By Sebastian Madlangbayan, founder of Cleonse: the world's cleanest 3-ingredient organic electrolyte.
Nuun Sport and Cleonse both skip the artificial dyes and preservatives you find in a bottle of Gatorade, but they solve hydration in almost opposite ways. Nuun is a low-sugar effervescent tablet with five electrolytes, sweetened with stevia. Cleonse is a three-ingredient stick built around 500mg of sodium and real cane sugar for fuel. Your best pick depends on what you actually want "clean" to mean.
I'm Sebastian Madlangbayan, I built Cleonse, and I'm also a former state champion tennis player who has tried nearly every electrolyte on the shelf. Nuun is a good product with a loyal following, and I'm not going to pretend otherwise. So instead of a hit piece, here's the honest breakdown I'd give a training partner who asked me which one to buy.
The short answer
If you want the shortest, lowest-sugar way to get a spread of five electrolytes and you don't mind stevia or a longer ingredient list, Nuun is a smart, convenient tablet. If you want the simplest possible label — three ingredients, no sweeteners, no natural flavors — plus more sodium and real carbohydrate to actually fuel a hard session, Cleonse is built for that. Neither is "better" in a vacuum. They're built for different priorities.
The two labels, side by side
Let's start with the facts, because this is where the two products really separate. Here's Nuun Sport against Cleonse, per serving. Nuun's numbers are from their current published label; ours are printed on every stick.
| Per serving | Nuun Sport (1 tablet, 5g) | Cleonse (1 stick, 30g) |
|---|---|---|
| Sodium | 300mg | 500mg |
| Potassium | 150mg | From sea salt (trace) |
| Magnesium | 25mg | From sea salt (trace) |
| Calcium | 13mg | From sea salt (trace) |
| Chloride | 40mg | From sea salt |
| Calories | 15 | 100 |
| Total sugar | 1g (1g added) | 24g |
| Sweetener | Stevia leaf extract | None — organic cane sugar |
| Ingredient count | ~12 | 3 |
| Format | Effervescent tablet | Powder stick, mixes into 16 oz water |
Nuun's full ingredient list runs: citric acid, dextrose, sodium bicarbonate, potassium bicarbonate, sodium carbonate, natural flavor, potassium chloride, magnesium oxide, calcium carbonate, stevia leaf extract, avocado oil, and beet juice for color (some flavors add malic acid or riboflavin). That's a well-formulated tablet — the effervescence comes from the bicarbonate-and-acid reaction, and the mineral salts deliver the five electrolytes.
Cleonse's full ingredient list is: organic lemon (or strawberry) powder, organic cane sugar, and French grey sea salt. That's the entire label. The sea salt naturally carries 85+ trace minerals, but they're present in genuinely trace amounts — I'm never going to tell you they're a meaningful dose of magnesium or potassium. If a broad, measured spread of those minerals matters to you, that's a real point for Nuun, and I'll say so plainly.
Where Nuun wins
Three honest advantages, no spin.
Measured potassium, magnesium, and calcium. Nuun adds real, labeled amounts of four electrolytes beyond sodium. If your goal is a light daily top-up across several minerals — not just sodium replacement — Nuun's spread does something Cleonse's single French grey sea salt can't claim in meaningful doses.
Very low sugar and calories. At 1g of sugar and 15 calories, Nuun is close to zero-calorie. If you're on a low-carb or ketogenic plan, tracking macros tightly, or you simply want hydration without fuel, that's a genuine fit. Cleonse's 24g of sugar is intentional, but it's the wrong tool if you don't want the carbohydrate.
Portability and price per serving. A tube of tablets fits in a jersey pocket or a carry-on with no loose powder, and drops into any water bottle. Per serving, tablets also tend to run cheaper than a premium stick. For travel and convenience, the tablet format is hard to beat.
Where Cleonse wins
Now my side of the table — again, just facts. The case for Cleonse comes down to three things.
A genuinely three-ingredient label. Nuun uses "no artificial sweeteners," which is true — but it still contains stevia, natural flavor, dextrose, citric acid, and several manufactured mineral salts. None of those are dangerous. But "clean" can mean different things, and if your version is "I want to recognize every single word on the label," a dozen ingredients isn't that. Cleonse is three whole-food ingredients with no stevia, no natural flavors, no acids, and no anti-caking agents. If you want to understand more about how I think about that, I wrote a longer piece on what actually makes an electrolyte "clean."
