Brand Profiles at a Glance

Maurten Science in Sport (SIS)
Founded 2015 1992
HQ Sweden United Kingdom
Core positioning Hydrogel fuelling for elite endurance Evidence-based sports nutrition
Key differentiator Patented hydrogel encapsulates carbs for faster gastric emptying Beta Fuel 1:0.8 glucose-fructose ratio; 80g carb/hr tolerance
Notable athletes Eliud Kipchoge, INEOS Grenadiers, Jumbo-Visma Tour de France pelotons; Sky/INEOS historically

Maurten's origin story is tightly wound around elite marathon performance. Founded in 2015, the company's founding thesis was that carbohydrate absorption is limited not by how much sugar the gut can handle, but by how quickly the gut can process it. A hydrogel delivery vehicle, the thesis held, would change those limits. SIS entered the market 23 years earlier, building a large, academically-grounded product catalog across gels, drinks, and recovery nutrition before making its own formulation pivot with the 2021 Beta Fuel reformulation.

The Formulation Question: Hydrogel vs Isotonic vs 1:0.8

Understanding Maurten and SIS requires understanding two separate innovations in sports nutrition science.

Maurten's Hydrogel Technology

Maurten gels and drink mixes are built around a sodium alginate and pectin matrix that forms a gel-like consistency when it contacts stomach acid. The mechanism the company promotes is that this hydrogel encapsulation slows the rate at which carbohydrates are released into the small intestine, reducing osmotic stress on the gut wall and, theoretically, lowering the risk of GI distress at high carbohydrate intakes.

Maurten products use a 0.8:1 glucose-to-fructose ratio (Maurten labels this as 0.8:1; equivalent to glucose:fructose 1:0.8 as used in independent research). Separate intestinal transporter pathways (SGLT1 for glucose; GLUT5 for fructose) are engaged simultaneously to maximize total carbohydrate absorption per hour without overwhelming either pathway.

The practical ceiling Maurten targets is approximately 60–80g of carbohydrate per hour, consistent with research on dual-carbohydrate absorption.

SIS Beta Fuel's 2021 Reformulation

SIS's Beta Fuel line was reformulated in 2021, shifting from a roughly 2:1 glucose-to-fructose ratio to a 1:0.8 maltodextrin-to-fructose ratio, numerically close to Maurten's approach but arrived at via different product philosophy. SIS's internal and third-party research targeted 80g of carbohydrates per hour as a sustainable ceiling for trained athletes with appropriate gut training.

Beta Fuel gels are isotonic, formulated to be absorbed without additional water to reduce reliance on aid station timing during racing.

SIS GO Isotonic Energy Gels (the non-Beta Fuel line) remain a lower-carb, no-water-needed option at 22g carbs per gel, making them relevant for shorter efforts or athletes who prefer smaller, more frequent dosing.

The Key Distinction

Maurten's hydrogel claim is about the delivery mechanism: a structural change to how carbs move through the stomach. SIS's Beta Fuel claim is primarily about ratio optimization: achieving better use of dual-transporter kinetics. Both arrive at similar numbers on paper (40g per gel unit for their premium lines), but the mechanisms differ. Ongoing academic debate continues about whether hydrogel delivery provides a measurable gut-comfort advantage over well-formulated isotonic gels at equivalent carbohydrate loads.

For a deeper look at how these ratios affect absorption, see the glucose-fructose ratio reference guide.

Full Product Comparison: Real Specs from the Data

The table below covers all active (non-discontinued) Maurten and SIS products, normalized to allow like-for-like comparison.

