Buoy Electrolyte Review

Overall Score

Last Updated November 1, 2021
  • Effectiveness 60% 60%
  • Flavor 55% 55%
  • Ingredients 100% 100%

Key Takeaways

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Squeezable Bottle Makes Adding to Your Drink Fun and Easy

2oz bottle is portable and can be stored in a bag or backpack, ready when you need it.

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Loaded With Trace Minerals, Vitamins and Herbal Extracts

Get all your essential electrolytes plus Vitamins B1, B5 and B6.

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(Mostly) flavorless

Using buoy as recommended won’t add much flavor to your drink.

 

sugar free

low calorie

keto

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Overview

Buoy is a liquid electrolyte product that can be easily squeezed into your favorite beverage for a quick hydration boost. Buoy, developed in collaboration with pharmaceutical scientist Dr. Lianli Li, recommends adding a ½ second squeeze to your go-to drink for a boost of potassium, chloride, sodium, magnesium and calcium. Buoy also contains vitamins and herbal extracts to boost the overall health effects. You won’t find sugar on the ingredients list which goes hand in hand with the 0 calories per squeeze. 

The HydrationReview team tried the original and the immunity versions of the product during the testing period. After taking Buoy, reviewers noted effects ranging from an increase in alertness in the morning to an improved sense of energy throughout the day. Where Buoy fell short was during intense periods of physical exertion. If you need a drink to help you through your sweat session, check out this list of recommended products. If you’re looking for a product that will give you a boost during the workday or a low-impact exercise routine, we recommend giving Buoy a shot (or squeeze).

Effectiveness

When taken as directed, Buoy had a moderate to strong effect on our reviewers. Positive effects were recorded across a wide range of activities and times of day including: in the morning before the work day, post-lunch (to avoid a crash), before and during light physical activities in the evening and before bed. Reviewers reported feeling more alert and energized during their activities and in some cases an increased physical performance. 

“I didn’t expect to feel much of an effect from Buoy considering it had lower salt and sugar levels compared to other electrolytes I’ve tested… My initial impression was wrong. Buoy was a reliable pick-me-up and I found it helped me focus mentally and feel better physically.”

Interestingly, we noticed a more diverse range of times that reviewers used Buoy compared to other electrolytes we’ve tested. One reviewer summed it up well:

“Buoy was easy to add to whatever I was drinking. The small squeeze bottle was always accessible and I could aim the stream into a can of seltzer as easily as I could into a wide-mouth bottle. Also, it didn’t have a strong flavor which meant I could add it to virtually anything I was drinking. I admit to squeezing Buoy into my morning coffee and happy hour margarita. Why not, right?”

While we don’t have a way to test the effectiveness of the health benefits of the Immunity version, a comparison of the ingredients shows that Vitamins A, C3, D and E as well as zinc, ginger root, Elderberry and Echinacea are added to the Immunity version. We rest our confidence in the fact that the formula was developed by a pharmaceutical doctor who knows more about sickness prevention than the average person. We’ll be happy to keep a bottle of the immunity version around during flu season. 

Flavor

Buoy is marketed as a flavorless electrolyte supplement and we found this to be mostly true as long as you follow the manufacturers serving directions. In our testing, most reviewers reported that a ½ second squeeze or a measured ⅓ teaspoon added little to no flavor to an 8oz glass of water. 

For those who reported tasting a flavor, it was mainly when using the Immunity version and was described as salty and herbal. Naturally, adding more than the recommended amount of Buoy will result in a noticeable taste, but this is all relative to the size of your drink or water bottle and what you’re adding Buoy to. As you might expect, the taste of Buoy was completely undetected when it was added to flavored beverages such as coffee, tea or smoothies.

Ingredients

If you want an electrolyte product with a clean list of ingredients, look no further. We found Buoy to be forthright and transparent with all the ingredients contained in their products. While the list of ingredients on the back label may seem a bit overwhelming, upon closer review, they are all natural and responsibly derived. You won’t find any additives that you can’t pronounce.

We appreciated the additional detail about the ingredients offered on the Buoy website. The manufacturer offers insights into the source of each ingredient, so of course, we read through each and every one of them to save you time. Most of the ingredients are sourced from the United States (mainly California) while other ingredients were from around the world including France and Australia. This documentation goes above and beyond what consumers expect and we’d love to see more electrolyte brands follow Buoy’s lead in this area.

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