Meaningfully more sodium. Cleonse delivers 500mg of sodium per stick versus Nuun's 300mg. Sodium is the electrolyte you lose most in sweat, and for hard or hot training the American College of Sports Medicine points to roughly 300–600mg per hour. One Cleonse stick lands at the top of that range; you'd need close to two Nuun tablets to match it. If you're a heavy or salty sweater, that gap matters.
Real carbohydrate that fuels the session. This is the part people misread as a downside. Nuun keeps sugar near zero on purpose; Cleonse includes 24g of organic cane sugar on purpose. Cane sugar is sucrose — glucose plus fructose — which your gut absorbs through two different pathways, a well-established way to move carbohydrate and fluid during endurance work. For a long ride, run, or match, that 24g isn't "junk"; it's fuel your muscles use. For a walk to your desk, it's more than you need. Context is everything.
You can see the complete Cleonse breakdown, including the full mineral profile of the sea salt, on our facts page.
Stevia: the real dividing line
The single biggest philosophical split between these two products is stevia. Nuun uses stevia leaf extract to hit near-zero sugar while staying sweet. It's plant-derived and widely considered safe. But a lot of people — myself included — either dislike the aftertaste or simply want to avoid sweeteners of any kind, natural or artificial. Cleonse gets its sweetness from the same cane sugar that fuels you, so there's no stevia, no monk fruit, and no sucralose in the equation. If stevia is a dealbreaker for you in either direction, it basically decides this comparison on its own.
Which should you choose?
Here's how I'd actually route someone.
Pick Nuun if: you want the lowest possible sugar, you're managing macros or eating low-carb, you like the convenience of a tablet, you specifically want measured potassium/magnesium/calcium, and stevia doesn't bother you.
Pick Cleonse if: you want the shortest, most recognizable ingredient list on the market, you train hard or sweat heavily and want 500mg of sodium, you want real carbohydrate to fuel endurance sessions, and you'd rather avoid stevia and natural flavors entirely.
Plenty of athletes even keep both: Nuun for low-key daily sipping and travel, Cleonse for the sessions that actually earn a hit of fuel and sodium. There's no rule that says you have to be loyal to one tube.
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Shop CleonseFrequently asked questions
Is Nuun healthier than Cleonse?
Neither is "healthier" outright — they're built for different jobs. Nuun is lower in sugar and spreads five electrolytes; Cleonse has a shorter, whole-food ingredient list, more sodium, and real carbohydrate for fuel. The healthier choice is the one that matches your training and your definition of clean.
Does Nuun have more electrolytes than Cleonse?
Nuun lists more types of electrolytes in measured amounts (sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, chloride). Cleonse leads on the single electrolyte you lose most in sweat — sodium — at 500mg versus Nuun's 300mg. More types isn't automatically better; it depends on what you're replacing.
Why does Cleonse have so much more sugar than Nuun?
Because the sugar is the point. Cleonse uses 24g of organic cane sugar as training fuel and as its only sweetener, which is why there's no stevia. Nuun keeps sugar near zero and uses stevia instead. If you want fuel, Cleonse; if you want zero carbs, Nuun.
Does Cleonse use stevia or artificial sweeteners?
No. Cleonse has zero stevia, monk fruit, sucralose, or any artificial sweetener. Its only sweetness comes from organic cane sugar. Nuun uses stevia leaf extract to stay low-sugar.
Can I use Cleonse for everyday hydration like Nuun?
You can, but match it to your day. Cleonse shines around training and heavy sweating, where 500mg of sodium and 24g of carbohydrate are useful. For a sedentary day, that's more fuel than you need, and a lower-calorie option may suit better.
Keep reading
- Electrolytes Without Stevia: Why We Skipped It
- Electrolytes Without Artificial Sweeteners
- Cleonse vs LMNT: Clean Electrolyte Comparison
Editor's note — sources: Nuun Sport nutrition and ingredient data verified against Nuun's official product page (nuunlife.com/products/nuun-sport), accessed August 2026. Sodium-per-hour guidance for endurance exercise reflects American College of Sports Medicine ranges as summarized by Rouvy (rouvy.com/blog/how-much-sodium-per-hour-cycling). Cleonse figures are per the product label. Nuun is a trademark of its respective owner; this comparison is independent and not endorsed by Nuun. This article is for general information and is not medical advice.