Gels

Brand Product Carbs (g) Carb Ratio Caffeine (mg) Sodium (mg) Price (USD) Cost per 30g carb
Maurten Gel 100 25 0.8:1 0 40 $3.90 $4.68
Maurten Gel 100 Caf 100 25 0.8:1 100 40 $3.90 $4.68
Maurten Gel 160 40 0.8:1 0 40 $4.90 $3.68
SIS GO Isotonic Energy Gel 22 — 0 10 $2.25 $3.07
SIS Beta Fuel Gel 40 1:0.8 0 100 $2.88 $2.16

Key gel observations:

  • Carbohydrate delivery is equal at the top of both ranges: 40g per unit from Maurten Gel 160 and SIS Beta Fuel Gel. The difference is the delivery mechanism (hydrogel vs isotonic) and price.
  • SIS Beta Fuel Gel costs $2.16 per 30g of carbohydrate vs Maurten Gel 160 at $3.68 per 30g: a 70% premium for the hydrogel mechanism.
  • Sodium content differs significantly: Maurten Gel 160 provides 40mg sodium per gel; SIS Beta Fuel Gel provides 100mg. For athletes sweating heavily, the SIS figure is closer to meaningful electrolyte replacement per dose.
  • Maurten's caffeinated option (Gel 100 Caf 100) delivers 100mg of caffeine, a full ergogenic dose, but at only 25g of carbohydrates per unit, requiring more gels to hit high-carb targets.

Drink Mixes

Brand Product Carbs (g) Carb Ratio Sodium (mg) Price (USD) Cost per 30g carb
Maurten Drink Mix 160 39 0.8:1 230 $3.50 $2.69
Maurten Drink Mix 320 80 0.8:1 460 $4.50 $1.69
SIS Beta Fuel Drink 80 1:0.8 400 $3.75 $1.41
SIS GO Electrolyte 36 — 200 — —

Key drink observations:

  • At the 80g carb/serving tier, SIS Beta Fuel Drink ($1.41/30g carb) is notably cheaper than Maurten Drink Mix 320 ($1.69/30g carb).
  • Sodium is comparable at the 80g level: Maurten 320 provides 460mg vs SIS Beta Fuel Drink's 400mg, both meaningful contributions to electrolyte strategy in long efforts.
  • Maurten Drink Mix 160 (39g carbs, $2.69/30g) occupies a middle tier for athletes who want lower per-serving carbohydrate loads.
  • SIS GO Electrolyte serves a different purpose: primary hydration with moderate carb support, not high-carbohydrate fueling.

Specialty Products

Brand Product Category Notes
Maurten Bicarb System Alkaline loading Pre-exercise sodium bicarbonate loading protocol; no carbohydrate content; $65.00 per pack

Texture, Taste & Race-Day Logistics

Formulation science explains how carbohydrates are absorbed. It does not explain what it feels like to tear open a sachet in kilometre 32 of a marathon, or why athletes who have raced on the same gel for years still reach for variety at Ironman distances. The sensory and logistical dimension of gel selection is underreported in comparison articles and overrepresented in race-week decisions.

Mouthfeel and Texture

Maurten Gel 100 and Gel 160 have a distinctive mouthfeel unlike any conventional running gel. The hydrogel matrix gives each sachet a firm, almost gelatinous consistency — not liquid, not solid, but a cohesive clump that can be swallowed without additional water. It leaves no coating on the mouth, has no detectable flavour, and produces no aftertaste. Athletes either find this immediately comfortable or initially strange; there is almost no middle ground in reported first-use reactions.

SIS Beta Fuel Gel is a thinner, syrupy liquid delivered in a larger sachet. It flows like a viscous drink rather than a gel in the conventional sense. SIS offers Beta Fuel Gel in multiple flavours (Orange, Strawberry, Lime, and others depending on market), which makes it approachable for athletes accustomed to flavoured nutrition. The isotonic formulation means it disperses readily in the mouth; no water is required. At shorter durations — a 90-minute training run or an Olympic-distance race — the flavour is typically well-tolerated. After three to four hours of repeated dosing, some athletes find the sweetness accumulates into what they describe as cloying, a phenomenon sometimes called flavour fatigue.

SIS GO Isotonic Energy Gels are lighter than Beta Fuel in both carbohydrate density and texture. They have a thinner consistency and a milder flavour profile than Beta Fuel, which makes them an easier entry point for athletes newer to isotonic gel formats. The lower 22g carbohydrate dose means more gel interactions per hour at high-carb targets, but each individual sachet is less heavy on the palate.

