If you’ve got a marathon or half-marathon booked for this year, you may have already started experimenting with energy gels. Taking some form of energy onboard during your race will help you power to the finish. You can absolutely do this with jelly babies! But chewing can be tricky for many for us as we run. This is where energy gels come in.

Energy gels have evolved a lot in the past few year. There’s now a huge array of products in multiple different flavours for runners to choose from. While choosing the right energy gel for your next race ultimately comes down to personal preference and what you personally like, there are some important factors to consider. Some pack more of a punch that others in terms of how much energy they deliver and some are easier to carry than others.

How many energy gels do I need to take?

Runners doing longer races including a half marathon and marathon should be aiming to consume 40-70g of carbohydrate per hour of running. Energy gels are an easy way to help you reach this goal as they’re easy to carry and consume on the run.

Work out how long your race is going to take and look at how much carbohydrate your chosen gel delivers, then work out how many you’ll need. XMiles has a carbohydrate calculator to help you work this out for longer races. It’s important to practice with your gels in training on your long runs to get used to them and find out which brand suits you best.

The best energy gels for runners

We tested a lot of energy gels to save you the time and money in narrowing down the ones you might like to try. We looked at taste, consistency, how easy they were to carry and open as well as how much carbohydrate they deliver and the price. These are some of our favourites.

Maurten Gel 100

Weight: 40g
Energy: 25g of carbohydrate

Maurten has created a Hydrogel Technology which slows the absorption of carbohydrate slightly. This therefore (Maurten says) makes the gel gentler on your stomach and less likely to cause gastro issues during a race. The carbohydrate comes from a blend of fructose and glucose.

It was thicker than I was expecting and almost jelly like in its texture. It’s a nice taste and the flavour reminds me a bit of birthday cake. The thickness means you do have to give it a tiny little chew to break up, but also that it comes clean out of the packet. It’s easy to get it all out (which you’ll appreciate at the price). The top of wrapper came clean off easily and I wasn’t struggling to get it undone.

Puresport Energy Gel

Weight: 41ml
Energy: 30g of carbohydrate

Taste wise I found this gel pleasant enough to take on the run. It was quite sweet, but not in an overpowering, sickly way. The berry flavour I tried was fine, but I’d prefer something a bit more neutral personally. Hopefully that will be added to the range in the future but for now the options are berry or orange.

Consistency wise it was spot on for me – not too thick or too watery (I sound like the Goldilocks of running gels) – it was just right. And the packet opened without any issue.

reeal energy gel

Weight: 75g
Energy: 32g of carbohydrate

This is marketed as ‘the energy gel for people who hate gels’ and if you struggle with the texture or artificial flavour of some other gels, I’d say that this could be a great choice for you.

It’s made from just nine real-food ingredients (hence the name) and it honestly tastes like a pudding in a pouch. I tried the tropical flavour and it was truly delightful. It has a slightly thicker consistency than other gels I’ve used, but that was a real bonus for me. Gels can sometimes make me want to gag due to their texture, but my mouth very much identified this one as actual food which made it so much easier to take mid-run.

It also is a larger amount of gel per sachet than most gels I’ve used. For me, this was great as I like to make every gel last for as long as possible, especially on longer runs, to distract me through some of the miles. Other runners may prefer something with more efficiency in terms of carbs per ml. It is made using a dual carb recipe though (glucose and fructose), which increases how quickly it can be used by the body.

These gels are a bit more spenny than others I’ve tried, but the flavour and texture for me makes it more than worth it. Plus, we love to support a small woman-led business!

Kendal Mint Co energy gel

Weight: 70g
Energy: 27g of carbohydrate

The standout feature of this gel is it’s blend of electrolytes to help with hydration and prevent cramps. It also contains natural peppermint extract and a higher water content to make it gentler on the stomach.

I tested the raspberry mint flavour and it tasted a bit like very sweet mouthwash to me. I found the combination of the raspberry and mint too much. The mint on its own would have been a better option. The consistency was fairly thin so it slipped down out quite easily, but I did have to use my teeth and do it and take the top off the pack. The minty aftertaste keeps going for a couple of miles down the road and I did enjoy that freshness. It’s a fairly small tube so can be carried quite easily, though this is reflected in the amount of carbs.

Precision Fuel PF 30 gel

Weight: 51g
Energy: 30g of carbohydrate

In terms of maximising the amount of carbs you’re getting from a gel, this is one of the biggest hitters on the market at 30g. That comes from a mix of glucose to fructose in a 2:1 ratio which helps maximise carbohydrate absorption.

These gels are difficult to describe the flavour of because they’re not flavoured to replicate anything in particular. PF describes it as a neutral flavour. They taste quite pleasant and not too sweet. The consistency is medium thickness. The pack is a good compact size for stuffing in your pockets for a race and still delivered a big hit of carbohydrate. The rip tab is designed so that it stays attached to prevent littering. The only downside of this gel for me is that it doesn’t contain electrolytes.

SiS Beta Fuel

Weight: 80g
Energy: 40g of carbohydrate

These come in a couple of flavours – orange or strawberry and lime. I’ve been using the orange flavour. They’re quite sweet and there’s a lot of it in the 80g serving. I ran holding it for about half a mile having little sips as I ran along. Like Maurten they have a 1:0.8 glucose-fructose ratio to maximise energy absorption.

The packs are fairly big and would only go in my thigh pockets or hydration vest rather than popping easily in a waistband pocket. They’d be a good choice for ultra runners or those running a marathon with a hydration vest. But they do give you a big dose of carbs as well as a little salt. I actually used this for my last marathon alternating between this and another gel to avoid overdoing it with one flavour. I didn’t hit the wall.

226ERS High Energy Gel

Weight: 76g
Energy: 50g

If you want a gel that gives you flashbacks to being on a night out in Revolution in the early 2000s then this is it. The initial taste is a bit like a vanilla flavoured vodka. Not totally vanilla and not totally vodka, but somehow the love child of them both. I should say this is not an alcoholic gel. The aftertaste is pleasant and a bit like marshmallow. It has a medium thickness consistency. The pack did take a bit of biting to get into but other than that it was all good.

This is the biggest serving of energy of any gel I tested. While it’s also the most expensive, it works out to a similar price as buying two cheaper gels that offer less carbs. Now excuse me while I dance to some old school garage.

Huma Chia Energy Gel

Weight: 42g
Energy: 21g of carbohydrate

This gel is made with 100% all-natural ingredients and features chia seeds as its star ingredient. The energy comes from mango puree, cane sugar and brown rice syrup along with those chia seeds. I was expecting it to have a lump, grainy consistency that you think of with chia seeds, but it didn’t. There was maybe a tiny bit of grittiness, but it was not too thick and was easy to eat.

The flavour wasn’t too strong. I tested the mango and it wasn’t a 100% accurate representation of a mango, but it was OK. I found it quite sweet. The pack is very wide compared to other gels but wasn’t overly full, which means it sits quite flat in your pocket and is easy enough to carry. It does have fewer carbs per sachet than most other gels. Worth bearing in mind when you’re deciding how many gels to take with you.

TORQ Energy Gel

Weight: 45g
Energy: 29g of carbohydrate

I tested the cherry bakewell flavour and, well, it really does taste like cherry bakewell. It’s quite an intense blast of sweet almond and jam flavour. The consistency is fairly thick and the opening at the top of the packet is quite narrow. I did have to give it quite a squeeze to get it out.

It’s a small and compact pack though which makes it easy to carry and has a fairly big dose of carbs for its size. You could carry a few in your pockets without being too bulky. The energy comes from a 2:1 Maltodextrin:Fructose blend and it also contains electrolytes.