The Best Functional Drinks in the UK (That Actually Work)
The functional drinks market in the UK has exploded over the past few years. Walk into any supermarket and you'll find shelves packed with drinks promising better focus, improved energy, or deeper relaxation.
The problem? Most of them are what we call "functional theatre" - trace amounts of active ingredients that look good on a label but do absolutely nothing for your body.
We've spent months testing functional drinks across the UK market (yes, someone had to do it). This guide covers what actually works, what doesn't, and what to look for when you're spending £2-4 on a can.
What Makes a Functional Drink Actually Functional?
Before we get into specific products, here's what separates real functional drinks from expensive flavoured water:
- Clinical dosing matters. A lot of brands add 50-100mg of an adaptogen and call it functional. For context, clinical studies typically use 500-3000mg depending on the ingredient. If you're not getting anywhere near therapeutic doses, you're not getting the benefits.
- Transparency is everything. If a brand won't tell you exact dosages, that's usually because they're embarrassingly low. Look for brands that publish full ingredient breakdowns.
Best Functional Drinks by Category
Focus & Cognitive Function
Adapt Focus (yes, we're biased, but the numbers back it up)
- 1000mg Lion's Mane Mushroom, 250mg Ashwagandha & 200mg Korean Ginseng.
- Ginger and lemon flavour, 26 calories
- £2.50-2.75 per can
- Why it works: Clinical doses of nootropics, great tasting, all-natural ingredients
Three Spirit Livener
- Guayusa, schisandra, yerba mate blend
- Works well for social energy without alcohol
- Around £3-4 per serve
- Good option if you want something botanical-focused rather than mushroom-based
Tenzing Natural Energy
- Clean caffeine from green coffee beans (80mg per can)
- Added vitamin C, electrolytes
- Good for straightforward energy without adaptogens
- About £1.50-2 per can
Relaxation & Stress
- 750mg Reishi mushroom, 500mg Passion Flower, 250mg Ashwagandha.
- Pomegranate & Eldferflower flavour, 26 calories
- £2.50-2.75 per can
- Relaxation you can feel with no drowsiness
Trip CBD Drinks
- 15mg CBD per can, botanical blends
- Peach ginger and elderflower mint flavours
- Around £2-2.50
- Decent option if you respond well to CBD
Goodrays
- 30mg CBD per can
- Higher CBD content than TRIP = more relaxation
- £2-2.50
- Good entry point if you're new to the category
Best for Immunity & Wellness
Press London Immunity Shots
- Concentrated ginger, turmeric, black pepper shots
- Properly dosed for actual effect
- £2.50-3 per shot
- Works better than diluted drinks for immune support
Vitamin Well
- Vitamin-focused functional drinks from Sweden
- Transparent dosing, multiple variants
- Around £2 per bottle
- Good for vitamin supplementation, less so for adaptogens
Best for Gut Health
Remedy Kombucha
- Live cultures, organic ingredients
- Multiple flavours, genuinely tasty
- £2-2.50 per bottle
- Best kombucha for flavour and function balance
Living Things Soda
- Live cultures, naturally fermented
- Lower sugar than most kombuchas
- Around £2-2.50 per can
- Good option if you find traditional kombucha too vinegary
XOXO Prebiotic Soda
- Chicory root inulin for gut health
- Low calorie, multiple flavours
- £2-2.50 per can
- Tastes very sweet - more like typical soda than a health drink
What to Avoid
- Energy drinks with "functional" ingredients added. If the first ingredient is sugar and caffeine, adding 50mg of ashwagandha doesn't make it functional.
- Proprietary blends. "Adaptogen blend" tells you nothing. It could be 50mg of the cheap stuff.
- Artificial ingredients - anything with artificial sweeteners, preservatives or flavour enhancer
How Much Should You Spend?
Functional drinks in the UK typically range from £1.50 to £4 per serving. Here's what's reasonable:
- £1.50-2: Basic functional drinks, lower doses, mass market
- £2-3: Premium functional drinks with clinical dosing
- £3-4: Specialty drinks, complex formulations, or alcohol alternatives
- £4+: Usually overpriced unless it's a concentrated shot or particularly complex formula
Where to Buy
Most of these are available through:
- Brand websites (usually cheapest for subscriptions)
- Independent health food shops
- Whole Foods, Planet Organic
- Ocado and other premium online grocers
- Some Sainsbury's, Waitrose, and Tesco stores (limited selection)
The Bottom Line
The UK functional drinks market is full of products that promise a lot and deliver very little. The key is looking past the marketing and checking the actual ingredient dosages.
If a brand won't tell you exact amounts, assume they're not worth your money. If they're transparent about dosing and using clinical amounts of quality ingredients, they're probably worth trying.
The category is still young in the UK, which means there's a lot of innovation happening but also a lot of noise. Stick to brands that treat you like an adult and show their working.