Sachet Size and Vest Logistics

Physical footprint matters when a marathoner is deciding how many gels to carry and where to put them.

Maurten Gel 100 sachets weigh approximately 40g each; Gel 160 sachets weigh approximately 65g. Both are compact by gel standards and fit cleanly into standard race-vest front pockets. Five Maurten Gel 160s in a vest adds roughly 325g of gel weight; the sachets themselves are dense and do not take up disproportionate space.

SIS Beta Fuel Gel sachets are 60ml liquid sachets, taller and wider than the Maurten Gel 160 in all three dimensions. They are noticeably bulkier in a vest pocket. For a marathoner carrying five gels, the difference in pocket volume between five Maurten Gel 160s and five SIS Beta Fuel Gels is significant enough to be felt during a pre-race kit check. Athletes who train with a minimal vest or tight shorts pockets report the SIS format requires more deliberate positioning.

Practical note: both formats are designed for one-handed opening during effort. Maurten sachets open with a clean tear across the top. SIS Beta Fuel Gel sachets have a tear notch that functions reliably. Neither format presents a meaningful advantage here.

Flavour Fatigue at Distance

Maurten's tasteless design is a deliberate engineering choice with a specific use case: events long enough that any detectable flavour becomes a liability. At Ironman distance — eight to seventeen hours for most age-group athletes — the accumulation of sweet, flavoured nutrition products is a documented driver of late-race nausea and refusal to consume calories at the point when caloric consumption is most critical. An athlete who cannot stomach their gel at hour ten is functionally under-fuelled regardless of how good the formulation is.

Maurten's lack of flavour sidesteps this constraint entirely. There is nothing to become sick of. Athletes who race Ironman and 100-mile ultramarathon distances on Maurten consistently cite this property as the primary reason for brand loyalty.

SIS flavours (and to a lesser extent PF&H Beta Fuel-format equivalents) are palatable for two to four hours of racing for most athletes. Beyond that threshold, individual tolerance diverges sharply. Some athletes rotate flavours mid-race to reset the palate; others find that a brief switch to savoury food (pretzels, boiled potatoes at aid stations) allows them to return to flavoured gels. Neither workaround is needed with Maurten.

For races under three hours, flavour fatigue is rarely a material factor, and the SIS flavour range can be an advantage — athletes who enjoy the taste of their nutrition are more likely to consume it on schedule.

Field Notes — For first-person race-day usage of these products at Ironman distance, see Thomas Prommer's POV piece: Hydrogel: What the Studies Really Say (covers Maurten Gel 160 at IM Lanzarote, hour-by-hour observations) and 120g/hr: Gold Standard or Gimmick? (n=1 protocol comparing 90/105/120 g/hr targets).

Price Analysis: What You're Actually Paying For

Normalized to cost per 30g of carbohydrate (the most useful unit for fueling strategy comparison), the picture looks like this:

Gels (cost per 30g carb):

  • Maurten Gel 100 / Gel 100 Caf 100: $4.68
  • Maurten Gel 160: $3.68
  • SIS Beta Fuel Gel: $2.16
  • SIS GO Isotonic Energy Gel: $3.07

Drink mixes (cost per 30g carb):

  • Maurten Drink Mix 160: $2.69
  • Maurten Drink Mix 320: $1.69
  • SIS Beta Fuel Drink: $1.41

At every tier, SIS delivers more carbohydrate per dollar. For a 3-hour marathon effort targeting 60g of carbohydrate per hour (180g total), the difference is roughly:

  • Maurten Gel 160 only: 4–5 gels × ~$4.90 = ~$20–24
  • SIS Beta Fuel Gel only: 4–5 gels × ~$2.88 = ~$12–14

For athletes who train and race frequently, this difference compounds significantly. Gut training requires consistent product use; progressively increasing carbohydrate intake during training to improve absorption tolerance only works if the same product is used throughout. At Maurten's price points, that becomes a meaningful budget consideration.

If you're working out your optimal carbohydrate targets for training versus racing, the TDEE & Macro Planner can help establish your baseline energy needs, and the Macro Periodization Calculator is designed for matching carbohydrate intake to training phase and intensity.

