If you drink sports drinks or drinks to stay hydrated, you’ve probably heard of Gatorade, one of the most well-known brands.
But there is also a popular drink that has been on the market for a long time called Vitamin Water. So, what makes Gatorade different from Vitamin Water?
Key Takeaways:
The main difference between Gatorade and Vitamin Water is that the former is a well-renowned sports drink, while the latter is a mild energy drink loaded with vitamins. Moreover, both beverages differ in terms of ingredients and nutrient content.
Read on to take a closer look at Gatorade and Vitamin Water and how they compare in various aspects.
Gatorade Overview:
American company Gatorade is most known for its range of sports drinks. PepsiCo, the company responsible for producing Gatorade at the moment, exports it to more than 80 countries.
The drink was first created in 1965 by a group of scientists headed by Dr. Robert Cade. Gatorade makes and sells nutritious sports drinks. Products, including energy bars, thirst quenchers, fitness water, shakes, and more, are available from the company.
Recommended Resource:
A few of our readers wanted to know the intended purpose of Gatorade’s G1, G2, and G3. So we put together a detailed resource on how each drink improves your performance.
Gatorade is a flavored, non-carbonated isotonic sports drink created for use during physical activity to restore the body’s glycogen, sodium, and potassium levels. Gatorade was created to enhance the athletic performance of professional players on the field.
Vitamin Water Overview:
Vitamin Water is one of the options to look for if you are looking for a drink packed with vitamins. Some varieties of Vitamin Water offer 50 mg of caffeine.
Vitamin Water comes with around 15 available flavors. This drink includes electrolytes, vitamins C, B5, B6, and B12.
Comparison Of Gatorade With Vitamin Water:
Taste: Gatorade vs. Vitamin Water
There are around 20+ Flavors of Gatorade and around 10+ flavors of Vitamin water. In the following chart, we have listed some of those:
| Gatorade | Vitamin Water |
| Lemonade | Rise |
| Cool Blue | Squeezed |
| Citrus Cooler | xoxox |
| Berry | Serenit-e |
| Fruit Punch | Recover-e |
| Rain Berry | Focus |
| Fierce: Grape | Gut-c |
| Lime Cucumber | Restore |
| Frost: Riptide Rush | Multi-v |
| Frost: Cascade Crash | xxx |
| Strawberry Lemonade | Essential |
| Frost: Icy Charge | Energy (50 mg of Caffeine) |
| Strawberry Watermelon | |
| Strawberry | |
| Frost: Tropical Mango | |
| Fierce: Green Apple | |
| Frost: Glacier Cherry | |
| Fierce: Blue Cherry | |
| Frost: Arctic Blitz | |
| Low Calorie: Strawberry Lemonade | |
| Rain Lime | |
| Rain Strawberry Kiwi | |
| Tangerine | |
| Watermelon Citrus | |
| Lemon-Lime | |
| Melon | |
| Frost: Glacier Freeze | |
| Mango Extremo | |
| Orange |
Ingredients: Gatorade vs. Vitamin Water
| Gatorade Ingredients | Vitamin Water Ingredients |
| Water, Citric Acid, Salt, Sodium Citrate, Monopotassium Phosphate, Sugar, Dextrose, Gum Arabic, Glycerol Ester of Rosin, Natural Flavor, Sucrose Acetate Isobutyrate, Yellow 6. | Reverse osmosis water, crystalline fructose, electrolytes (potassium phosphate, calcium, and magnesium lactates) gum acacia, natural flavors, glycerol ester of rosin, cane sugar, less than 0.5% of vitamins C, E, B3, B5, B6, B12 (beta carotene, ascorbic acid, alpha-tocopherol, niacinamide, calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, cyanocobalamin), |
When we compare the ingredients, it is clear from the name of the Vitamin Water beverage that it is packed with more types of vitamins than Gatorade. Both beverages contain some sugar and electrolytes in them.
Nutrition: Gatorade vs. Vitamin Water
| Gatorade | Amount | Serving Size | Vitamin Water | Amount | Serving Size |
| Calories | 140 | 1 Bottle | Calories | 100 | 1 Bottle |
| Carbohydrate | 36 g | Carbohydrate | 27 g | ||
| Sodium | 270 mg | Sodium | 0 mg | ||
| Potassium | 80 mg | Potassium | 188 mg | ||
| Sugar | 34 g | Sugar | 27 g |
As you can see in the above comparison of both beverages, Gatorade is a high-calorie and high-carbohydrate-containing drink (based on the amount per serving.
But the Vitamin water drink has little difference in calories, carbohydrates, or sugar content. Both beverages have potassium content, with Vitamin Water having the most amount of potassium content per serving.
What stands out is the sodium content when we compare both drinks and the presence and absence of caffeine.
Performance: Gatorade vs. Vitamin Water
The amount of sodium in a certain item is directly related to the consumer’s blood pressure.
Athletes need sodium because they lose it via sweat during training and competition. Therefore, sodium drinks assist in restoring the body to its optimal level.
Physical activities increase thirst; thus, athletes must maintain a healthy fluid balance. In addition, sodium controls the osmotic process, which affects the concentration of vital mineral solutes and ions in the body.
At elevated temperatures, the salt loss is often increased. This proves that individuals living in nations near the equator need a diet rich in sodium. The sweat glands in the body do their job quite well.
These glands reabsorb some of the sweat that is produced. Therefore, the sodium content that was lost is restored in the body. In addition, the salt (sodium) the body needs to restore may be supplemented with sports drinks such as Gatorade.
However, you can’t expect too much electrolyte replenishment with vitamin water because it doesn’t have any sodium content.
On the other hand, interestingly, Gatorade doesn’t come with any caffeine content. Caffeine is the main stimulating substance present in beverages that give you an instant kick. It is the main component responsible for making you feel more alert after you consume energy drinks or even coffee (because coffee has caffeine).
One bottle of Vitamin water energy comes with around 50 mg of caffeine. It’s not too high if we compare it with other energy drinks. For instance, one 8.46 oz (250 ml) can of Red Bull contains around 80 mg of caffeine, and one can of Monster has around 160 mg of caffeine. Make sure to select a bottle of Vitamin Water Recover-e if you’re looking for no caffeine.
But still, the caffeine content in the Vitamin water energy drink is enough to make you feel the kick and instant energy. However, with Gatorade, you can’t expect that because it doesn’t have any caffeine.
Final Verdict – Which Is Better: Gatorade Or Vitamin Water
Vitamin water is a great option if you’re searching for a drink to help you get through the burned-out phase. On the other hand, Gatorade is the best option if you need an electrolyte replenishment beverage after strenuous physical exercise.
Check out more handpicked posts on Gatorade:
