sodium, magnesium, and no sugar. Match the drink to how much you sweat and how you eat, and you will pick the right one.