Who Should Use Maurten

Maurten's profile fits athletes who:

  • Have a documented history of GI distress on conventional gels during high-intensity or long efforts, and have not yet found a solution
  • Are competing in elite or high-priority events where cost is secondary to reducing GI risk
  • Prefer a very simple, unflavored product with minimal ingredient complexity
  • Are fueling at the 60–80g carb/hour range and want a well-supported protocol
  • Are using the Maurten Drink Mix 320 as a high-carb drink solution where the per-30g cost ($1.69) is competitive with SIS

Maurten's strongest case rests on its real-world usage data. Eliud Kipchoge used it to run sub-2-hour marathons. INEOS Grenadiers and Jumbo-Visma have used it at Grand Tours. Elite athletes have access to anything, and their nutritionists operate with outcome data most recreational athletes do not have. That level of validation carries real signal.

Maurten is a weaker fit for athletes who:

  • Are on a nutrition budget and training daily
  • Prefer flavored products
  • Want electrolyte replacement integrated into their gel dose (Maurten gels carry only 40mg sodium)
  • Are newer to high-carbohydrate fueling and still developing gut tolerance

Who Should Use SIS Beta Fuel

SIS Beta Fuel's profile fits athletes who:

  • Are comfortable with the 1:0.8 maltodextrin-to-fructose ratio and have gut-trained to 80g/hour
  • Want higher sodium per gel dose without carrying additional electrolytes
  • Are optimizing for cost-efficiency across a full training cycle
  • Are targeting the 80g/hour carbohydrate ceiling and want gel + drink flexibility within the same product ecosystem
  • Want a caffeinated option integrated into a high-carb product (check current SIS Beta Fuel Gel Caffeine availability; not reflected in this data set)

SIS GO Isotonic Energy Gel remains an excellent option for athletes who:

  • Are fueling efforts of 60–90 minutes where lower carb intake (22g per gel) is appropriate
  • Want no-water isotonic gels for racing without access to fluid pacing
  • Are new to gel fueling and building tolerance incrementally

FAQ: Answering the Questions Runners Actually Search

Is Maurten better than SIS?

Neither brand is categorically better — the right answer depends on your budget, GI history, and carbohydrate targets. Maurten's hydrogel technology has strong elite-level validation and may offer gut-comfort advantages for athletes with documented GI sensitivity. SIS Beta Fuel delivers the same 40g carbohydrate per gel at roughly 70% lower cost per 30g of carbohydrates, with higher sodium per dose. For a 90-minute training run, a SIS GO Isotonic gel at $2.25 is excellent value. For a high-stakes marathon where GI distress could end your race, Maurten Gel 160 is a defensible spend.

What gel does Eliud Kipchoge use?

Kipchoge has used Maurten since 2017 and remains a featured athlete on Maurten's website. He used Maurten gel and drink mix formulations in the sub-2-hour Breaking2 attempt (2017) and the 1:59:40 INEOS 1:59 Challenge (2019), as well as his Olympic marathon campaigns. His use of Maurten is cited more than any other athlete endorsement in the brand's positioning.

Do SIS gels actually work?

Yes. SIS has 30+ years of product development and a substantial base of third-party research, particularly around the Beta Fuel reformulation and dual-transporter carbohydrate ratios. The 2021 Beta Fuel reformulation specifically targeted improved carbohydrate oxidation rates: the ability to burn more carbohydrate per hour without GI limitation. The isotonic gel format, which requires no water for absorption, has practical utility in races where managing water intake alongside gel timing is difficult.

What is the difference between Maurten Gel 100 and Gel 160?

The Maurten Gel 100 delivers 25g of carbohydrates per unit; the Gel 160 delivers 40g. Both use the same hydrogel formulation and 0.8:1 glucose-to-fructose ratio. The Gel 160 is Maurten's response to growing demand for higher-carbohydrate, fewer-touchpoints fueling. Athletes running or cycling at high intensities often want to minimize the number of gel interactions per hour. At $4.90 vs $3.90, the Gel 160 costs $1.00 more per unit but delivers 60% more carbohydrate, making it more cost-efficient per gram ($3.68 vs $4.68 per 30g of carbohydrate). For most marathon runners targeting 60–80g/hour, the Gel 160 is the more practical Maurten choice.

Product Comparison Summary Table

Brand Product Carbs (g) Ratio Caffeine Sodium Price $/30g carb
Maurten Gel 100 25 0.8:1 — 40mg $3.90 $4.68
Maurten Gel 100 Caf 100 25 0.8:1 100mg 40mg $3.90 $4.68
Maurten Gel 160 40 0.8:1 — 40mg $4.90 $3.68
Maurten Drink Mix 160 39 0.8:1 — 230mg $3.50 $2.69
Maurten Drink Mix 320 80 0.8:1 — 460mg $4.50 $1.69
SIS GO Isotonic Energy Gel 22 — — 10mg $2.25 $3.07
SIS Beta Fuel Gel 40 1:0.8 — 100mg $2.88 $2.16
SIS Beta Fuel Drink 80 1:0.8 — 400mg $3.75 $1.41
SIS GO Electrolyte 36 — — 200mg — —

Prices reflect single-unit retail. Multi-pack and subscription pricing will lower per-unit costs for both brands. Bicarb System (Maurten, $65.00) excluded from gel/drink comparison as it serves a distinct alkaline-loading purpose.

Recommendation Framework: Pick Maurten If... Pick SIS If...

Pick Maurten if:

  • You have GI distress history on conventional fueling and want to trial the hydrogel mechanism
  • You are racing a high-priority event (A-race, marathon major) and want elite-validated product confidence
  • You are using the Drink Mix 320 as your primary carbohydrate source, where the cost-per-carb gap narrows
  • Simplicity and minimal ingredient lists matter to you
  • Budget is not a constraint for race-day fueling

Pick SIS Beta Fuel if:

  • You are gut-training across a full season and need cost-efficient daily fueling
  • You want higher sodium per gel unit without separate electrolyte products
  • You are building toward 80g/hour carbohydrate tolerance and want a gel + drink system from one brand
  • You are price-sensitive without wanting to sacrifice carbohydrate quality or absorption science

Pick SIS GO Isotonic if:

  • You are fueling efforts under 90 minutes where 22g carbs per gel is the right dose
  • You are new to gel fueling and prefer a lower-carb, gradual approach
  • You race events where water availability is unpredictable and isotonic gels reduce your dependency on aid stations

The gut-training variable: Both brands' performance claims assume an athlete who has conditioned their gut to absorb high carbohydrate loads during exercise. An athlete who has never gut-trained will likely experience GI distress on both Maurten Gel 160 and SIS Beta Fuel Gel at 80g/hour. The delivery mechanism does not override gut conditioning requirements. For athletes earlier in their fueling journey, starting at 30–40g of carbohydrates per hour and building progressively is more important than brand selection. See the carbs per hour running guide for a progressive gut-training protocol.

References — SERP Landscape

The following sources dominated the SERP for "maurten vs sis" at the time of this research. They are noted here as competitive context; this article aims to improve on them by using normalized product data and explicit formulation science rather than preference-based recommendation.

  1. Reddit (r/AdvancedRunning): Community experience thread. Useful qualitative data; no normalized price analysis.
  2. Runivore: SiS vs Maurten vs Huma comparison. Multi-brand review; not deeply technical.
  3. TrainerRoad Forum: Community discussion thread. Real athlete experience; no product spec tables.
  4. YouTube: BPN vs Maurten vs SIS marathon gel video. Video format; no scannable data.
  5. Runner's World UK: Broader "best energy gels" roundup. Not a dedicated comparison.
  6. Victus Sport: Competitor marketing page.
  7. TrainerRoad Forum (drinks): Battle of super drinks discussion. Useful but community, not editorial.
  8. RunDNA: Top 5 energy gels roundup. Multi-brand, not a focused Maurten vs SIS analysis.